After consulting with nursing homes for the past thirty years, I never thought this could happen, but it’s happening as we speak. For the nursing home industry, it seems like there’s never enough money or reimbursement, so it’s always about getting a bigger slice of the same pie. Whether you’re a not-for-profit, for profit, upstate, downstate, rural, urban, hospital based or free-standing facility, they’re always fighting over the same dollars. Don’t get me wrong, they all deserve more reimbursement, but they’ve always found a way to get by on the few little scraps the State has provided. Until now…
The pandemic has finally brought the industry to its knees, creating a healthcare crisis like never seen before. Some are calling it the COVID HANGOVER. Many industries bounced back after the pandemic due to pent up demand for their products or services and the flood of stimulus funds into the economy.
The Provider Relief Funds & Stimulus Dollars
The nursing home industry survived the pandemic thanks to the Provider Relief Funds and Stimulus dollars as well. Unfortunately, those dollars have all dried up and now they are left with reduced occupancy, mandated spending and minimum staffing requirements, severe workforce shortages, continued supply chain challenges, runaway inflation, and worst of all – a Medicaid rate that hasn’t included a trend factor in 15 years!
Widespread Financial & Operational Challenges
Naturally, this has resulted in widespread financial and operational challenges. The current Medicaid rate covers only 60 – 70% of their average operating costs. With rising costs, there’s simply no other payors to absorb the increased costs noted above. Nursing homes are simply not financially viable.
So, UNITING is now the way to go. Nothing like SURVIVAL to create the incentives to work together for the greater good. Together, nursing homes of all sponsorships and regions as well as their employees, unions and residents are all lobbying, promoting and broadcasting with the same message:
Let’s hope the legislature and the governor’s office get the message! If you need further guidance or have any questions on this topic, we are here to help. Please do not hesitate to reach out to discuss your specific situation.
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