Budget raid could shut down nursing homes - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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“The state is moving federak funds allocated for the Arizonw Health Care Cost Containment System and Medicaid to the general said KathleenCollins Pagels, executivee director of the . “There is a loophole in the federa l stimulus legislation that does not requirse states to use Medicaide funding forMedicaid purposes.” That loophole will put the state’sa most frail elderly residents at risk, as nursing homes already are hurting from low Medicaid she said. Arizona’s legislators are considerint cutting payments by 5 percent to health plans that contract with the state’s Medicaid program, which generallyy pays less than private insurers. Gov.
Jan Brewer’sz budget proposal doesn’t include any cuts to insurance instead, it calls for sales and property tax increasews togenerate revenue. When nursin g homes receive less reimbursement from it impacts their ability to provide qualit y care to patients and maintain a skilledswork force, she said. Jay Shetler, president and CEO of , said the majority of the Glendale seniorliving campus’sw funding comes from AHCCCS’ long-ter m care insurance program.
“We’ve been told by AHCCCS official s that if their agency is cut by 5 we — as providers of actual servicese to seniors in nursing homes and assisted-living settingws — can expect a 10 percent decreasde in reimbursement,” Shetler said. That woulds mean a $900,000 hit to Glencroft’d bottom line. “It would forces us to do layoffs,” he adding he will know within a week exactl how many employees his facilitywould lose. he has mobilized about 400 employee s and nursing home residents to write letters to their includingArizona Rep.
John Nelson, R-Glendale, to plear for no cuts in “We’re not sure we can make that kind ofdrastiv across-the-board cuts and still servew at the same level of care,” he Arizona Rep. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, chairwoman of the Hous Health and Human Services does not support the proposal to cutAHCCCx payments. “This gives me heartburn in our budget,” she “I support directing as many federa l stimulus dollars where they will do themost good. That meanw not diverting them froma three-to-one match, whicyh is what we’re talking about here.” For everyu dollar the state contributes to the federal government pitches in $3.
If the statde opts to divert stimulus funds from AHCCCS to thegeneral fund, the match becomezs less. Cuts to AHCCCS insurance providers have a dominoi effecton businesses, passing on a hidden tax to employerss and employees, Barto said. “It’sw a stealth tax on privat insurers,” she said. “Idf we’re going to do we might as well be up fron t andsay we’re going to raiswe taxes.” Here’s another domino effect: When AHCCCS fundingg is cut, insurance companiews pass higher premiums on to employers, who then pass alony those increased costs to she said. “We need to take advantage of the federal dollarx where they will do the most Barto said.
Arizona Sen. Ken D-Phoenix, ranking member of the Senatw Finance Committee, said he woulc not support Republican-backed budget cuts to AHCCCS.