Advocacy
As the President’s budget is debated on Capitol Hill, we urge policymakers to avoid any funding reductions in Medicare to long term care and to provide adequate Medicaid reimbursement, which is chronically underfunded. Congress must understand if it fails to preserve funding for long term care, its actions have a domino effect far beyond skilled nursing facilities and assisted living residences. The reverberating impact on the long term care sector will spill into local economies where often long term care is the largest employer, including long term care businesses like yours.
CoCares Issues
Recent proposals in Congress would eliminate what is known as "the quality fee," which is used by states to generate additional Medicaid funds for skilled nursing facilities. While it is not a long term solution to the fiscal instability of the long term care sector, it is a vehicle for procuring supplemental funds for long term care and certainly now, as many states struggle to narrow or eliminate widening budget deficits. Reducing or removing the quality fee would be detrimental to the health of the long term care sector and CoCares will continue to keep you informed on any efforts in Congress to do so.
CoCares is also monitoring the movement by several Governors to lobby Congress for a change in the process by which states receive Medicaid funding from the federal government. Proposals that convert the Medicaid entitlement into a block grant tend to eliminate the current formula under which states receive federal dollars based on a set percentage of incurred costs. In the long run, block grants will shift costs to the state and increase the perpetual Medicaid shortfalls in reimbursement to skilled nursing facilities. This is not the kind of reform that will keep our sector strong and thriving. Look for continued updates from CoCares.
CoCares advocates for smart and sound long term care public policy that meets the needs of a growing population of elderly entering the long term care system with more complex conditions. Helping to support that system are the community businesses and organizations providing key services to long term care providers that generate $19 billion in state and local taxes and $37 billion in federal taxes.
As a member of CoCares, you will receive Action Alerts encouraging you to contact your members of Congress regarding issues of importance to long term care businesses. Our elected officials must know their support of our long term care sector is needed to ensure our businesses can continue to contribute to our nation’s economy and help make quality care possible for our nation’s elderly.
