Years of Medicaid Cuts Leave Nursing Homes Underfunded

• Since 2012, the state cut Medicaid reimbursement by 14.6 percent, while nursing homes were expected to receive 24.6 in inflationary adjustments. Medicaid reimbursement has failed to keep up. Year after year, RI has neglected the 2012 RI law that provides for an inflationary adjustment in Medicaid reimbursement. This results in a loss of $7.5 million in state and federal matching funds in FY 20-21 due to the governor’s cuts and $50 million over the past eight years.

22,000 Frail Elderly Residents Need Your Attention

• The majority of nursing home residents (65 percent) are receiving Medicaid: these are the most frail of our elderly. Grandmothers and grandfathers, parents and neighbors - those individuals who have cared for us, raised us and served us - deserve to be cared for in this chapter of their lives. And yet, their basic right to care is being diminished with the swoop of a pen.
• These residents are not strong enough to be at home as they need care 24/7. Nursing homes offer cost-effective care for elderly residents at far less cost than hospital stays and much more cost-efficiently than home care due to round the clock resident needs. RI’s elderly population is growing and access to skilled nursing care will be needed.

10,000 Tireless Workers Need Your Attention

• Nursing home workers deserve to be paid adequately by the state. Some of the hardest workers in RI, they dedicate not only their time, but their hearts to providing quality care for those who need it most.
• A staffing crisis has ensued in this low unemployment economy. Those who may work as CNAs or dietary aides are choosing retail or other service jobs that pay more. RI must ensure workers know caring for our elderly is a valuable service held in high regard – this is shown through adequate Medicaid reimbursement.

Our Economy Feels the Impact:

• Medicaid funds have a significant impact on the dollars sent back into the RI economy. These funds deliver quality care to frail elderly residents, adequate wages for our tireless workers and bills from local vendors, among many other payments such as taxes. Our workers also help family members stay employed while they care for ailing relatives, then contribute with taxes and purchasing in RI outside the workplace. The ripple effect of Medicaid returns millions of dollars into the RI economy.