Many long-term care facilities in Upstate NY are at risk of closing THIS YEAR if Medicaid rates are not properly increased in Governor Hochul’s budget next month And this crisis isn’t limited to nursing homes… This will affect EVERYONE who uses ANY medical services!
All components of the medical system work together to provide patient care When one part of the system starts to collapse, the entire system is put under strain and is at risk. But Upstate is losing funding because Albany is focused on Downstate interests. Speak up and take action now! Visit SaveNursingHomes.com to let our elected officials and news media know that Upstate NY needs proper funding!
☎️ Call 1-888-301-7869
Call Governor Hochul’s office at 1-888-301-7869 and let them know “Nursing home Medicaid rates still don’t meet growing costs. This is impacting our community’s access & the availability of skilled nursing care. Please re-evaluate and reform Medicaid funding to properly cover nursing home costs in Upstate New York.”
🔗 Visit – www.NYHJustice.org for more information.
Our elected officials also pay close attention to the news in our local communities. Let our local reporters know that this issue is important to you!
Everyone should care about Medicaid rates. If these cuts are included in this year’s State budget, there are direct consequences for all New Yorkers.
This crisis in Medicaid rates affects everyone who uses medical services. All components of the medical system work together to provide patient care. When one part of the system starts to collapse, the entire system is put under strain and is at risk. All parts must receive proper support.
Most nursing homes across Upstate New York rely on Medicaid for 70-75% of their funding! If nursing homes don’t receive adequate funding to attract and retain qualified staff and maintain necessary equipment and technology, the quality of care for the older adults in your family will suffer.
The entire healthcare industry is already facing major staffing shortages. If Medicaid rates are cut further, these shortages will become further exacerbated by burnout, creating a vicious cycle that compromises the quality of care at nursing homes and other local healthcare facilities, as well as each facility’s ability to continue operations.
This is not hypothetical; it is already happening. In the last 20 years, 75 nursing homes have closed, and 20 of those closures happened in just the past four years. Many more long-term care facilities in Upstate NY are at risk of closing this year. Cuts to Medicaid in the State budget will accelerate an already-growing problem.
What does this mean for you? The complete closure of entire facilities will lead to significantly increased financial and emotional burdens on families who will need to provide care for loved ones on their own, as well as a burden on our communities for people who don’t have family members to provide care.
The last time Medicaid rates were adjusted to accurately reflect the actual cost of providing care was back in 2007. That was 17 years ago, before Obama was elected president, and the first year that the iPhone was introduced.
Claims about a recent increase in Medicaid rates are vague and misleading. New York State’s geographic size and variable population require tailored and flexible solutions that take these differences into account. But Medicaid currently provides the same rate to all facilities across the state, with no consideration for these widely varied costs.
One may think there is a cost savings in Upstate New York and specifically rural areas, but the limited number of resources, the proximity of those resources, higher travel times, and similar factors can make it more expensive to operate in upstate than downstate. That means some downstate facilities are making a profit with the current Medicaid rates and others in Upstate New York are losing millions of dollars.
