There’s an $18 difference, on average, between what it is costing nursing homes in the state to care for Medicaid-eligible patients and what the program reimburses those facilities. And, state lawmakers are considering a meaure to increase the money nursing homes receive. State Senators on the Aging Committee have heard testimony in favor of a bill that would require the state to review annually what the reimbursement rate is for nursing homes providing care covered by Medicaid. Sister Mary Chrisman is a registered nurse at nursing home in Savannah in northwest Missouri. She says there’s too big of a gap between what it costs to give a patient care and what Medicaid reimburses. Darrell Hendrickson, Director of Long-term Care within the State Department of Health and Senior Services, says nine facilities have had to close because of the money crunch and it coud get worse. Those testifying urge the Senators on the committee to approve the bill. No action has been taken as of yet.
