$6.2 billion supplemental budget Archives

Missouri nursing homes to get promised $90 million in relief, “not enough” says advocate

June 24, 2020 By Ashley Byrd

When Missouri state legislators passed a special budget to direct federal stimulus spending, it included $90 million to help nursing homes cope with a virus and accompanying respiratory disease that preys on its population of older, ill patrons.

But, as budget veteran Rep. David Wood explained, the budget amount was just a placeholder, giving the governor the authority to spend that money if and when it comes from the federal government.

Treasurer Fitzpatrick presides over working group meeting for CARES Act funding.

The supplemental budget passed on April 8 and the awaited help for the nursing homes may come soon. Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick leads the working group to dispense the money, with the governor’s approval. He says the group will be meeting in the next week or two to review the next allocation of the $1.26 billion remaining from the federal relief funds to the state.

Since then, the estimate of nursing home needs has grown.

At the beginning of the crisis, nursing home needs were overlooked and underestimated, according to Nikki Strong, executive director of the Missouri Healthcare Association, the state advocacy organization for licensed long-term care facilities.

“We put a lot of time, a lot of effort into a really legitimate ask that, in my opinion, still won’t cover the cost nearly what I know now versus what I knew in March,” Strong said. “If we were to do this over again, I would probably say that $90 million does not come near in covering what many of our facilities across the state are incurring to deal with COVID.”

She said the facilities are now getting more access to testing, PPE’s and telemedicine, but can always use more.

Add to that, she said these facilities are “chronically underfunded.”

“We were 26 dollars per patient per day, on average, underfunded based on the cost reports we filed, mandate cost reports. Funding has always been a significant issue. We were in bad shape before COVID, after COVID from a financial perspective, we were in really, really bad shape,” Strong said. She says there have been dramatic increases in food costs, PPE’s, medical supplies, pharmacy, and oxygen.

Fitzpatrick said the formula for handing out this money has changed.

Now, instead of the previous per diem formula, nursing homes will apply for reimbursement for actual costs like PPE or hazard pay.

Fitzpatrick said state budget staff has been stymied by vague guidelines and have until the end of the year to work out the best way to spend the remaining funds.

“We have been hoping and waiting from additional feedback from (the U.S.) Treasury that will help us make better decisions moving forward because what we don’t want to do is get trigger-happy in spending this money really quickly and then find out they’ve made some clarification that would make that use of the money not acceptable or they open up a bunch of different uses for the money and we wish we wouldn’t have spent it the way we spent it,” Fitzpatrick told Missourinet.

Missouri House to tackle state budget on Monday; they’re being encouraged to wear masks

April 26, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The 163-member Missouri House and its staff members will be encouraged to wear masks when they return to the Statehouse in Jefferson City on Monday.

Missouri House Majority Floor Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, (left) discusses the $6.2 billion supplemental budget with House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The House will gavel-in Monday at noon, and will be debating the budget.

“We have supplied all members and staff with cloth masks. They are cotton and washable,” Missouri House Chief Clerk Dana Rademan Miller tells Missourinet. “All are encouraged, but not required, to wear them and to continue to practice social/physical distancing protocols when we return for session on Monday.”

The House hasn’t met since April 8, when they approved a historic $6.2 billion supplemental budget to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The April 8 debate with unlike anything that’s ever happened in the chamber, with House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, wearing a mask and the chamber limited to ten people at one time. There were no visitors that day in the upper galleries, which are normally full of lobbyists, schoolchildren and the general public.

House Majority Floor Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, tells Missourinet the House has scheduled six hours of budget debate on Monday.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, tells Missourinet he expects the House to perfect the budget on Monday, and give it final approval on Wednesday.

Speaker Haahr and Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, have said the decision to have lawmakers return on April 27 was not an easy one, but that “it’s absolutely critical for the people of Missouri that we keep the state government funded and services operating without interruption.”

Under the state Constitution, Missouri lawmakers are required to approve a balanced state operating budget by May 8.

Haahr and Schatz note committee hearings and legislative proceedings will remain open to the public. They are urging you to follow social distancing guidelines and to participate in the legislative process electronically, when possible.

Schatz says people entering the Missouri Capitol will go through a health screening process, like we saw earlier this month during the supplemental budget debate.

The last day of the 2020 legislative session is Friday, May 15.

Missouri lawmakers to return to Jefferson City on April 27; they’ll practice social distancing (AUDIO)

April 15, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri’s governor believes it’s safe for state lawmakers to return to the Capitol in Jefferson City later this month, adding that the decision is up to legislators. The top leaders in the GOP-controlled Missouri Senate and House say lawmakers will come back on April 27.

State Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on January 28, 2020 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Governor Mike Parson (R) responded Wednesday to a question from Missourinet during his daily media briefing, asking him about the COVID-19 health concerns raised by State Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis.

“There’s still work to be done everyday here at the state, the state keeps going,” Parson says. “So I look for them to be back and I think they will but I think also they’ll take precautions to make sure people can be as safe as they can when they come back to the Capitol.”

Legislative leaders note they have until the May 8 constitutional deadline to approve the state operating budget.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, and other legislative leaders say lawmakers will continue to practice social distancing when they return, and that infection mitigation procedures will continue.

They also say it’s critical that lawmakers keep state government funded and services operating without interruption.

State Rep. Bob Bromley, R-Carl Junction, is screened for COVID-19 symptoms by a Capitol Region Medical Center professional on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Representative Aldridge has COVID-19 safety concerns, for the 163-member House and for staff and Capitol visitors.

“We haven’t really reached the peak of this COVID-19 outbreak for cases being reached, deaths being reached in the state and not also having enough tests to know exactly who has this potential virus,” says Aldridge.

Aldridge says the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation projects that Missouri will reach its peak deaths per day on April 29.

Legislative leaders say they’ll use the time between now and April 27 to monitor the trajectory of Missouri’s coronavirus cases.

Aldridge would prefer that lawmakers tackle the budget in a special session this summer.

“We could be entering something that we just don’t know, I mean no one knows, and I’m not blaming anybody,” Aldridge says. “But we don’t know what’s going to happen in the next couple of weeks, and Missouri is continuing to see an increase in COVID cases.”

State health officials say there are now 4,895 confirmed coronavirus cases in Missouri, along with 147 deaths.

Pro Tem Schatz, Speaker Haahr and other GOP legislative leaders say the decision to move forward on April 27 was not an easy one. They say the General Assembly will continue with social distancing and that hearings and proceedings will be open to the public.

They’re still encouraging you to participate in the process remotely, when possible.

State lawmakers left Jefferson City on April 8, after approving a historic $6.2 billion emergency relief package to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which has cost thousands of jobs across the state. Haahr notes it’s the largest supplemental budget in state history.

The House debate was unlike anything that’s ever been seen in the chamber, with Speaker Haahr wearing a mask and the chamber limited to ten people at one time. There were no visitors in the upper galleries, which normally are filled with schoolchildren, lobbyists and the general public.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with State Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, which was recorded on April 15, 2020:

Haahr, Schatz working with governor on plan for Legislature to return to Missouri Capitol (AUDIO)

April 9, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri legislative leaders are working with the governor on a plan for when lawmakers can return to the Statehouse in Jefferson City.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, reads off the names of House members who were scheduled to come into the chamber and vote on the historic $6.2 billion supplemental budget on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City. (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, tells Missourinet he had a discussion with Governor Mike Parson on Thursday, and met with Senate leaders earlier in the week.

“Obviously, we won’t be back next week, but we’re looking down the road at a potential return date, we haven’t hammered that completely out but we’re working on it,” Haahr says.

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet he participated in Wednesday’s meeting with Haahr. The Speaker emphasizes it’s tough to set a date.

“The hard thing is, this thing (COVID-19 pandemic) sort of changes week-to-week, so even the best plans sometimes go awry, but we’re in the process of trying to figure that out specifically,” says Haahr.

Haahr says the Legislature has a constitutional duty to pass a balanced state operating budget. That deadline is in early May, and Governor Parson has indicated he may call a special session in June for the budget.

The Speaker also says there are some legislative policy items he wants to approve this session.

Meantime, Haahr says Wednesday’s passage of the $6.2 billion supplemental budget to battle COVID-19 “will go down in the record books”. It’s the largest supplemental budget in state history.

The House floor debate was unlike anything that’s ever been seen in the chamber.

“Presiding over an empty chamber with only a maximum of ten people on the floor at the time. Everyone in masks, everyone keeping at least six feet apart,” Haahr says.

There were no visitors sitting in the upper galleries, which normally are full of lobbyists, schoolchildren and the general public. Haahr thanks the House clerk, House staffers, his staff and legislators for making sure things worked in an orderly fashion.

House members came into the chamber to vote, four at a time. They never touched a door, because the back door in the chamber stayed open.

State health officials say there are now 3,539 confirmed coronavirus cases in Missouri, along with 77 deaths. The state Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) released the latest numbers today. Those numbers have increased from Wednesday’s number of 3,327 cases and 58 deaths.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, which was recorded on April 9, 2020:

Missouri lawmakers approve $6.2 billion supplemental to battle the coronavirus

April 8, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri Legislature voted Wednesday in Jefferson City to approve a historic $6.2 billion emergency relief package to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed at least 58 Missourians and has cost thousands of jobs across the state.

A masked Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, strikes the gavel to begin House proceedings on the COVID-19 supplemental on April 8, 2020, with empty galleries (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The Senate approved the bill first, before the House took it up and approved it on a 147-4 vote. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet that he and House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, have signed the supplemental budget, sending it to the governor’s desk.

The House debate was unlike anything that’s ever been seen in the chamber, with Speaker Haahr wearing a mask and the chamber limited to ten people at one time. There were no visitors sitting in the upper galleries, which normally are full of lobbyists, schoolchildren and the general public.

State Rep. David Wood, R-Versailles, says the supplemental includes additional funding for suicide prevention and mental health.

“When you put people into a stressful situation and forcing them to stay home without a paycheck and wondering how they’re going to make it to the next month, that leads to some very serious consequences,” Wood says.

Governor Mike Parson says more than 100,000 Missourians have filed for unemployment this past week.

State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, the ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, says local health departments across Missouri are critical to containing COVID-19.

State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, speaks in support of the COVID-19 supplemental budget on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

“We would ask that the executive branch remember the local health departments who are really underfunded at the state level, across the board,” Kendrick says.

The supplemental also includes $90 million for nursing homes to help with infection control. The state Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) says Missouri has 3,327 COVID-19 cases and 58 deaths.

While the House vote was bipartisan, Wednesday’s floor debate did become heated briefly when Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, said Republicans reacted with scorn, when House Democrats tried to increase funding for the coronavirus outbreak three weeks ago.

“When we (House Democrats) warned that the $33 million in pandemic spending authority then included in the supplemental appropriations bill was woefully insufficient, folks on the other side accused us of political exploitation and shameful behavior,” Quade says.

But House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, fired back, accusing Democrats of politicizing the issue.

“There is no action we could have taken three weeks ago that would have kept us from being here today,” says Vescovo. “The truth is, the only people playing politics with this very serious issue are the ones on the other side of the aisle, Mr. Speaker.”

Wednesday’s House vote featured members wearing masks and going into the chamber to vote, four at a time. Only a few House microphones were used, and the chamber’s back door was kept open, so members did not have to touch door knobs.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, notes the supplemental increased from $413 million a few weeks ago to the current total of $6.2 billion.

Chairman Smith says the supplemental budget also includes about $300 million in funding for K-12 schools to handle COVID-19 related expenses. He says it also includes $12 million for Head Start.

During his floor speech, Smith warned against partisanship, saying Missourians have died from the coronavirus and that others are hurting and need help.

Across the chamber in the Senate, Pro Tem Schatz (R) and Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, also praise the supplemental’s importance.

Rizzo says the relief package is the most robust funding for progressive policies that Missouri has ever seen. He notes it includes $40 million for food banks and Meals on Wheels.