House Democrats tried Wednesday to override Gov. Mike Parson’s veto of $2.5 million in funding for oversight of Missouri nursing homes, but failed after all but eight Republicans voted in support of the governor’s measure.
This marks the second year in a row that Governor Parson has vetoed funding for nursing home oversight.
The effort was led by Rep. Deb Lavender, a Democrat from Manchester, who argued the money would make nursing home residents in Missouri safer.
“There are complaints that are not being answered,” Lavender said. One-third of Missouri’s nursing homes It turns out there are serious flaws.
The additional funding was supposed to help the state’s long-term care ombudsman program hire more staff to advocate for nursing home residents.
The Ombudsman program is made up of staff and volunteers whose role is to protect and advocate for the interests of nursing home residents. Ombudsmen act as a liaison between residents and the facility when problems arise, and investigate and resolve complaints. Ombudsmen help residents go to the bathroom, take their medication, and eat their meals on time.
Missouri has some of the lowest nursing home staffing levels in the country, which could be contributing to residents not receiving proper care.
The motion to override Parson’s veto failed by a vote of 56 to 81. All Democrats present voted in favor of overriding the veto. All but eight Republicans voted against.
““I just wanted to speak out about the lack of care being given to our seniors,” Lavender said at a press conference after the vote, adding that she was “not surprised” that Democratic lawmakers’ bid to overturn the Republican governor’s decision was unsuccessful.
Lavender said the governor’s decision to cut $2.5 million within the $50 billion state budget is “incomprehensible to me.”
“This is something we put in twice and then the governor rescinded it,” she said.
The state budget signed by Governor Parson in June $1.9 billion remains unused.
Person Written “While this bill supports the important goal of helping seniors across our state, there are insufficient funds allocated to support this item,” he told lawmakers this summer as his reason for vetoing the measure.
In his veto letter last year, he said: the general need to ensure a balanced budget and “Missouri’s fiscal stability.”
Republican State Legislators Rep. Jim Culverlow, R-St. Clair, said during floor debate that he would vote against overriding the veto to respect “there’s a reason why they did this,” referring to the governor’s office veto, but that he supports the funding and hopes the Legislature will try to pass the bill again next year.
“We spend a lot of money on a lot of things,” Culverlow said, “and if we’re not protecting our seniors and people with disabilities, then we should be thinking about where our money is going.”
“It’s our job and our responsibility to reflect the needs of our constituents, not the will of the governor,” said Democratic state Rep. Doug Clemens of St. Louis in response to Gov. Culverlow’s comments. Clemens said there are older constituents who would benefit from more resources being given to the ombudsman program.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to wait another year until we act,” he said. “… This is a tiny amount compared to the rest of our budget.”
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in Report Last year, AARP surveys ranked Missouri 48th in the nation for nursing home quality and 46th in the nation for nursing home staffing and turnover.
According to the most recent federal employee data, updated in July, Missouri residents receive an average of 3.3 hours of care per day. Federal Standards It is expected to come into force within the next few years. It was the second worst in the country after Texas.
Renee Jones, state president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare Missouri, which represents nursing home staff, told The Independent the cuts are a disservice to residents and staff, and that many of the problems stem from staff shortages.
“There should be more oversight of what goes on in care homes, not less,” he said, “so it’s important to have more opportunities for families and residents to contact the ombudsman and the issues around it, because in many cases the ombudsman is the only voice there is.”
Marjorie Moore The executive director of VOYCE St. Louis, an advocacy group for long-term care facility residents, said she was “really disappointed” with Wednesday’s vote but “pleased” that more lawmakers and Missourians at large are starting to realize the need for the program and the problems in nursing homes.
““We’re going to be asking the governor and lawmakers next year to continue this fight and to make sure we get the funding,” she said, “because this is an issue that’s not going to go away in any way.”
Missouri’s elderly population is growing, “and there are just more people who need advocates,” she said.
Moore Despite the state’s failure to raise the necessary levels of resources, the program is still operating statewide, and all nursing home residents throughout Missouri are Get in touch With concern.
