Springfieldstate Sen. Ram Villivalam joined a group of nurses, nursing home administrators and bipartisan lawmakers to seek an increase in nursing home Medicaid reimbursement rates and continued his commitment to supporting seniors as the eighth district focuses on the state's best nurses.
“Every day, these homes take care of our loved ones with compassion and respect, but they need our help. It's no secret that all costs have increased,” Villivalam (D-chicago) said. “From nutritious food to maintaining lighting, it's more expensive than ever to operate these facilities. The funds that could have been achieved in 2017 will not be cut in 2025.”
Currently, Illinois nursing facilities receive unique DIEM payments for each facility. This is based on the sum of three individually calculated components, one of which is support.
The support component of nursing facility fees is used to calculate costs associated with common services and management such as food, housekeeping, and utilities.
Senate Bill 1606, sponsored by State Senator Dave Koehler, will increase the Medicaid reimbursement rate for the support component of the nursing facility rate, and ensure that changes in percentage inflation are based on current costs rather than costs from 2017.
“Many nursing homes are in historically underfunded communities where resources are thin and demands continue to grow,” Villivalam said. “This is not a time for reductions. The fairness of long-term care starts with fully funding the essentials our seniors need to age with dignity.”
Senate Bill 1606 is allocated to the Senate Appropriations and Human Services Committee.
