The Houston Chronicle published a story last Sunday on funding problems in Texas nursing homes. It seems that Medicaid payments have not kept up with increasing health care costs. Reimbursements are too low for some providers to stay in business. Sixty nursing homes have shut their doors in the past three years.
Texas Health and Human Services Commission spokesperson Stephanie Goodman said, “The nursing home rate that we have in Texas does not, and has not for a long time, fully cover the costs that the nursing homes incur to provide the care.”
The reimbursement rate for Texas nursing homes is $113, apparently not enough to cover all costs, and rate increases have been too small. The state would require $368 million over two years “to ensure they can take care of the state’s aging population, which is living longer every year.” Increased funding for Texas nursing homes would allow the state to raise salaries, have RNs on staff around the clock, and upgrade equipment.
The Texas AARP says nursing homes aren’t operating at capacity, which was at 73 percent late last year. The organization expressed concern that the state is building new nursing homes while existing ones are not being filled or closed down.
