HARRISBURG, PA — Zach Shamberg, president/CEO of the Pennsylvania Health Care Association (PHCA), issued a statement in response to the announcement of a budget agreement between the state House and Senate and Gov. Josh Shapiro.

“Pennsylvania’s changing demographics make it very clear: there is a growing need for long-term care to support our seniors and adults with disabilities. 

“In just the past two months, Pennsylvania’s long-term care continuum has experienced two announced closures, two bankruptcies and two emergency resident evacuations. The volatility and disruption caused by these events have sent residents and their families scrambling to find care, and left frontline caregivers without jobs and a loss of fulfilling their mission of caring for their residents.

“We, once again, urged state leaders to prioritize long-term care in this year’s state budget to ensure our most vulnerable have access to the care they need.  

“With the announcement of today’s 2024-2025 agreement, our state leaders have taken a critical step in doing just that, allocating $120 million annually—a 7 percent increase—to the state’s Medicaid program for nursing home residents effective January 1, 2025. 

“This additional funding will help to cover the cost of Pennsylvania’s increased nursing home staffing mandate and take steps to reduce the mounting Medicaid shortfall—the difference between state reimbursement and the true cost of care. 

“Additionally, legislators are allocating $5 million more to the Medicaid Day One Incentive (MDOI) payment which supports providers who serve high-Medicaid populations. This is the first MDOI increase since 2019. The now-$21 million total also receives federal matching funds.

“It’s clear lawmakers have made long-term care a priority in this year’s state budget. That is a win for the nursing care of seniors and adults with disabilities. 

“We are thankful for the members of the state Senate, House and the Shapiro administration for joining together to support our most vulnerable residents and their providers of care. And we are especially grateful to Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward and Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman for leading this charge and being the champions our sector so desperately need. 

“While the 2024-2025 state budget represents an important step forward, our advocacy is certainly not finished. As we look to the future and our rapidly aging demographic, we must get serious about identifying new supplemental funding models, such as PHCA’s Enhancing Care With Incentive Payment (ECWIP) program. The state must also improve how it reimburses providers by eliminating the archaic Budget Adjustment Factor, which prevents critical dollars from being distributed to resident care. (Learn more at www.pa.gov/en/agencies/dhs/resources/for-providers/budget-adjustment-factor.html.)

“If we don’t, Pennsylvania’s long-term care continuum will once again be on the verge of collapse,” Shamberg continued.

“There is still more to be done to meet the growing demands for care, but today, we are hopeful and encouraged that the care of our most vulnerable is a priority in Pennsylvania.”

The Pennsylvania Health Care Association is a statewide advocacy organization representing Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable residents and their providers of care.

Learn more about its programs and priorities at www.phca.org.