MADISON – The Wisconsin Health Care Association/Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living (WHCA/WiCAL) today praised the action of the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee for including significant and important funding increases for skilled nursing Medicaid reimbursement, Family Care funding, and long-term care workforce supports.
“The critical investments in long-term care that the Joint Finance Committee approved will enable Wisconsin’s long-term care providers to continue providing the high quality of care and high quality of life that our seniors and people living with disabilities need and so richly deserve,” said Rick Abrams, WHCA/WiCAL CEO. “On behalf of providers, their dedicated staff, and the residents they serve each and every day, we thank the Joint Finance Committee and other legislative supporters for their continued support of the long-term care sector.”
The Joint Finance Committee’s long-term care funding will support the important work of Wisconsin’s skilled nursing facilities that participate in the Medicaid program and providers that participate in Family Care, Wisconsin’s Medicaid Home- and Community-Based Medicaid waiver program. JFC investments included:
- Maintaining the Medicaid funding increases that nursing facilities received in the 2021-23 state budget that focused on the clinical component of resident care;
- An additional $146 million in state and federal funds for the Support Services component of care, which includes critical quality of life services in a nursing facility such as dietary, housekeeping, maintenance, and security;
- $31 million in state and federal funds to ensure that nursing home provider incentives actually serve as incentives;
- $10 million in state and federal funds to increase reimbursement for nursing facility-based ventilator care to ensure that Wisconsin residents maintain access to this specialized and life-saving service;
- For Family Care providers, $264 million in additional state and federal funding;
- $2 million in state funds to continue Wisconsin’s WisCaregiver Careers nurse aide training and certification program;
- $5 million in state funds to find solutions for appropriate post-acute placement for hospital patients with complex medical and behavioral needs.
“The Joint Finance Committee’s funding for long-term care is a critical lifeline for providers, and we are grateful for their leadership and support,” said Abrams.
