Senate Bill 1185
Proposals of the 2009-2010
Nursing Home Work Group
In November of 2009, CANPFA was invited by several state legislators to participate
in a Nursing Home Work Group comprised of nursing home and labor organizations.
One charge that was given to the work group was to propose a bill that would be
budgeting neutral, but fiscally helpful to the state’s nursing homes.
Work Group Proposals Contained in Senate Bill 1185
The work group submitted the following proposals included in Senate Bill 1185 that
are not only budget neutral, but could save significant future costs, enhance the
rebalancing of the long term care system, and financially strengthen an appropriately
sized nursing home system.
Enable nursing homes to plan for the future and diversify services
“Moving Forward One Solution at a Time” is a proposal that was agreed upon by the work group as
a concept to bring solutions to several issues facing our state’s nursing home system. The
proposal is designed to accomplish the following:
 Resolve the broken system of relying on an interim rate process that is enabling low
performing homes to continue to operate without requiring performance improvement. This
bill requires that such homes present a viable business plan with a planned bed reduction.
 Adjust the nursing home bed supply throughout the state by rationally reducing the
number of available beds by allowing nursing homes to “mothball” beds to meet current
reduced need, but prepare for potential future need.
 Encourage and enable all nursing home providers to engage in long range planning,
embrace voluntary bed size adjustment, invest in capital improvement, meet unmet needs
in the community, and diversify long term care services.
Improve the nursing home receivership process
The work group recommended the following changes to the nursing home receivership process so
as to reduce the escalating costs associated with that process:
 Limit artificially inflated Medicaid rates upon sale or settlement of a receivership.
 Allow a company/legal entity to be appointed as receiver. Currently only an
individual can be appointed.
 Limit the number of receiverships that can be handled at one time by one receiver.
 Encourage quicker settlement of receiverships once the decision has been made to
close the nursing home by removing the incentive to keep a home open as the census
drops. This is done by paying the receiver on a per resident day basis.
1340 Worthington Ridge, Berlin, CT 06037, (860) 828-2903 fax (860) 828-8694, mmorelli@canpfa.org
Creating the Future of Aging Services
One Solution at a Time
We have too long relied on interim rates to bail out homes caught in our outdated and stagnant
concept of long-term care. It is time to look toward innovative solutions and begin to create the
future of aging services.
Senate Bill 1185 proposes that the state enable long term care
professionals to initiate innovative solutions - one solution at a time.
Nursing home solutions contained in Senate Bill 1185:
•
Creates an efficient, flexible and coordinated regulatory process that will allow and
encourage the development and implementation of individual business plans for our existing
skilled nursing facilities that together will create a stronger, healthier and appropriately sized
nursing home system.
•
Establishes efficiency in the regulatory process by requiring that review of these urgently
needed plans be conducted in a timely and coordinated manner between the Department of
Social Services and the Department of Public Health.
•
Facilitates a rational process for reducing the bed supply, including the opportunity to
mothball beds that might be needed in the future.
•
Encourages renovation and improvement to physical plant, investment in modern
equipment, and adoption of state of the art models of care that will meet the demands of a
changing consumer, enhance the work place environment, and address the rising level of
acuity in our skilled facilities.
•
Encourages diversification and the development of full continuums of long term care options
for consumers and helps to accomplish a more balanced system of long term care.
•
Provides budget neutral prospective rate relief to facilities experiencing financial difficulties
due to low occupancy rates, but only if the nursing home takes the necessary steps to
reduce beds and improve occupancy percentage.
•
Accomplishes all of this in a budget neutral manner and creates a system that will save
significant dollars in future years.
Nursing home receivership changes proposed in Senate Bill 1185:
•
Limits artificially inflated Medicaid rates upon sale or settlement of a receivership.
•
Allows a company/legal entity to be appointed as receiver. Currently only an individual can
be appointed.
•
Limits the number of receiverships that can be handled at one time by one receiver and
encourages quicker settlement of receiverships by removing the incentive to keep a home
open as the census drops. This is done by paying the receiver on a per resident day basis.
1340 Worthington Ridge, Berlin, CT 06037, (860) 828-2903 fax (860) 828-8694, mmorelli@canpfa.org