Years of Medicaid underfunding has created a dire situation in which Pennsylvania nursing home providers have suffered an uphill battle to keep their doors open and beds online without sacrificing quality of care. 

A recent study commissioned by LeadingAge PA revealed a nearly $1.2 billion Medicaid funding gap for nursing facilities in 2019-20. While this illustrates a point in time snapshot, this has been an unfortunate trend. Nursing facility Medicaid reimbursement rates have remained nearly stagnant for almost a decade and providers continue to face a funding system that threatens their ability to deliver these much-needed services.

To begin moving the needle in the direction of providing the critical and necessary support our long-term care providers need to recruit and retain a quality workforce and cover the costs of providing care, LeadingAge PA is advocating for a $294.3 million increase for Medicaid nursing facility rates in the 2022-23 state budget. However, your State Senator and Representative need to hear from you. To maximize the impact of our advocacy efforts, we encourage you to edit the template email provided by sharing your own personal stories and experience as to why this funding is needed.