The Worth County Care & Rehab Center Board of Directors approved its emergency manual and discussed Medicaid changes that were passed by recent legislation.
Retroactive payments have decreased from 90 days to 60 days effective January 1, 2027. That means that for services rendered up to 60 days before a Medicaid application is approved, the facility may not be reimbursed, possibly increasing the costs for both the facility and the state. The WCCC and facilities like it are at the mercy of patients and their families getting in the proper paperwork on time.
The facility next to Janet Wake Larison's law office will now be open five days a week instead of two and can now process Medicaid applications.
There will be increased criteria for qualifying, but that is still an unknown. There will be costs that will no longer be covered.
There are concerns that the Medicaid daily rate will be reduced. Currently, the reimbursement rate is $271.08, up from $248.47 from last year. For a long time, the rate was around $143, which meant that the Worth County Care & Rehab Center barely was able to make ends meet. The Pay As You Go Act, passed in 2010, automatically triggers cuts if the budget deficit increases too high.
The bill includes a moratorium on provider taxes, which are a common way for states to finance their share of Medicaid. If the provider tax exceeds a certain percentage of a facility's revenues, then facilities no longer have to pay it. The WCCC is right on the bubble. Currently, the provider tax costs the facility around $10,000 a month.
Currently, the facility gets 65% to 70% of its revenue from Medicaid. Board President Mark Cadle said he knew of a facility in Iowa that has already decided not to accept Medicaid patients anymore.
Robin Davidson reported that she had updated the emergency manual that the facility uses. The administration and staff discuss potential situations such as natural disasters, missing residents, and other potential situations, which meant that they were well prepared when recent ground level flooding hit the facility. Many people from the community came to support the facility and help clear the flooding, and they were able to identify resources they didn't know about before. They got more hoses, fans, and an extra pump so that they would have more equipment to fight a future flood. They have agreements with other facilities to house residents, provide food and water, and care for residents in the event of emergencies. They also have a plan in place to keep track of residents' medications as well. When an emergency occurs, everyone at the facility has a role to play.
The tentative date for recognizing employees was set for November 19th.
The board voted to keep the 35 cent levy unchanged.
For last month, income was $204,900. Expenses were $174,620 for a profit of $30,294. They budgeted $182,000 in revenues for July. The figures include higher salaries for employees and higher room rates.
The facility is transitioning from VA to VCA, with the goal to complete the transition by September 1st. It is a different VA program, which will provide a higher reimbursement rate than the current plan they are on. The process will be different, but direct care will still be the same. The VA did a walk-through of the facility and found no concerns.
The census hovered between 25 and 29 last month, with 29 residents as of Wednesday. They accepted six new residents last month.
The generator was repaired, but the programming was bad, meaning that someone has to test it manually.
There are now 45 employees at the facility, up from 28 several years ago. This includes part-time employees. A lot of high school students have been working at the facility.
The board decided to keep the current property insurance plan. Rates increased by $964 for this year; the facility will pay $11,684 this year. There was a competing provider which offered $28,000 per year but has a lower deductible.
The board voted to hire Connie Murphy to repaint the facility for $3,500. The facility will provide the paint and supplies.
The board voted to award the bid for replacing the guttering, downspouts, and drains to DCLI for a cost of $23,870.
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