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Christine44 Posted April 2023

Washington Post and Yahoo article on assisted living homes now evicting seniors and rejecting Medicaid payments.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/assisted-living-homes-rejecting-medicaid-112231372.html


 


This article is really bad news. It originated as a Washington Post article which has a paywall for most people but got picked up by Yahoo. What's apparently going on a lot now: traditionally, as people here know, I assume, a Senior might be placed in an AL facility, doing "Private Pay," for a room/apartment, etc. until their savings ran out. Then, it seems it was fairly "standard" for the AL facility to let the senior stay, using Medicaid. (?How "standard" I don't know). Well now, apparently, it's becoming more and more common for a family to put a loved one in an AL, with the "understanding" that once the senior's savings ran out they would be able to get a "Medicaid" bed/room/apartment, etc. But there's no law that says the facility has to do this. In the case of this poor woman, who was probably enjoying life -- 92 years old, "taking care" of herself, nicely groomed wearing pretty clothes, etc. and they evicted her. Forced into a new place (with all the traumas that can bring for someone with dementia, etc., 3 weeks later this poor senior died. (That should be the last line in the caption.) You have to copy/paste the URL into your browser to get the article.


 


Tough times ahead, folks.

AlvaDeer Apr 2023
Yup. I am afraid health care and our schools, senior care, just everything is now a part of the military industrial complex. It is all for profit and all about money. Recent reports are that the Hedge funds absolutely are in love with Hospice care, which now is stripped to of any resemblance of what it was once. We are down to a nice little bottle of Morphine, two CNA visits a week for a washup and one RN visit once a week; perhaps a call from Social Worker and Clergy.

ALFs for the most part are there for profit. Everyone is. They will cherry pick. Money slated for schools goes to "consultants" who change out the text books every 15 minutes and hold meetings about meetings.

Sad all the way around, and no question, and it is good to have these articles posted to us so we can at least be informed. Thanks!

AndSoItGoes Apr 2023
Thanks for the non-paywalled article link.

The "sell to another company" bit stood out for me. Buyouts are often followed by abandonment of core principles that previously guided the operation.

In a market context of scarcity, it is sadly predictable that these places are going to want to reserve spots for the highest bidders. And absent regulatory impediments that's exactly what they'll do.

In the case of for-profits, it would probably be a violation of the operation's responsibility to shareholders to *not* squeeze maximum profit out of the operation.

It's all very discouraging.

Yes: "Tough times ahead"

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Christine44 Apr 2023
Re: "I'd like to know the profit margin of these privately owned "care" facilities." I don't want to quote figures that could be wrong, and there's so many different kinds of facilities out there. I imagine that among the most expensive are what are known as the CCRCs. (Continuing Care Retirement Communities), a place that offers several levels of care on one campus, or within one facility. So, say you start out in Independent Living where you can do most things for yourself (but would like housekeeping once a week, maybe two meals a day, perhaps some transportation, etc.). Then something happens (i.e. a stroke, a fall, etc.) and you need the next "level" of care. Instead of having to suddenly move and find a new place to live, in principle you could stay at the same place but of course pay a higher price. At least that's the "idea" as I understand it behind the CCRCs, but I have no idea how they work in reality.

Countrymouse Apr 2023
Some ALF's may have made exceptions based on Medicaid contracts. Costs and rates have risen, states have not increased funding, paying residents have been subsidising Medicaid residents anyway for years, and now it's reached the point where the gap between cost and funding is too great and can't be papered over any more.

We've just had a whole swathe of agency hand-back clients whose care providers went bankrupt. Same thing: they couldn't survive on public sector rates.

Everybody wants great care for all. Very few can afford it, nobody wants to pay for it, and nobody is prepared to vote for the state to pay for it. So what are those greedy ALFs supposed to pay their staff with, then? - good karma?

TopsailJanet Apr 2023
You are right about the economics. This is why most facilities have a limited number of medicaid beds, they need self-pay patients to make a profit.

JoAnn29 Apr 2023
Funny you posted this. Our local Pizza place provides a Newspaper so my DH reads it while we wait for our dinner. On the front page was an article like this. I don't know if its Assisted Livings pulling out or Medicaid.

The problem is I don't think Medicaid pays the full amt. If the person was paying privately at 5k a month, their SS lets say is 1500 so there is a balance of 3500 due. Medicaid may only pay 2k of that meaning there is 1500 not being paid. Then, while on Medicaid the persons care becomes more. Medicaid probably does not factor in that. They only pay that 2k. So this effects the bottom line alot for the AL. Even though they only allow so many people on Medicaid, its costing them money. So, they chose not to allow Medicaid any longer. This is all conjecture on my part.

Years ago a local AL lost their contract with Medicaid. A friend of mine had 3 days to move his parents.

This is going to mean losing the ability of getting a LO in a facility on Medicaid. Even a LTC facility only allows so many Medicaid beds.

tiredsister Apr 2023
An assisted living facility in Green Bay, Wisconsin also recently gave 15 Medicaid residents 30 day eviction notices...many of them had lived there for years. Yes...tough times, indeed.
I'd like to know the profit margin of these privately owned "care" facilities.

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