Louisiana nursing homes shielded from 'Obamacare' replacement; Could other services pay price?

As the U.S. Senate pushes forward with its proposal to replace Obamacare, advocates for the elderly and disabled have warned that the planned Medicaid cuts could disrupt care at nursing homes across the country.

Nursing homes and long-term care are a significant and growing chunk of every state's Medicaid budget. The general population is trending older, people are living longer and even middle class Americans are turning to Medicaid in their final years as they outlive their savings. Since the Senate's healthcare bill, currently dubbed the Better Care Reconciliation Act, is estimated to reduce federal Medicaid spending by 35 percent over the next two decades, nursing homes are among the services expected to feel the squeeze.

But that could be less of a concern in Louisiana, where nursing homes are both statutorily and constitutionally protected against budget cuts. In fact, the state is legally required to increase their rates at least every two years, which means the amount spent on nursing homes — totaling more than $1 billion this year — has ballooned at a rate much faster than other state Medicaid providers.

And without changes to state laws, Louisiana nursing home rates would continue to increase, despite declining Medicaid revenues proposed under the federal health care bill.

Read more: http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/article_d66a7bae-626c-11e7-8a94-4fed0a6c66e0.html