Governor Lamont announced Wednesday an additional $31.2 million to support nursing homes during the pandemic.
That money comes in addition to the $150 million the state already committed to nursing homes for COVID-19 response. The new funding aims to ensure quality of care and to prevent the spread of the disease among this vulnerable population, and to increase the probability that state nursing homes will still qualify for any remaining cycles of federal Provider Relief Fund financial assistance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services based on infection and mortality rates.
The full funding package includes $31.2 million in Coronavirus Relief Fund payments and Medicaid rate increases for nursing homes, deferred recovery of $23.4 million in previously issued interim payments until FY 2022, continued funding of COVID recovery and alternate COVID recovery facilities and assistance to nursing homes that have had trouble paying nursing home user fees that were due in March.
“As we are dealing with a resurgence of the coronavirus statewide, we have taken action to mitigate a repeat of the first occurrence and reduce infections and spread in our nursing homes,” Governor Lamont said in a media release. “To that end, we are providing increased payments and a deferral on the recoupment of interim payments to provide more financial security as the costs of combatting the virus remain high and it is essential we give the facilities the resources they need. At the same time, we are strengthening best practices in infection control. I commend our state agencies, including the Department of Public Health, the Department of Social Services, and the Office of Policy and Management, for outstanding collaborative work in bringing this initiative forward.”
