Legislators Urge Delay in Nursing Home Reg. Changes

64 Legislators (21 Senators and 43 Representatives) signed a letter to EOHHS Secretary Judy Ann Bigby asking to delay changes that eliminate leaves-of-absence bed holds from MassHealth nursing home regulations until funding can be restored. The letter was delivered to Secretary Bigby today. Protections for bed holds are slated to terminate at the end of July.

The regulations in jeopardy have insured that a MassHealth nursing home resident returns to the same bed — returns to their home — after hospitalizations or personal leaves. Currently, MassHealth pays nursing homes a modest fee to hold a resident’s bed for up to 10 days per hospital stay and 10 days every 12 months for personal reasons (holidays, family events, etc.).

The letter, initiated by Senator Patricia Jehlen, Senator Mark Montigny, and Representative Alice Wolf, states in part:

“Although federal law requires facilities to readmit such residents to the first available bed in the facility of origin, this does not prevent the harm caused by placing the resident in a different and unfamiliar room with a strange roommate and different caregiving staff. Particularly for patients who are cognitively impaired, such a relocation may cause confusion and depression. In some cases it will cause physical decline as well.“

Senator Jehlen further commented that the “elimination of a guaranteed bed in a nursing home may result in residents being hospitalized for longer periods of time. This will cost the Commonwealth more than the small daily payment MassHealth makes to hold the bed. In my opinion this policy is penny-wise and pound-foolish.”

Elissa Sherman, President of LeadingAge Massachusetts, said “At a time when nursing facilities have been working to implement culture change, which means moving from an institutional model to a person-centered model that embraces the concept of “home,” the proposed regulations move in the opposite direction creating additional barriers to the creation of home and person-centered care.”

“Terminating bed holds will have many serious ramifications, and money will not be saved, “ stated Arlene Germain, President of Massachusetts Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. “It will be devastating to people needing our protection – the elderly and younger nursing home residents with disabilities. Residents face medical and psychological trauma from such upheavals. And they will delay going to the hospital in fear of losing their home, creating more suffering and more medical expenses. ”

Germain said that families are severely impacted, too. “It’s hard enough to place your loved one in a nursing home. To be told that he or she may lose their “home” again if they are hospitalized or if they visit family for the holidays is heart-breaking for families. ”

Earlier this month advocates delivered to Governor Patrick more than 1,600 signatures on a petition asking that the bed hold not be eliminated. The Administration has not formally responded to the petition.

The following organizations are in support of reinstating funding to save bed holds:
AARP Massachusetts
Alzheimer’s Association – Massachusetts/New Hampshire Chapter
Cape United Elders
Coalition of Organizations to Reform Elder Care (CORE)
Community Action Committee of Cape Cod & Islands
ETHOS
Greater Lowell Elder Mental Health Collaborative
Highland Valley Elder Services
LeadingAge (previously MassAging)
LGBT Aging
Mass Aging and Mental Health Coalition
Mass Adult Day Services Association (MADSA)
Massachusetts Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (MANHR)
Massachusetts Association of Behavioral Health Systems
Massachusetts Association of Older Americans
Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
Massachusetts Senior Action Council
Mystic Valley Elder Services
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys – Massachusetts Chapter
National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers – New England Chapter
National Association of Social Workers – Massachusetts Chapter
South Shore Elder Services

About MANHR:
MANHR, founded in 2000, is the only statewide consumer group working for improvements in the quality of care for nursing home residents — residents who are mostly elderly, but also younger residents with disabilities. It is an all-volunteer organization of residents, their families and friends, and citizen advocates who have come together to better the lives of long-term care residents.

– Information from State Senator Pat Jehlen’s office and Massachusetts Advocates For Nursing Home Reform (MANHR)