TRENTON — Nursing homes across the state will see their state and federal funding cut by $75 million under the budget signed by Gov. Chris Christie yesterday. Democrats attempted to restore the cuts as part of their $30.6 billion spending plan they sent to the governor earlier this week, but Christie vetoed changes before signing the bill yesterday. Christie...
TRENTON — Nursing homes across the state will see their state and federal funding cut by $75 million under the budget signed by Gov. Chris Christie yesterday.
Democrats attempted to restore the cuts as part of their $30.6 billion spending plan they sent to the governor earlier this week, but Christie vetoed changes before signing the bill yesterday.
Christie also increased Medicaid co-pays for adult day care centers, which Democrats tried to block.
Christie said the vetoes were necessary because of lack of revenue. The governor's office is refusing to provide specific explanations for the cuts, instead relying on the broad defense that there was not enough money to prevent them.
When asked to defend the cuts at a news conference yesterday, Christie responded, "Now let’s not start going down that road, I’m not going to be answering every one of these. Because we can’t afford it. The reason, by the way, that I cut every one of these is we can’t afford it. I’d love to do it. I’d love to do most of the things they put in there."
“We are at a loss to explain why this happened,” said Paul Langevin, president of the Health Care Association of New Jersey, which represents 300 nursing homes across the state.
In February, Christie proposed cutting Medicaid reimbursements to nursing homes by 3 percent along eliminating subsidies for nursing homes when they have to hold beds open when a patient must go to the hospital for care.
Overall, Christie proposed cutting roughly $37.5 million in funding, which the federal government matches under Medicaid for a total loss of $75 million, according to Langevin.
Owners of nursing homes attended numerous budget hearing in recent months to urge lawmakers to restore the cuts, arguing that they would financially cripple an already struggling industry.
The restoration of the cuts had bipartisan support.