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Nursing homes say Medicare cut will cost 20,000 jobs
Nursing homes say they’re planning to lay off some 20,000 workers because of a cut in their Medicare payments.
The federal Medicare agency decided in July to proceed with an 11 percent cut in payments to nursing homes. The reduction was intended to make up for previous overpayments, but nursing homes say it will go further.
According to a new survey from Avalere Health, nursing homes plan to lay off about 20,000 workers because of the Medicare cuts. Nursing homes also said they plan to cancel a total of 400 expansion projects that could have created 20,000 new jobs nationwide.
Avalere conducted the survey on behalf of The Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care, which represents the nursing-home industry.
“Our critical health sector, the nation’s second largest health facility employer, urgently needs help to bring about more certainty, more payment stability, and an end to the economic chaos negatively affecting America’s lowest margin health care provider,” Alliance President Alan Rosenbloom said in a statement.
