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Bridget's Path says elimination of infant-vitality line item would force operations cutbacks
Summary
Bridget's Path, a licensed residential infant care provider, told the Senate Finance Committee that the Senate's removal of a $1 million line item in the infant vitality appropriation would undermine state-directed steps to create a sustainable reimbursement model and could force the program to cut operations by half or close.
Jill Kingston, founder and president of Bridget's Path, told the Senate Finance Committee that elimination of a $1,000,000 line item in the infant vitality funding would imperil the nonprofit's ability to care for substance-exposed newborns in a home-like residential setting.
"Without the funding, Bridget's Path quite literally cannot stay open," Kingston said, describing steps the organization already has taken to reduce operations by 50 percent and reporting a waiting list of infants and families.
Kingston told senators the 2023 budget included temporary law language directing the Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) and the Department of Children and Youth (DCY) to work together on a sustainable reimbursement model. She said ODM has nearly finished rulemaking and DCY had allocated infant-vitality dollars, but the Senate's elimination of the $1,000,000 line item undermines that prior legislative direction and the plan for service-line sustainability.
Kingston reported that since the legislature first provided temporary funding, Bridget's Path has cared for nearly 300 babies and families and achieved outcomes the agency cites—an 85 percent rate of babies staying out of foster care after participation. She asked senators to restore the line item so residential infant care centers can remain operational while the interagency reimbursement work is completed.
Ending: Kingston invited senators to visit the Dayton facility and reiterated that restoration of the $1,000,000 infant-vitality line item would be necessary to sustain Bridget's Path's operations and the program model.
