Residential infant‑care center warns Senate budget cut will force service reductions, foster‑care placements may rise

Bridget's Path founder testified that the Senate’s removal of a $1 million infant‑vitality line in the budget undermines a two‑year legislative effort to build a Medicaid reimbursement structure and could force the Dayton program to reduce operations or close.

"Without the funding, Bridget's Path quite literally cannot stay open," said Jill Kingston, who described the organization as a licensed residential infant care center that cares for newborns experiencing withdrawal and provides wrap‑around services that support family bonding. Kingston said the center has cared for nearly 300 babies and their families and that 85% of babies served avoided foster‑care placement.

Kingston said previous budget language required the Department of Medicaid and the Department of Children and Youth to develop a sustainable reimbursement model; she said those administrative steps are near completion but that removing the $1 million line in the Senate budget eliminates resources the program used to bridge the policy and payment implementation. She said the organization has begun steps to reduce operations by 50% because private donations are exhausted and demand remains steady with a waiting list.

The committee did not vote. Kingston invited senators to visit the Dayton facility and asked the legislature to reinstate the infant‑vitality line so the program can continue community‑based inpatient care that, she said, reduces foster‑care placement risk and supports family outcomes.

Committee members thanked Kingston; no additional action was taken during the hearing.