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Committee hears bill to raise personal‑needs allowance for long‑term care residents; seeks annual cost‑of‑living adjustment
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Summary
House Bill 1485 would raise the monthly personal needs allowance for eligible long‑term care residents from $100 to $110 and add an annual cost‑of‑living adjustment. Testimony included personal stories, a fiscal breakdown in the bill’s fiscal note, and support from long‑term care providers and human services directors.
Representative McLeod introduced House Bill 1485 to the House Human Services Committee, proposing an increase in the personal needs allowance for eligible long‑term care beneficiaries from $100 to $110 per month and adding an annual cost‑of‑living adjustment.
Nut graf: Supporters — including family members of long‑term care residents, facility associations and regional human services directors — said the current allowance does not keep pace with inflation and limits residents’ ability to buy clothing, toiletries, phone service or small comforts. The bill’s fiscal note lists a biennial cost broken down by facility type; proponents urged the committee to adopt a small increase plus an automatic annual inflator.
Personal testimony and fiscal numbers Bridal Mattern told the committee about her father‑in‑law’s move to nursing care after serious health events and described how quickly assets were being consumed by a daily care rate that exceeded the long‑term care insurance payout. She said, "At upwards and over $530 a day, more than 3 times the amount covered by the long term care insurance policy, his life savings and all of their other assets will be depleted in just a few months," and described the indignity of a $100 monthly personal allowance once a resident qualifies for Medicaid.
Nikki Wigner, president of the North Dakota Long Term Care Association, testified the allowance had been stagnant for years and noted the 2023 increase from $65 to $100. She said the association supports raising skilled nursing personal needs to $110 and adding an annual adjustment tied to the consumer price index so the allowance keeps pace with inflation. "An increase would enable [residents] to maintain dignity and a sense of normalcy," she told the committee.
Fiscal note and scope Representative McLeod summarized figures from the fiscal note and said the biennial cost estimates for the proposed increase include: $589,750 for nursing facilities, $96,236 for intermediate care facilities, and $11,123 for psychiatric residential treatment facilities. Committee members clarified that skilled nursing beneficiaries currently retain $100 per month under Medicaid‑eligibility rules while basic care residents have a different allowance ($135 following a 2023 change).
Support and process Witnesses included family members, long‑term care facility representatives and regional human services directors who described daily‑life items the allowance helps cover. Morris Hardy, director of Dakota Central Human Service Center, and members of the North Dakota Long Term Care Association urged the committee to pass the bill. The committee received testimony and asked clarifying questions; a technical amendment was noted as forthcoming by Representative McLeod.
Outcome The committee closed the hearing after testimony and indicated fiscal committee schedules approaching the deadline for money bills; no formal vote on House Bill 1485 is recorded in the transcript.
