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Senate committee approves $3.85M to speed Medicaid long-term care eligibility after nursing-home arrears testimony
Summary
The Finance Committee approved funding to expand a Medicaid call center and to contract for long-term care eligibility determinations after nursing-home operators described large unpaid receivables tied to delayed Medicaid approvals.
The New Hampshire Senate Finance Committee on Oct. 26 approved $3,852,525 in committee-level funding to expand an eligibility call center and hire a contractor to process long-term care Medicaid applications faster.
Committee members and witnesses told the panel that many nursing homes statewide are owed large sums because Medicaid eligibility determinations are taking months, in some cases leaving operators with substantial unpaid receivables. Brendon Williams, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Healthcare Association, told senators some facilities are owed hundreds of thousands of dollars and urged action to reduce the backlog.
Committee discussion covered several elements. Department officials said a tier-1 call center established with ARPA funds now fields about 30,000 calls per month; the requested funds would provide general-fund support to continue and expand that intake function and competitively bid a contract to help complete eligibility determinations that are held up by missing financial documentation. The department said vacancies and training time for eligibility specialists mean a contractor can accelerate processing more quickly than hiring and training a full complement of new state staff.
Senators pressed the department on specifics: how long nursing homes wait for first payment, how incomplete trust or financial documentation affects timelines, and what percentage of nursing-home admits ultimately enroll in Medicaid. State Medicaid director Henry Littman and department officials described steps already taken to reduce the backlog and agreed to provide updated performance metrics; the department also said it would trace drawdown and match flows for related federal funds on request.
Industry testimony and committee members framed the package as a short-term operational fix intended to stabilize nursing-facility cash flow while longer-term workforce and policy changes proceed. The committee approved the appropriation; the chair announced "the ayes have it." Committee members and providers said they expect further follow-up and metrics reporting in the coming weeks.
