County nursing home authorized to apply for $500,000 line of credit amid federal-payment uncertainty

Bradley County's finance committee unanimously approved a request allowing the county-owned nursing home (referred to in committee as Bradley Health) to apply for a $500,000 line of credit to cover short-term cash-flow needs.

Scott Oliver, the nursing-home director, told the committee that federal payment delays related to a federal shutdown have created uncertainty in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements. "We don't know at this point what that's gonna do to us," Oliver said, adding that the facility had relied on reimbursements and an internal fund balance in the past but is now preparing to draw on a lender letter of credit if needed. He said the home expects to make draws for payroll and to repay them as federal reimbursements arrive.

The motion authorized the director to apply for a $500,000 line; Commissioner Hughes moved the approval and Commissioner Collins seconded. The committee voted 5–0 to allow staff to take the application paperwork to the financial institution and forward supporting documentation to the full commission that evening.

Oliver said the nursing-home operation plans to use the line judiciously and to return to previous practices of drawing and reimbursing as payments come in, but stressed the sector-wide strain: "There are 18,200 nursing homes in the country that are sweating this one out," he said.

The committee will forward the documentation to the full commission for formal approval with the recommended language the bank requested confirming the county's acknowledgement of the application.