The Fiscal Committee on Dec. 19 approved a $2.2 million transfer into the nursing facilities budget line to prevent an average reduction in Medicaid nursing‑home per‑diem rates.

Nathan White, chief financial officer for the Department of Health and Human Services, told the committee the transfer comes from the legislature’s $3 million appropriation for a long‑term care Medicaid eligibility contract and represents remaining, available funds. "That money is available because the legislature appropriated $3,000,000 for a long term care Medicaid eligibility contract," White said.

White explained nursing facility per‑diem rates are set twice a year under state law and calculated facility‑by‑facility using reported allowable costs, utilization and acuity. He said updated cost reports and utilization would have produced an overall average decrease of about 3.9% if the transfer were not approved; with the transfer approved, the overall average rate change will be 0% for the next six months. "The overall average rate will be 0," White said.

Committee members pressed HHS on why an apparent difference between projected and actual bed counts could not be routed directly to higher rates. White said a statutory budget adjustment factor (capped by statute) is applied and that remaining class‑line accounting rules require any excess to be paid out at year end if projections prove incorrect.

Several members emphasized the short timeframe for re‑setting rates. White said the rate set now covers roughly six months and that rates are reset again on July 1 in accordance with statute.

The committee moved and approved the HHS transfer by voice vote.