More than a year after Ohio’s Department of Medicaid passed a bill to implement private rooms in nursing homes for Medicaid residents, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services finally agreed, authorizing up to $160 million in federal reimbursement for the 2025 fiscal year.
CMS originally approved the private room plan in June 2024, but state operators were required to wait six months for the funding for Medicaid-funded private rooms to kick in. When the funds began flowing on Dec. 18, providers breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“This payment was the result of collaboration of Ohio’s nursing home associations and the General Assembly, who all recognized the difference that private rooms make to dignity and quality of life,” LeadingAge Ohio president and CEO Susan Wallace told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News on Friday. “We have seen an increase in the number of beds that have been relinquished statewide, as providers have converted shared rooms to private, so this payment has already made an impact.”
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