ST. PAUL – As nursing homes statewide continue to close due to legislative inaction, State Representative Greg Davids (R-Preston) is calling on House Democrats to address this crisis head-on.
“We have nursing homes in this state that have taken out financial loans to keep their doors open,” Davids said. “Nearly all nursing homes are running at limited capacity because they don’t have the staff available to accept more patients. With a $17 billion surplus, this is something the legislature can solve, yet our House Democrat leadership isn’t taking this crisis seriously.”
Davids said the COVID pandemic, inflation and increased operating costs, wage challenges, and a workforce shortage that is estimated at 20,000 have all contributed to the nursing home crisis.
Since 2020, almost 2,600 nursing home beds have been taken out of service, which Davids said equates to more than 50 nursing homes that would have a 50 bed capacity. During that time, 15 nursing homes have also closed permanently.
The number of Minnesotans who are over the age of 65 now totals more than 1.3 billion. Davids said this is leading to a need for more skilled nursing home care, but nursing homes aren’t able to keep up. In October alone, 11,000 senior citizens were turned away from long-term care settings.
In response, House Democrats have proposed sending $3.9 million in new revenue to nursing homes over the next two years. Davids called this the proverbial drop in the bucket, and not a serious attempt by Democrat leadership to prioritize our elderly, their caregivers, and the nursing home facilities that are so critical to rural Minnesota.
“With a $17 billion surplus, it’s a slap in the face to nursing homes, their employees, and their current and future residents to propose a $3.9 million funding increase and expect all of their problems to disappear,” Davids said. “It’s even more infuriating when you learn that Democrats would rather spend $194 million on a high-speed train to Duluth and $40 million on Hollywood producer credits. It’s time for Democrats to stop playing political games with our most vulnerable residents and those who care for them and end this nursing home crisis.”