WISCONSIN — Medicaid cost coverage for nursing homes will increase next year, Wisconsin Department of Health Services said Wednesday.

In 2022, Medicaid cost coverage for nursing homes was 77%. In 2023, it will rise to 91%.

“The people who work in and lead Wisconsin’s nursing homes are critical to ensuring quality care for residents across the state of Wisconsin,” said Karen Timberlake, DHS secretary-designee. “Our new rate setting model allows us to prioritize funding for direct care nursing and support increased wages for health care workers to ensure continuing high-quality care.”

In Jan. 2022, Gov. Tony Evers said the state would invest more than $500 million into nursing homes. This includes $75,640,729 in direct provider payments to nursing homes from the CARES Act, and $30,000,000 for the Admissions Incentive Program, also from the CARES Act.

“It has been our priority to ensure a fair, equitable distribution of the historic funding increases included by the 2021-23 state budget,” said Rick Abrams, CEO of the Wisconsin Health Care Association. “Rate increases in the support services and direct care cost centers will help Wisconsin nursing home providers ensure quality care while also addressing ongoing financial challenges, including increased operational costs due to COVID-19 and increased inflation.”

Long-term care service demands are expected to rise faster than the workforce will grow in Wisconsin, according to Wisconsin DHS.

People 65 years old and older are expected to grow by 72% from 2015 to 2040. From 2015 to 2040, the overall Wisconsin population is expected to grow by 12%. It means Wisconsin’s population of those 65 years old and older will grow six times more than the overall population.

“Building on the long-term care funding provisions contained in the 2021-2023 state budget, DHS has implemented bold steps to further invest in our state’s fragile nursing home system and has done so in a way that targets dollars where they are most desperately needed,” said John Sauer, LeadingAge Wisconsin president and CEO. “Our mission-driven providers are deeply appreciative of these efforts, which appropriately allocate critically needed dollars for caregivers and other frontline support staff who are essential in meeting the needs of our skilled care residents. Those who live and work in our state’s long-term care settings will be greatly assisted by the nursing home funding system advanced by DHS.”