Proposed closure of Elderwood nursing home alarms North Creek residents

NORTH CREEK | A draft plan to close Elderwood at North Creek nursing home has been submitted to state authorities, and people in North Creek and surrounding towns are upset about the facility's pending closure, according to staff members, community leaders and area legislators. "Our employees are absolutely nervous and anxious about what's to come, and we are trying to prevent any upset among our residents," Elderwood North Creek Director of Nursing Breann Parker said April 11. Johnsburg Town Supervisor Kevin Bean said he has been contacted by many local citizens who are worried that Elderwood will close, and many others were expressing their worries on social media about Elderwood shutting down. "People are up in arms and furious," he said. New York State Health Department has the authority to prevent nursing homes and other healthcare facilities from closing, or call for their operations to be restructured. Bean attended a meeting April 11 with Elderwood executives, and they told him the facility needed a $2.5 million grant from New York State to survive, he reported. Elderwood Director of Nursing Breann Parker said such a grant was being sought through the State Department of Health's Vital Access Provider Assurance (VAP) program, which provides temporary operating assistance — for up to three years — to financially distressed nursing homes. According to state records and facility reports, Elderwood at North Creek employs 96 people, and is permitted to host 82 residents, but as of April 11 had only 57 — a 59.5 percent occupancy rate, considered low among nursing homes. Elderwood at Ticonderoga, for instance, is an 84-bed facility and currently has 71 residents, a 69.5 percent occupancy rate. Bean said that while the proposed closure plan is being considered by state authorities, the facility cannot accept any more patients — which is likely to increase the financial stress incurred by Elderwood North Creek. Details on Elderwood's finances were not readily available, as it is a private for-profit entity owned and operated by Post-Acute Partners, which acquired the Elderwood chain of nursing homes in 2013. State Assemblyman Matthew Simpson said that Elderwood and other nursing homes and healthcare facilities have been in financial distress for many years because the state's Medicaid reimbursement rate hadn't been increased for about 15 years — until last year when they were granted merely a 7 percent increase. In the 2023 state budget process, Simpson and some other legislators had requested a minimum increase of 20 percent for nursing homes to meet their ever-increasing costs incurred over the prior two decades. "Nursing home residents are the people who have contributed their lives to New York and our communities, and we are leaving them vulnerable at a time when they need the most care and support," Simpson said. He noted that he and state Sen. Dan Stec were now lobbying for a 16 percent increase in the Medicaid reimbursement rate, as well as seeking a state VAP grant for Elderwood. In addition, Simpson said he and Stec are advocating for a "rebasing" of the rates each year, relying on annual evaluations of expenses that healthcare facilities pay to operate. Area residents posted messages on social media this week that Elderwood was a vital community asset because it kept elderly citizens near their families, and provided good year-round jobs which are relatively rare in northern Warren County. Andy Cruikshank, CEO of Fort Hudson Health System, said 80 to 90 percent of nursing homes in upstate New York were "in peril" as they struggled with operating deficits because 75 percent of their residents were relying on New York State's Medicaid reimbursement. Based in Fort Edward, Fort Hudson runs a nursing home and other senior care facilities and services in the region. "New York State is financially starving the state's nursing homes," Cruikshank said. "For every $1 of the cost of care, we are reimbursed 70 cents. The state is underfunding the system, yet they expect us to take appropriate care of our residents." Cruikshank added that the state hasn't yet compensated nursing and senior care facilities for 15 years of inflation. "Nursing homes are closing at an accelerating pace, and unless the state decides that nursing home care is a priority, these closures will continue." Simpson said "There's no higher priority than providing essential services for our seniors our veterans, people with disabilities, our most needy, and those who are less fortunate." State Sen. Dan Stec said he was deeply concerned by the potential closure, calling the facility an essential service that must remain open. "I've been in regular contact with the Elderwood administration and have spoken with state Department of Health Commissioner McDonald about this situation and the impact it will have on our area's families and caregivers. As we move forward, my office and I are committed to doing everything we can to ensure our seniors, their families and the dedicated staff at Elderwood receive the support they need," Stec said April 12. He said the issue "is indicative of a larger crisis plaguing our state and rural communities in particular. Due to poor Medicaid reimbursement rates, hospitals and nursing homes across New York have been forced to decrease services or permanently close. This needs to be remedied in the impending state budget…This is the time to make a meaningful commitment by increasing the Medicaid reimbursement rates and giving health care facilities the support they need to provide the compassionate care our seniors deserve."

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Proposed closure of Elderwood nursing home alarms North Creek residents

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