Oversight assumes the impact would be negative but will not present this long-term impact in the fiscal note. The DMS assumes there are 162 licensed intermediate care or skilled nursing facilities whose average aggregate occupancy over the last four consecutive calendar quarters is equal to or greater than ninety percent. The facilities have a total of 12,635 certified beds and an average of 90 certified beds per facility. The DMS is not assuming these 25 facilities will fill their new beds with Medicaid recipients. The DMS assumes the facilities will request and receive an increase to their Medicaid per diem.
Current regulations allow for a rate increase because of the addition of beds.
The cost for FY 99 was prorated to 10 months. The DMS based the above calculations and assumptions assuming the proposal would not increase the current number of total beds and the moratorium on new beds is still in effect. Oversight , for the purposes of this fiscal note, will include the costs for the assumption that the moratorium on new beds is still in effect and also include the fiscal impact if new beds are built. The Department of Health assumes that 250 small businesses will apply for additional beds. This proposal will allow residential care facilities and skilled nursing facilities with occupancy rates less than ninety percent to transfer the ownership of licensed beds to similarly licensed facilities.