Heritage Ministries has joined forces with Leading Age and their other NYS members to be a unified voice in the fight for those we serve!
Over the last six months Lisa Haglund (CEO) and Danielle Bozich (CHRO) have represented Heritage Ministries in Albany and Washington, DC, meeting with Congressmen, Senators, and Assemblymen. We went on behalf of our residents, families, our dedicated caregivers, and the broader Chautauqua County community to share a clear and urgent message: long-term care in New York State is underfunded, and the consequences are becoming impossible to ignore.
Across the state, nursing homes are continuing to close. Others are forced to reduce services or limit admissions – not because of a lack of commitment, but because Medicaid funding does not reflect the true cost of care. These closures and service reductions create ripple effects throughout the healthcare system, including hospital bottlenecks and delays in discharge for patients who need post-acute or long-term care.
We have certainly felt the impact of this funding gap here at Heritage Ministries. For every resident whose care is covered by Medicaid, we lose between $150-$200 per day. This is a majority (over 70%) of the resident population in our SNF communities. This ongoing shortfall makes it increasingly difficult to sustain operations while continuing to do what we believe is essential: paying competitive wages to our dedicated caregivers, keeping competitive benefits and education programs, attracting new people to long-term care as a meaningful career, and reinvesting in our communities.
Heritage Ministries has overcome many obstacles and continues to be the largest remaining provider in Chautauqua County. We are proud of this, remain committed to our mission, and are doing everything in our power to ensure that our industry struggles are known and solutions are actively discussed. However, commitment alone will not solve this structural funding problem. That is why advocacy and raising our collective voice is so important.
CLICK HERE participate in our EASY letter campaign! It takes less than a minute but helps tremendously in raising awareness and making a difference.