House Passes Bill to Increase Nursing Home Funding

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday that will increase the Medicaid reimbursement rate for nursing homes in Oklahoma with the aim of improving the quality of care for residents.

House Bill 1902 was authored by State Rep. Marcus McEntire, (R-50, Duncan) with the intent of improving staffing ratios, increasing staff training and incentivizing nursing homes to improve care using a pay-for-performance model that, it is believed, would improve qualified rankings on quality of care.

The pay-for-performance program engendered by the bill would require nursing homes to increase their ‘care score’ by 5 percent each quarter in order to receive the incentive payment.

“Taking great care of the residents in our nursing homes is a moral and civic duty,” McEntire said. “But, this requires additional funding. With better pay and better training, staff will be able to provide better care to the residents in these facilities.”

HB 1902 was co-authored by 19 Representatives and passed the House by a 93-2 vote. The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration where principal co-author Senator Frank Simpson, (R-14, Ardmore) will supervise its progress.