Barbara Mikulski: “I rise today to support the Wellstone/ Mikulski amendment which maintains the Boren amendment on nursing home…”

“I rise today to support the Wellstone/ Mikulski amendment which maintains the Boren amendment on nursing home reimbursement. The Boren amendment ensures an adequate daily reimbursement rate for nursing homes under Medicaid. It helps nursing homes have the funds they need to meet Federal quality and safety standards. The Wellstone/ Mikulski amendment will keep this guarantee in place. Right now, the Boren policy is under attack. It is under attack by States. And it is under attack by Congress. If we repeal this law, States will be able to set their own rates of reimbursement to nursing homes. We all know the tough budget climate we are operating in. Without the Boren policy, we take away the Federal guarantee of adequate reimbursement rates. This threatens the health and safety of senior citizens. States worry about reimbursements. I'm worried about seniors. Without Boren, the State reimbursement rates may be too low to ensure that nursing homes can continue to provide quality care. Do we really want to return to the bad old days when senior citizens living in nursing homes faced inadequate care? Can we afford to forget the horror stories from the 1980's about living and quality conditions in some nursing homes? Well, the Boren amendment helped to change that. We must protect the integrity of the law. The amendment Senator Wellstone and I are offering will do that. Our amendment protects senior citizens living in nursing homes.”