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After intensive study and analysis, the Hancock County Nursing Home Board of Directors voted to cease operations, effective October 1, 2011.  Over the past several years, the number of Medicaid residents has risen dramatically and the shortfall in Medicaid reimbursement proved too much to overcome.

Hancock County Nursing Home Association has been in existence since March, 1966 and Hancock County Nursing Home began serving residents in 1970.

"The way the market has developed is certainly a good thing for seniors; they have a lot more choices than they had before. However, for skilled nursing facilities like ours, the market is very tough and we are faced with a dilemma that makes it not feasible to continue serving the community as we have for the past 40 years," says Dan Asbury, Hancock County Nursing Home Board of Directors President.  Asbury continued noting that nursing homes are now only one of many choices, but they are used mostly by individuals who cannot be cared for in any other setting. These individuals require more care and resources.  Our biggest and fastest growing payer, the Illinois Medicaid program, has chosen to deal with the problem through payments that are far less than the cost of care. In many places across the country, the number of residents in skilled nursing homes is down appreciably from prior years, small facilities across the country are consolidating with larger systems to gain the economies of scale.

During the last four years, Hancock County Nursing Home has seen a decline in the number of residents, as well as decreases in Medicaid payments from the state that are far below the cost of operating the nursing home. At the same time, the percent of residents who receive public aid has also increased to almost 65%, with an increase to 75% anticipated over the next couple of years.

The Hancock County Nursing Home Board of Directors has been working with Management Performance Associates, a firm that has extensive experience and expertise in senior services to better understand and analyze how to continue senior services in Hancock County. Studies during the past few years have shown that some of the key reasons Hancock County Nursing Home has struggled financially are:

· High amount of resident payments moving to Medicaid
· Increase in restrictive state mandates & regulations
· Decreased use of nursing home services

The Board of Directors and Administrative team has worked diligently to identify new ways to make Hancock County Nursing Home a self-sustaining operation.  It has conducted exhaustive investigations and explored numerous alternatives, including the sale of the facility to another operator. Unfortunately, there has been no interest in purchasing the nursing home.  "It was after careful and thoughtful consideration that the Board made a very difficult decision to exit the traditional nursing home business," says Asbury.

The Board and Administrative team has been working around the clock to make sure that there are enough beds in Hancock County available for the residents. Individual meetings will be held with residents and their family members to discuss and finalize plans for the transitions to a nursing home of their choice, and HCNH will assist families in providing transportation for relocation within a forty mile radius.

Ada Bair is the CEO of the Hancock County Nursing Home and she said, "we have assured that all the residents and family members that once they make a choice in terms of where they want the home to be for the future, we will assist them with the transfer, we will actually physically move the residents because we have some residents that the families couldn't possibly even transport."

Montebello HealthCare Center in Hamilton recently opened a newly renovated wing with the capacity to accommodate all of the displaced residents.

In addition, they will be interviewing any of the eliminated staff who may want to work at Montebello, which will, again, make the transition much easier. 

LaHarpe Davier in LaHarpe also has some availability. Both of these options will allow the residents to remain in Hancock County, close to friends and family.

Hancock County Nursing Home will also help family members find other nursing homes outside of Hancock County if they wish to do so.

They are urging you to contact them via email info@mhtlc.org or contact Ada Bair at 217-357-8560 if you have any questions.

We will have more from KHQA's Jim Whitfield later in the day, so check back here and watch KHQA's News at Five, KHQA's Evening News at 6 p.m. and KHQA's Late News at 10 p.m.