Centre County is acquiring unused land from Centre Care as part of a $2 million multi-phase plan to bolster the nonprofit nursing home and support its long-term care for local residents with limited financial resources.
The Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved purchasing nearly 7 acres of vacant property near Persia Road in College Township from Centre Care for $600,000.
The land, located just south of the nursing home, will be subdivided from a larger 13.5-acre parcel owned by Centre Care. Commissioners also approved a $6,500 proposal from PennTerra Engineering for engineering services associated with preparing the subdivision.
Centre County has “no immediate plans” for the land, and the purchase using some of the county’s last remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds will provide cash assistance that “will aid Centre Care in their recovery plan,” Board of Commissioners Chair Mark Higgins said in a statement.
“The land can be used in the future to benefit the community,” Higgins said. He added that it’s possible Centre Care could buy the property back at cost “in the next year or two if things go even better for them financially than planned.”
The acquisition is the second of three steps for the county to provide financial support to Centre Care and encourage community donations to secure its long-term viability as a nonprofit nursing home with a majority of Medicaid residents.
In February, the commissioners approved a $900,000 grant from ARPA funds to seed Centre Care’s new Neighbors Supporting Neighbors Fund to aid residents who don’t have the resources to cover the cost of their care, which Medicaid does not fully reimburse. The third step is a $500,000 grant pending the completion of certain milestones related to development and fundraising in the coming months.
County officials previously said the funding came after a year of discussions involving attorneys, pointed questions from commissioners and, at one point, a turnaround consultant.
Centre Care is by far the largest nursing home provider of Medicaid beds in Centre County. About 70% of its current 220 residents are funded by Medicaid, fulfilling a pledge Centre Care’s board made when it took over the formerly county-owned Centre Crest nursing home in 2014.
Nursing homes everywhere that accept Medicaid, however, are struggling with low reimbursement rates and rising costs, as well as uncertainty at the federal level facing the health insurance program for individuals with limited financial means. Centre Care is not currently operating at a deficit, but while Pennsylvania legislators have upped reimbursement rates, Medicaid coverage still falls well below the cost of long-term care.
For Centre Care the average gap in coverage is about $115 per day per resident, said Betsy Boyer, president of the Centre Care board.
“When we went from county [-owned] to nonprofit in November of 2013, the board’s commitment to Centre County was that we would continue to provide care to the residents of Centre County regardless of their ability but when there was a need we would be there for them,” Boyer said. “So this entire [financial support] program is helping us to continue to do that.”
Centre County’s older population is expected to rise significantly in the coming years, and 21% of current Centre County residents age 60 and older have an annual income of less than $17,655.
“The demographics on this are only going to get tougher,” Higgins said. “In the next 25 years, the number of super seniors, that’s seniors who are 85 and older, will more than double in Centre County. So there’ll be ever increasing need for Centre Care.”
Commissioner Steve Dershem noted that the number of Medicaid beds is finite — Centre Care has capacity for 240, but is limited to a census of 220 right now because of staffing requirements — and if they are eliminated, they will not return.
“As our community grows, the need for those beds amplifies,” Dershem said. “And I think that’s what people have to understand, the importance of those beds. Because if they go away, if they no longer exist, there is no place else for people to go whenever they need it. And so many other counties have experienced this shortage of beds… It is an ongoing challenge.
“…We need to — as a community, as a county, as a region — respect the fact that we need to support Centre Care as best we can literally every week because the need is going to be ever-present for as long as the eye can see, because I don’t see any time in the future that our area is gonna be lowering its population of seniors and other folks that need those services.”
Commissioner Amber Concepcion added that the cost of skilled nursing care means many Centre County residents may come to rely on Medicaid coverage.
“Most people do eventually run out of resources for private pay nursing care, because it’s just so expensive,” Concepcion said. “So this is the kind of care that almost any family in Centre County may find themselves in need of at some point. And it’s just crucial that we maintain the operation of Centre Care so that it continues to be the healthy, thriving organization that it is now for future generations. The amount, the commitment of resources that we put towards this is an indication of the level of need and the importance of this organization to our community.”
In addition to Centre County’s growing older population, one of the reasons Centre Care moved in 2021 to the new facility on Persia Road was that Life Safety Code requirements for Medicaid facilities would have required infrastructure upgrades, largely for fire safety, at the former Centre Crest in Bellefonte, Centre Care administrator Andrew Naugle said. Those “behind-the-wall” improvements would have cost nearly as much as the new building without adding any services, and would have to be done while still caring for patients.
The move to a new building has brought additional services, including on-site dialysis and a vastly expanded rehabilitation program, while providing a new home for residents.
“There are just so many elements that we can be proud of as a community, and really it’s a resource that, although a lot of people don’t see it because it’s not on their day-to-day regimen, the folks that do see it and need it rely on it,” Dershem said. “And I think we need to press that forward and explain to everybody out there that it is a key element of the success of our community.”
Since the first grant announcement in February, Centre Care has begun to see an upswing in support. The Neighbors Supporting Neighbors campaign has garnered 100% participation from board members and key employees. The organization had 72 donors during Centre Gives, up from 40 last year. And volunteers have increased.
“When we give, whether it’s $5 or $5,000, we’re investing in better meals, safer environments, recreational activities and enhanced medical care for the people who once cared for us,” Higgins said. “Donations fund life enriching programs, mental health services, facility improvements and more that Medicaid budgets just don’t cover. This is not just about generosity. It’s about responsibility. It’s about ensuring that the people who built our communities are not forgotten.”
Centre Care representatives also encouraged community members to call on their state legislators to support House Bill 1310, which would update the Budget Adjustment Factor to set a new floor on Medicaid reimbursement nursing facility care, providing an estimated $140 million in new funding for nursing homes statewide.
