County nursing home expected to lose 46 jobs

Feb. 14--More than 40 employees of the Crawford County Care Center are being laid off next month due to declining population at the nursing home.

A drop in its resident population is forcing the county-owned and operated nursing home in Saegertown to lay off more than 23 percent of its employees in early March in an effort to cut a projected loss of $765,000 for 2017.

The layoffs will affect all staffing -- from nurses and nursing assistants to support staff like housekeeping and maintenance to clerical and administration, according to Crawford County officials. Employees were informed of the pending layoffs last week.

The center is a 157-bed facility with 195 employees. It will furlough 81 employees, effective March 6. However, 35 are to be called back immediately with potentially different schedules or positions at the 24-hour care, state-licensed facility, county officials said. A net loss of 46 employees is equal to 23.6 percent of the center's 195-employee workforce.

The nursing home's population hasn't been running near its 157-bed capacity, resulting in a projected financial loss of $765,000 in 2017 if the county didn't act, according to commissioners. The center has its own self-funded budget -- separate from the county's general operating budget.

"They budgeted for 142 beds, but the census is 133 beds. That equates to about $60,000 revenue loss per month with that shortfall of beds," Francis Weiderspahn Jr., chairman of commissioners, told the Tribune on Monday. "That going through to the end of the year would equate to about three-quarters of a million dollar loss including (employee) benefits and other costs.

"We're committed to keeping the Care Center open, but it couldn't cover a three-quarter-of-a-million drop in revenue without changes," Weiderspahn said.

Reimbursement changes with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act have driven down population numbers, according to commissioners.

In 2015, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) warned that conversion to the more complex bill-coding system required by the Affordable Care Act could disrupt health care provider revenue cycles for up to two years.

Reimbursement for most patients at the Care Center is at the Medicaid rate but is roughly $55 a day less than what it actually costs for the center for the stay, according to Commissioner John Amato.

Medicaid is a state medical care plan funded by the federal government that pays for public assistance recipients.

"For us, it's probably one of the most important things we can do in our community -- taking care of the elderly," Amato said. "For us, it's both a blessing and a curse because the reimbursement just isn't there."

"Plus the county homes get reimbursed at a less rate than the private nursing homes do," Weiderspahn said.

Layoffs are not an ideal situation for employees or administration, Commissioner Chris Soff said.

"But to keep the home a viable, county-owned facility, we all felt this was the best course of action to take," Soff said.

On Friday, county officials met with the Care Center workers and the Service Employees International Union Health Care Pennsylvania, which represents unionized workers at the Care Center, to announce the pending layoffs, which will be based on seniority.

"While these layoffs are painful, we understand all too well the financial challenges that many of our county homes face," Molly Bechtel, spokeswoman for SEIU Health Care, said Monday. "We commend the commissioners for the dedication to keeping the facility a county home and look forward to developing a plan with all parties to ensure the center stays viable and continues to provide quality care for the residents of Crawford County."

"We want to be fair to the employees, but at the same time, not burden the taxpayer," Amato said.

Volunteers have been sought for the layoffs, and bids for the open positions were to be posted by Monday afternoon, according to Susan Lotarski, the county's human resources director. Bids on the realigned positions will be collected through next Monday, she said. The bids then will be reviewed and a new schedule will be in place March 6, she said.

If the home's population rises and creates the need for additional staff, furloughed Care Center employees will be recalled as needed, according to county officials.

Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at [email protected].

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