Statement on Ohio's Budget from Ohio Health Care Association

COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Ohio Health Care Association Executive Director Peter Van Runkle today issued the following statement regarding Ohio's two-year budget, which Governor John Kasich signed on Thursday, June 30, 2011.

"While we appreciate the restoration of a portion of the funding for skilled nursing care that was cut in the state budget bill, it only represented about one fifth of the total cut.  The remaining cuts come out of the care of some of Ohio's most vulnerable citizens, primarily frail elderly Ohioans who have chosen skilled nursing facilities because they need a level of care their families cannot deliver at home, even with outside assistance.  We are very concerned that this budget will cut quality of care, result in potentially thousands of lost jobs among dedicated caregivers, and reduce access to skilled nursing care as facilities are forced to close."

The Ohio Health Care Association is a non-profit association of more than 700 skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities, and providers serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, representing over 50,000 individuals. Many OHCA members also provide a variety of home and community-based services.  OHCA is the largest long-term care association in the state, and the only chartered Ohio affiliate of the American Health Care Association, representing more than 12,000 long-term care facilities nationwide.

SOURCE Ohio Health Care Association