Skilled nursing facilities: reimbursement rates.

Reimbursement rates for freestanding skilled nursing facilities are funded by a combination of federal funds and moneys collected pursuant to the skilled nursing uniform quality assurance fee. Existing law prohibits the quality assurance fee from being assessed after December 31, 2026, and repeals these provisions on January 1, 2028. Existing law establishes the maximum annual aggregate rate increases for the 2023 to 2026, inclusive, calendar years, as prescribed, and sets forth the annual rate methodologies. Under existing law, the Medi-Cal Long-Term Care Reimbursement Act is operative until December 31, 2026, and the department is authorized to conduct necessary closeout activities after that date. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2028.

This bill would extend the application of the quality assurance fee until December 31, 2027, and would repeal the quality assurance fee provisions on January 1, 2029. The bill would extend the operative date of the Medi-Cal Long-Term Care Reimbursement Act to December 31, 2027, and repeals these provisions on January 1, 2029, or the date when the director certifies that all necessary closeout activities have been completed, whichever is later. The bill would also make conforming changes.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.