SB277: Bill Text

LRB-2880/1

TJD:cdc&wlj

2021 - 2022 LEGISLATURE

2021 Senate BILL 277

April 5, 2021 - Introduced by Senators Bernier, Felzkowski, Stafsholt and Darling, cosponsored by Representatives Rozar, VanderMeer, Dittrich, Armstrong, Born, Cabral-Guevara, Callahan, Duchow, Edming, Gundrum, Krug, Kurtz, Loudenbeck, Moses, Mursau, Oldenburg, Petryk, Plumer, Snyder, Swearingen, Tranel, Vorpagel, Wittke and Zimmerman. Referred to Joint Committee on Finance.

SB277,1,1 An Act relating to: payments to certain long-term care facilities and their staff.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill requires the governor to direct $150,000,000 from the moneys received under the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for the Department of Health Services to distribute to nursing homes and assisted living facilities that apply to DHS for a onetime payment. The payment may be used for purposes including capital projects and for integration into the statewide health information exchange system. The bill defines assisted living facilities to be community-based residential facilities, adult family homes, and residential care apartment complexes. To receive a payment, the nursing home or assisted living facility must ensure that no less than 50 percent of the payment provides bonuses to employees subject to limitations that ARPA has on payments to individuals.

For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB277,1 Section 1. Nonstatutory provisions.

SB277,1,3 (1) Payments to long-term care facilities.

SB277,2,3 (a) In this subsection, “assisted living facility” means a community-based residential facility, as defined in s. 50.01 (1g), an adult family home, as defined in s. 50.01 (1), or a residential care apartment complex, as defined in s. 50.01 (6d).

SB277,2,16 (b) The governor shall direct $150,000,000 from the moneys received under the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, P.L. 117-2, for the department of health services to distribute to nursing homes, as defined in s. 50.01 (3), and assisted living facilities that apply to the department for a onetime payment, which may be used by the nursing home or assisted living facility for purposes including capital projects and for assisting with integration into the statewide health information exchange system. To receive a payment under this paragraph, the nursing home or assisted living facility shall ensure that no less than 50 percent of the payment received by the nursing home or assisted living facility provides bonus payments to its employees, with an emphasis on providing bonuses to those employees who have direct contact with residents of the nursing home or assisted living facility, subject to any limitations on payments to individuals under the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

SB277,2,17 (End)