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Hospice Of Holland Partially Blames Affordable Care Act For Facility Closure

Posted at 7:51 PM, Jun 17, 2014
and last updated 2014-06-17 19:51:03-04

HOLLAND, Mich. (June 17, 2014)– Hospice of Holland is closing down its on-site facility and placing some of the blame on the Affordable Care Act.

Prior to Tuesday’s announcements, the board of directors voted to shut down Holland House on June 12.

Torrey Husmann, executive director with Hospice of Holland, said they’re quickly running out of money.

“The biggest issue under the Affordable Care Act is we know we’re going to see cuts in reimbursement,” Husmann said. “It’ll be about 12 percent.”

Husmann said that while the cuts sped up the process, it’s not the only reason they’re shutting the facility down. He said a majority of their financial resources go toward Hospice Home even though it only brings in 13 percent of their business. In-home hospice accounts for the remaining 87 percent, Husmann said.

“Instead of closing today, we may have been closing in 2018…2019. It’s not a sustainable model,” Husmann said.

The facility will stop taking patients at the end of June. They’ll discontinue operations at the facility in July.

Husmann said the residents who currently stay at Hospice House will be placed in other homes where they’ll receive the same treatment.