Letter: Vote ‘yes’ for home

In the event that our St. Croix County nursing home is sold or closed, what then?

A person can move to a private nursing home. Private nursing homes are usually corporation-owned and understandably have to operate at a profit. To that aim, some of these nursing homes are no longer accepting Medicaid patients. Another option is non-profit nursing homes. These are not charities and need to be self-sustaining. They will accept a specified number of Medicaid patients. Both types of nursing homes will opt for more profitable patients, i.e. patients who require less care.

Why should you care? With depreciating home values, foreclosures and shrinking retirement savings, many elderly will no longer be able to afford $75,000-$100,000 annually for their long-term care. Medicaid beds are limited. Where is your loved one going to turn for care?

Fortunately, our county nursing home is still providing round-the-clock tender loving care. All are welcome — whether they pay their own way or depend on Medicaid and regardless of the amount of care they require. Our county nursing home was profitable for over 100 years. Only during recent years has it needed some financial assistance.

Help keep our county nursing home. Please vote “yes” on Nov. 4.

Tags: opinion, hudson, letter, nursinghome