Governor Perdue Announces Budget Proposals for Senior Citizens

Governor Perdue Announces Budget Proposals for Senior Citizens

Governor's Budget Supports Community Health Care and Senior Tax Cuts

ATLANTA – Today at a meeting of the Georgia Healthcare Association, Governor Sonny Perdue outlined several budget proposals that will benefit Georgia senior citizens by increasing funding for community health care.  Governor Perdue announced that his FY07 budget includes more than $20 million to increase nursing home reimbursement rates, as well as more than $1 million to fund a monthly supplement of $20 for each nursing home resident who receives Supplemental Security Income.  Both budget proposals are extensions of Governor Perdue's focus on community care and will help Georgia 's nursing homes provide seniors with higher quality health care services.

“Increasing the reimbursement rates for nursing homes and funding a monthly supplement for patients on Supplemental Security Income will help to maintain the high quality of care for nursing home residents,” said Governor Sonny Perdue.  “I'm a strong believer in the value of community care, because it allows seniors to get the support they need while maintaining their close connections to family, friends and a familiar community.”

Governor Perdue's budget proposals also include more than $6.3 million to fund 750 waiver slots for the Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities waiting lists, increasing its growth from 925 last year. Additionally, more than $1.4 million will fund 500 new Community Care Service Programs for elderly citizens, enabling them to live at home and receive care, increasing funding for the waiver that has covered 15,830 people thus far.  Governor Perdue commended the Georgia Healthcare Association for being an active partner in identifying nursing home residents who are able to reside in the community with the support of waiver services. 

The budget proposals announced today build on several of Governor Perdue's health care funding increases that began last year.  In FY05, Governor Perdue funded the following:

• $799,630 (more than $2.2 million when combined with Federal funding) for an additional 600 non-Medicaid eligible elderly individuals to receive care in the community rather than in a nursing home;
• $96,000 for community services to assist seniors to meet their basic physical and safety needs avoiding nursing home care;
• $250,000 for the implementation of a statewide health care prevention initiative to improve health outcomes of Georgia citizens;
• $600,000 for a campaign to promote healthy lifestyles for senior citizens promoting nutrition and exercise as interventions to avoid illness.

Governor Perdue's focus on seniors is not isolated to health care funding.  Since his first year in office, Governor Perdue has funded a tax cut for senior citizens through a retirement income exclusion, allowing seniors to deduct up to $35,000 from retirement income for tax filing purposes.  Starting in 2006, the senior retirement tax cut is expected to save Georgia senior citizens between $64 million and $127 million per year, phased in over a three-year period.

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