TRAUMATIC BRAIN-INJURED FACILITY REPORTS

Senate Bill No. 2038, a copy of which is attached as an appendix, directs the Department of Human Services to report periodically to the Legislative Council, or an interim committee designated by the Council, during the 1999-2000 interim regarding the establishment of a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota. The reports are to include information regarding the number of beds available and the location of any beds available for conversion to a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota and the status of the number of beds that have been converted for a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota.

Currently the state's only facility for traumatic brain-injured individuals is the High Soaring Eagle Ranch near Valley City. The facility provides services for up to 11 individuals.

The 1997-98 interim Budget Committee on Long-Term Care studied long-term care financing issues to determine changes necessary to develop alternative services and the feasibility of a managed care system for long-term services. As part of that study, the committee learned that there is a two- to four-year wait for admission to the High Soaring Eagle Ranch facility; therefore, other traumatic brain-injured individuals are receiving services in long-term care facilities and are unable to move to a less restrictive setting because of the lack of alternative residential services. The committee found that a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota would fill the gap between a nursing facility and total independence. The committee found that the average traumatic brain-injured waiver services costs about $2,200 per month as compared to the cost of traumatic brain-injured services being provided in long-term care facilities of approximately $7,300 per month. The committee recommended Senate Bill No. 2038 which would have continued the current moratorium on nursing facility and basic care beds through the 1999-2001 biennium. The bill provided an exception to the basic care bed moratorium for the establishment of a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota. The bill, however, was amended to remove these provisions and only includes the provision that the department periodically report to the Legislative Council on the establishment of a traumatic brain-injured facility in western North Dakota.

Section 35 of Senate Bill No. 2012 provides a contingent appropriation of $200,000, $60,000 of which is from the general fund and $140,000 of federal funds for the Department of Human Services to spend if additional beds for traumatic brain-injured persons are established in western North Dakota.

COMMITTEE ACTION PLAN

The committee may wish to carry out this responsibility as follows:

1. Receive reports from the Department of Human Services regarding this facility.
2. Receive information from the Department of Human Services of the estimated cost or savings to the state for the 2001-03 biennium resulting from this facility.
3. Receive testimony from interested persons regarding the reports on this facility.
4. Consider making recommendations and draft legislation, if necessary, to implement any committee recommendations.

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