Excerpt from the remarks at the April 17 press conference:
While financials are a large part of our concern, we also recognize that our predecessors on this board did not get into the business of long-term care in order to turn a profit. It was not a business decision in 1848 when the County Farm was created to take care of those who were sick and poor. Peoria County’s leadership made that decision to take care of residents when there was no other place for them to go, and by doing so, they filled a very real and pressing need that was not being met at the time.
Today, 172 years later, the healthcare field has changed in ways our forefathers could not imagine. And ultimately, it has changed for the better. There are now numerous options for rehabilitation and long-term care; better financial contributions through programs like Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance; and skilled social service agencies that help our aging population to remain independent longer. The needs our local government once solely filled for our community are now being widely met by the private sector.
We cannot ignore the financial hardships we have encountered over the past few years. Heddington Oaks has not been able to meet the census numbers needed to sustain the facility long-term, and a tight labor market has led to difficulties in recruitment and retainment of team members. We have repeatedly dipped into Heddington Oaks reserves to continue providing care to our residents, and this financial model is not sustainable. The economics behind Peoria County operating a single site facility are not sustainable. The overwhelming majority of other counties in Illinois have already come to this same decision for their county-owned assisted living facilities, because the regulatory environment and funding mechanisms work against county government delivering this service.
We have done our due diligence over the past 3 years to evaluate all our options. The Board has engaged community partners, including OSF HealthCare and UnityPoint Health. We’ve implemented the best practices recommended by long-term care professionals in an effort to ensure we explored every available option within our reach. While these efforts have helped us in some small regard, it has not been enough to overcome the state of affairs.
Now is the time for Peoria County to exit this business. But please know that this remains a decision all our board members have wrestled with.