Austin State Hospital could lose $7.1 million in federal funding
Austin State Hospital has less than three months to fix critical problems that threaten its residents’ safety or it risks losing up to $7.1 million in federal money.
The Guadalupe Street psychiatric hospital has been cited by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services twice within four weeks for major issues, including severe nursing shortages and restraint violations. Now the facility has until Nov. 23 to solve its problems or the federal agency will stop paying for the treatment of patients. That money constitutes nearly 14 percent of the hospital’s $49.8 million annual budget.
Officials say they have made immediate changes and are committed to keeping people safe.
Austin State Hospital is one of 10 state-run mental health hospitals that care for people with mental illnesses. While the facilities are mostly funded with state money, Medicaid and Medicare pays for services for low-income people. To be eligible for that money, the hospital has to meet federal standards. But it hasn’t been doing that and it’s creating dangerous conditions for patients and staffers, inspectors said in their report to hospital officials this month.
Read more: http://www.mystatesman.com/news/news/local/austin-state-hospital-could-lose-71-million-in-fed/nngdW/
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