Northampton County Council Agrees to Fund Gracedale

Northampton County Council has agreed to give the Gracedale nursing home an additional $2.75 million to fund it through the rest of the year.

According to published reports, council voted 7-2 Thursday night to amend its budget, allowing the Upper Nazareth nursing facility to stay solvent.

County budget director Doran Hammond, quoted in the Express-Times, says the money is needed to offset a decline in reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid due to lower number of residents at Gracedale. 

The Morning Call reports that council had listened to a presentation earlier in the day from , the company hired by the county to run Gracedale. Premiere representatives gave council an assessment of the facility, and made a number of recommendations.

Although Premiere is authorized the cut staff at Gracedale, the company declined to say whether it would take that course.

Voting against the measure were Councilwoman Barbara Thierry and Councilman Ron Angle. According to WFMZ, Angle argued that Gracedale was moving past its intended purpose as a place for lower-income senior citizens.

In May, county voters that would have allowed the county to sell Gracedale to a private company.