Update: April, 2024

This section of our website is for ALL the citizens who support the long history of having a publicly-owned nursing home in our County.  Walnut Acres, a.k.a. Stephenson County Nursing Center is an asset to our community, and shows that we care about our citizens, no matter what their financial abilities are. 

Please review the documents posted here to help our community understand the facts about Walnut Acres and the controversy around selling it. If you continue to have questions, please email Jim Hart (County Board, District D) hartjt@comcast.net or Casey Anthony (County Board, District C) caseymjanthony@gmail.com 

Take a look at this video, made by citizens in a Wisconsin County in the same battle with their County Board. Link to video on YouTube: "Why Do Nursing Homes Keep Shutting Down?".

Why the Nursing Home Can’t Lose Money

“On the topic of “If you collect the money that you bill, and you are a County Owned Not-for-Profit Nursing Home you can’t lose. There’s a report that goes out every year, called a cost report that goes to Medicaid (State). It’s all your expenses and all your income for the nursing home. The way that the State determines the Medicaid rate for your County owned Nursing Home is they take that report and they take your expenses and they divide by the number of patient days you have and that’s your new rate. So they are basically saying you are going to break even, you can’t lose money. We are giving you credit for every dime you spent. But, they won’t give you credit for money you haven’t collected. That’s on us, on you, and everyone here. That’s on the County and the Nursing Home.

As long as a good percentage of dollars that are billed, are collected, and over the last year, our statistics tell us that we’re at 98.2% collected, which is one of our strengths of TCM, among many, there’s no reason why this building should ever fall backward and start losing money by chunks and chunks. The past was an anomaly that happened but it shouldn’t happen again. 

It also offers opportunities. There’s a $500,000 tax levy (approx $25 per household), on this building and so every year the County allocates $500K to the nursing home. So, if you are doing everything we just talked about, there’s a $500K profit because you didn’t need to dip into the tax levy. You can use that money for other things. You can fix the building, you can pay higher wages, buy nursing equipment, or pave the parking lot, EVERY year. You can do whatever you want with it, there should be extra tax money. 

And then when you spend that money, and you put it on the next cost report, you get reimbursed again and it’s an endless cycle every year. You can improve the building every year. Or perhaps someday the $500K or half of that levy, could be decided to be returned to the County so they can use it for something else. It’s possible.

On Jan 1st TCM started doing these profit and loss statements. Walnut Acres has been in the black every month this year. There are two ways to do accounting. One is cash basis and one is accrual. What the state requires on these reports and what we do is on an accrual basis." 

Mike Philippo, CFO, Transitional Care Management (TCM)

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Referendums were held in our County in 1970 to erect the current building and also a $500K Tax Levy was voted on by the Stephenson County residents (approx $25 per household), 25 years ago, in 1998.

IL State Statute - 55ILCS 5/Div. 5-21 heading

(55 UKCS 5/5-21001) (from Ch. 34, par. 5-21001)

It takes 2/3rds majority of all members of the board, to sell, dispose of or lease for any term, any part of the home properties in such manner and upon such terms as it deems best for the interest of the county, and to make and execute all necessary conveyances thereof in the same manner as other conveyances of real estate may be made by a county.

However, if the home was erected after referendum approval by the voters of the county, it shall not be sold or disposed of except after referendum approval thereof by a majority of the voters of the county voting thereon.

IL State Statute - 55ILCS 5/Div. 5-21 heading

(55 UKCS 5/5-21001) (from Ch. 34, par. 5-21001)

It takes 2/3rds majority of all members of the board, to sell, dispose of or lease for any term, any part of the home properties in such manner and upon such terms as it deems best for the interest of the county, and to make and execute all necessary conveyances thereof in the same manner as other conveyances of real estate may be made by a county.

However, if the home was erected after referendum approval by the voters of the county, it shall not be sold or disposed of except after referendum approval thereof by a majority of the voters of the county voting thereon.