PORTLAND, Maine — Editor's note: The video attached to this story was posted on March 11.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills proposed dedicating $3.5 million in funding to help keep the doors open at two Maine Veterans' Homes that are slated to close in April.
The closure of the Machias and Caribou nursing homes was announced Feb. 24 through a news release issued by the Maine Veterans' Homes Board of Trustees. They cited escalating operational losses and the "growing scarcity of qualified workforce" among the factors that led to the decision.
"The mounting operational losses are unsustainable and threaten the financial ability of the entire system," MVH CEO Kelley Cash said in the release. "Moreover, the ongoing workforce crisis in these communities is making it nearly impossible to staff day-to-day operations."
Since the announcement, Maine lawmakers have sought options to help keep the two facilities from closing.
In the announcement Tuesday, Mills proposed $1.75 million in General Fund money and $1.75 million in additional federal funding for a total of $3.5 million.
The amount Mills proposed was based on a "combined annual deficit" for the two locations being $3 million, according to a report MVH sent to the governor on Feb. 14.
"Our promise to our veterans is that we will stand by them, just as they stood by us in their service to our state and our nation, and these homes are a small step toward fulfilling that promise," Mills wrote. "The veterans who live in these homes, along with their families and the staff, all deserve for them to stay open."
Maine Senate President Troy Jackson backs the proposal.
"Now that the Maine Veterans' Homes in Caribou and Machias are under threat, we must show the same courage, commitment, and resolve to protect their way of life, getting the long-term care they need in a first-rate facility, in their community, and near the people they love," Jackson, D-Allagash, said in the release.
Christine Henson, the communications director for MVH, told NEWS CENTER Maine that the funding proposal was a step in the right direction but emphasized that funding was only one part that factored into the decision to close the two locations.
"We still have serious concerns about the impact of the ongoing workforce challenges both in the near- and long-term future and also the projected decline in veterans in these rural communities," Henson said.
The Board of Trustees is scheduled to meet later this month to consider all factors, including the commitment of funding, Henson said.
Maine Veterans' Homes is a nonprofit set established in 1977 to provide long-term care for Maine veterans and eligible family members, according to the MVH website. The first location opened in Augusta, but they have expanded to include locations in Caribou, Scarborough, South Paris, Bangor, and Machias.