REGIONAL — Minnesota senators have approved a sweeping health and human services budget that sends funding to hospitals, ambulance services, and food banks, as the state tries to keep up with rising costs and growing demand.
The Senate passed the omnibus bill, SF 4612, after extended floor debate last week. In all, the package spends about $760 million over the next four years, much of it aimed at propping up services that have been under increasing strain from workforce shortages, higher costs, and changes at the federal level.
It’s a statewide bill, but a number of the provisions are expected to have their biggest impact in rural areas, including northeastern Minnesota, where hospitals, ambulance services, and county systems tend to operate with fewer resources and little room for error.
“As the senator from the most rural district in the state, I have heard loud and clear from our local health care providers, our counties, and from residents about the immense challenges they face,” said Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown.
“While we cannot undo what the federal government has done, we are doing everything we can to shore up our system, support rural health care needs, and help as many Minnesotans as we can.”
He said the bill is meant, at least in part, to respond to recent federal policy changes that are expected to add more pressure to systems that are already stretched, particularly in rural areas where distance and staffing are constant challenges.
The largest single investment in the bill, according to Hauschild, is a $150 million hospital stabilization program aimed at helping rural facilities stay open and keep core services in place. Many of those hospitals are already operating on thin margins and have warned they may have to scale back, or even close, without additional support.
The bill also sets aside $15 million to help cover uncompensated care for rural ambulance services. Providers across Greater Minnesota say they are increasingly transporting patients who can’t pay, a trend that is putting long-term pressure on local emergency response systems.
Hauschild has been involved in that issue for several years, including efforts to create a statewide EMS task force and secure earlier rounds of funding for rural ambulance services.
Counties are also in line for support, with $70 million earmarked for upgrades to aging information technology systems used to manage social services programs. Local officials have said those systems are outdated and increasingly difficult to maintain as caseloads grow and responsibilities shift.
Alongside those health and infrastructure pieces, the Senate bill includes $10 million for Minnesota’s regional food banks, as grocery costs rise and demand at food shelves continues to increase.
Food banks supply local shelves and meal programs across the state, including in rural communities where access to affordable groceries can be limited. Advocates say the added funding would help stretch resources at a time when more working families are turning to food shelves to fill gaps in their budgets.
The Senate’s action moves the process forward, but the final shape of the budget is still unsettled.
The House is continuing work on its own version of the health and human services budget, and lawmakers will eventually need to work out the differences before anything is finalized.
Advocates for both rural health care providers and food banks are urging lawmakers to maintain the Senate’s funding levels, warning that any cuts or delays could quickly be felt in communities across Greater Minnesota.