Pioneers' Home begins transition

PALMER -- Gov. Frank Murkowski stopped in the Valley to sign several pieces of legislation this week, one of which will have a lasting effect on senior care in the Valley.

The bill, Senate Bill 301, designates the Palmer Pioneers' Home as a home for state veterans, which will be funded primarily by the U.S. Veterans Administration.

The largest benefit, said Joel Gilbertson, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, is that veterans in Alaska who have previously been unable to make use of their benefits will now have a chance to do so. VA regulations state that veterans' benefits are only available at certified veterans' homes, so veterans living in "public institutions" could not use Medicaid to offset the costs of their care. Once the facility is certified by VA officials, the state will begin receiving $27.19 per day per veteran for care provided at the home.

It's a project on which Murkowski said he's been working for much of his career as a U.S. senator, and one he's happy to bring to fruition as Alaska's governor.

Murkowski said the devil was literally in the details -- the state had to find a way to mesh the operating practices of the state Pioneer Home system with requirements that govern operation of veterans' homes across the nation.

"We couldn't really justify a stand-alone veterans' home," Murkowski said. He explained that while the VA pays for construction of veterans' homes, the state would be asked to foot the bill for ongoing maintenance.

He said a deal was struck through a cooperative effort between himself, longtime friend and Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi and his daughter and current U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Principi visited the Valley in 2002, and at that time discussed with veterans and people in communities around the state the need for a veterans' home in Alaska. Gov. Murkowski and Sen. Murkowski have both held seats on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

The joint venture between the state Pioneer Home system and the VA won't happen overnight, according to Gilbertson. During Wednesday's announcement at the Palmer Pioneers' Home, Gilbertson said he has proposed an 18-month time line, during which a lot of renovation must take place, and policies and procedures at the Pioneers' home will be analyzed and meshed with Veterans' Home policies.

Effective immediately, however, the home will be moving toward an occupancy ratio of 75 percent veterans to 25 percent non-veterans. Currently, 14 veterans occupy the home. Eventually, that number will increase to 62. That doesn't mean, Gilbertson said, that anyone currently at the home will be asked to leave.

"Veterans in the Pioneer Home system may request a transfer, but no vet is required to move," Gilbertson said. "And no current resident of the facility will be asked to leave the facility."

Virginia Smiley, administrative services manager for the Division of Alaska Pioneer Homes, said turning the home into a Veterans' Home will mean a lot of retrofitting.

According to VA standards, everything in a Veterans' Home must have a 20-year life span. The renovations are expected to add up to about $3.5 million -- 65 percent of which will be paid by the VA and 35 percent by the state, through funding already appropriated by the Alaska Legislature.

Smiley said the building's footprint will remain the same, and state staff are working to make sure the facility stays at 82 beds. Some of the changes will be visible, such as a covered walkway to the home's parking lot to ensure ice- and snow-free travel during the winter, while others, such as the potential replacement of the facility's boiler system, won't be as easily seen.

When the renovations are complete, Smiley said, VA staff will assess the building and also survey the policies guiding day-to-day operations to make sure everything fits within VA standards. If everything goes smoothly and according to plan, Smiley said, the veterans could begin receiving per diem for their care by January 2006.

Contact Rindi White at rindi.white@frontiersman.com.