Daines: Montana not equipped to deal with growing senior population

BILLINGS – While the number of seniors in Montana continues to grow, the number of nursing home facilities in the state have decreased, a trend seen in many rural areas across the country.

On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines of Montana talked about some of the challenges within the industry at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Capitol Hill.

“Twenty years ago in Montana, we had over 100 nursing homes serving this patient population,” said Daines, a Republican. “Today, we have just over 70.”

More than 3,700 Montanans receive care in a nursing home.

Meanwhile, Daines said that in the last 10 years Montana’s senior population has grown 40 percent.

READ FULL STORY