[ad_1]
Maine Veterans’ Homes will get $2.6 million from a state marijuana fund to close a funding gap between Medicare rates and the cost of caring for Mainers who served in the military under a plan approved by lawmakers on Wednesday.
But the one-time money advanced out of the budget committee is only a patch for next year, which means the Legislature will need to discuss a long-term funding source when it returns in January to keep the organization afloat, both advocates and officials said.
The Senate needs to sign off on the funding before sending it to Gov. Janet Mills for final approval. Lawmakers on the budget panel who were making final decisions Wednesday night on which bills to fund this year approved the one-time money for Maine Veterans’ Homes by pulling the $2.6 million from a medical marijuana fund.
Sen. Brad Farrin, R-Norridgewock, who sponsored the bill to fund the group that operates six homes around the state serving more than 500 veterans, said the $2.6 million and about $765,000 that Mills included in her recently approved addition to a two-year budget will help unlock federal funding to close a $10.3 million funding gap for Maine Veterans’ Homes.
[ad_2]
Source link
