Oxygen tank

Oxygen tank

WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAU) – A Wausau nursing home may become only the fourth in the state to offer a unit for patients who need a ventilator to survive.

The unit has yet to be built but won major backing from Marathon County's finance committee Monday in the form of a $225,000 loan. The full county board will vote on the funding February 16.

The loan would help Mount View Care Center build the 10-patient unit in a vacant wing. The unit could open by April 1.

The unit would cater to those who require a ventilator either because of a chronic illness or a traumatic injury. The nearest facility for such patients is in Chippewa Falls. There are also two ventilator units in Milwaukee.

Most of the patients who would live in the unit are on Medicaid. That program would reimburse the county nearly $500 per patient per day – income that would help the county generate revenue over the next five years, according to projections.

The county would likely lease ventilators for three years with an option to buy them. Each unit would cost an estimated $20,000 or $9,000 less than if the county would lease them over five years. The preferred option would also help the county keep up with changing technology.