Alva Review-Courier -

PAWHUSKA – Pawhuska Nursing Home LLC has informed its 20 residents that it is closing. The facility opened in 1956 and, with over 30 employees, is one of Pawhuska’s larger employers.

Like most of Oklahoma’s nursing homes, which rely heavily on Medicaid funding, the Pawhuska facility has been hit hard by budget cuts. Since 2010, Oklahoma nursing homes have lost over $93 million in state and federal appropriations, leaving many of them on the brink of insolvency and closure.

Pawhuska Nursing Home Owner Justin McGrew said that he and his staff are working with residents to find them alternative a...