ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Medicaid has long been a hot topic and recently, Gov. Laura Kelly called on federal leaders to help protect it.
Last Monday, Gov. Kelly announced she has sent a letter to the Kansas Congressional Delegation, requesting they protect Kansans from the looming federal Medicaid cuts that threaten quality, affordable health care access for the most vulnerable Kansans. Under the latest plan proposed by Congress, Kansas’ Medicaid program could lose up to $1 billion in federal funding within the first year alone.
“Significant cuts to the Medicaid program will directly affect Kansans across the state, regardless of their political views. These cuts would be particularly detrimental to our rural hospitals and providers,” Gov. Kelly noted in a release from the State of Kansas. “We must stand up against these changes to ensure the hundreds of thousands of Kansans covered under Medicaid can continue to receive quality, affordable care. The state's Medicaid program covers more than 443,000 vulnerable Kansans, including low-income seniors, children, pregnant mothers, and individuals with disabilities. The suggested reductions in federal funding put these Kansans at risk of losing their health care coverage. Additionally, the 64 percent of Kansas rural hospitals already at risk of closing will be further financially strained under these cuts due to an increase in uncompensated care costs and lower reimbursement rates.”
Kansas is one of 10 states that has not expanded Medicaid, which has subjected the state’s hospitals and providers to high levels of charity care expenses for the uninsured. Gov. Kelly has introduced proposals to expand Medicaid every year of her administration, but due to the Legislature’s inaction on this issue, more than $7 billion in federal funding has been left behind in Washington D.C., according to the State of Kansas release.
“Since Kansas is already operating with reduced resources and limited federal funding, billion-dollar cuts proposed at the federal level would further destabilize the state's health care system,” the State of Kansas release noted. “By restricting access to care, the reduction in federal funding will weaken Kansas’ health care workforce, jeopardize the health of Kansans, and worsen financial instability. Gov. Kelly urges federal and state leaders to work together to stop these cuts and build upon the progress made thus far by continuing to invest in the state’s health care system.”
Gov. Kelly’s letter went into more detail about the harm that could be done.
“I urge you to protect Kansans by rejecting the billions of dollars in proposed cuts to the Medicaid program. Congressional proposals to reduce federal Medicaid funding by $880 billion over the next 10 years would be devastating to Kansas,” Gov. Kelly noted in her letter. “Early projections show that under these proposed cuts the state would be burdened with an unsustainable loss of up to $1 billion in federal funding in the first year alone, with additional cuts continuing over the next decade. This loss would jeopardize the health and well-being of the hundreds of thousands of Kansans who rely on Medicaid, as well as the fiscal health of the state. These reductions will endanger the health care coverage of the most vulnerable: seniors, children, individuals with disabilities, and pregnant moms covered under Medicaid in Kansas. Moreover, cuts to the Medicaid program will further threaten the financial stability of our hospitals, providers, nursing homes, and communities. Our state's Medicaid program is a lifeline for the more than 443,000 vulnerable Kansans relying on this quality, affordable health care. Approximately 60 percent of this total are children enrolled in either Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Medicaid also covers 31 percent of all births in Kansas, meaning these federal cuts would directly impact the care that pregnant mothers and infants receive from pre-natal treatments to postpartum coverage.”
The suggested reductions in federal funding will force the state to consider cutting or limiting optional services and eligibility groups to cover the costs of mandatory services, Gov. Kelly continued, but cutting these services would not be enough to cover the full cost of the proposed federal cuts, meaning the state legislature will likely need to appropriate additional state general funds to continue providing Medicaid services required by law.
“Moreover, the older Kansans and individuals with disabilities who lose their coverage will be forced to foot the expensive bill of finding privatized care or care within institutional settings,” Gov. Kelly noted in her letter. “Alongside limiting services and health care coverage for Kansans, these federal cuts will jeopardize the state's ability to administer the recently awarded Transforming Maternal Health Model (TMaH) and School Based Services grants earmarked for improving access to care for pregnant moms, infants, and school-aged children. The health of these Kansans will be at further risk if we do not remain committed to investing in the preventive and follow-up care provided through these initiatives. Kansas hospitals and providers will also take a devastating financial hit, jeopardizing the state's health care system and Kansans' access to care. The impact of these cuts on providers serving the Medicaid population may result in lower reimbursement rates, forcing them to either reduce the number of patients they accept or stop serving this population altogether because of fiscal constraints. This attack on hospitals and providers will leave hardworking Kansans facing additional barriers to seeing their doctors and receiving timely, nearby, and personalized care.”
If Kansans do not have access to affordable, timely care, they will have to turn to costly emergency room visits, which strain our healthcare system further. Gov. Kelly’s letter continued.
“Because Kansas is not a Medicaid expansion state, hospitals have been burdened with providing high levels of uncompensated care for the uninsured and underinsured in recent years,” Gov. Kelly noted in her letter. “Drastic cuts to Medicaid will only worsen the precarious financial position of Kansas hospitals. Our state has already lost eight rural hospitals in the last 10 years. Out of the 99 that remain open, 63 are at risk of closing while 88 have had to cut back on essential services. Kansas hospitals cannot afford any further financial strain, as it could be the final straw that forces them to shut their doors. For many of these rural communities, hospitals serve as economic hubs. Losing them not only hurts their ability to access care but also means they lose the workers who power their community and drive the economic activity in these areas. It is unfair to Kansans and our dedicated health care workforce to put hospitals and providers in a position of having to consider limiting services, cutting back on staff, or closing. I urge you to protect Medicaid from these proposed cuts so that the hardworking, vulnerable Kansans served by the program can receive the care they need. I am committed to investing in our health care system while continuing to ensure that Medicaid works for those who need it the most.”
