Kansas May Delay Launch of Prescription Drug Assistance Program

A prescription drug assistance program for Kansas seniors scheduled to start in July may be delayed until January, the Kansas City Star/Omaha World-Herald reports. Last year, Kansas lawmakers passed a law establishing a $51 million trust fund to dispense $1,200 per year per person to assist the 1,250 seniors deemed eligible with "skyrocketing" prescription drug costs. They had hoped that the annual interest on the fund would be enough to finance the program. But Connie Hubbell, secretary of the Kansas Department on Aging, said that her department "wasn't sure there would be any money for the program" until last month because "the $51 million in [the] trust fund ... was a tempting target for budget cutters." She added that seniors may not receive the money until January. Some lawmakers were angered over the delay. "We passed this law over a year ago. What have they (the Department on Aging) been doing the last 12 months? ... There's nothing wrong with starting the program now," state Rep. Rocky Nichols (D) said (Kansas City Star/Omaha World-Herald, 6/25).