Kansas Legislators Warned About Rising Medicaid Costs

Kansas lawmakers on Aug. 6 received a warning to "brace" for "significant increases" in Medicaid costs, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports. Bob Day, director of medical policy for the state Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS), told legislators that Kansas' Medicaid costs are expected to rise as more people qualify for the program and demand for prescription drugs grows. Medicaid, already third-largest provider of health insurance in the state, has seen expenditures rise from $544 million in 1999 to $730 million this year. During "any given month," about 180,000 Kansans receive Medicaid benefits and an average of 32,000 claims are submitted per day. In addition, the cost of providing prescriptions for Medicaid recipients increased 15% in each of the last six years, according to an SRS analyst. Approximately 35% of the program's costs are related to health care expenditures for children. Public health advocates have suggested that the state use preventive care as a strategy to contain costs. Specifically, they have "urged" state lawmakers to consider boosting financial support to county-operated public health departments. Kay Kent, president of the Kansas Association of Local Health Departments, said the level of funding awarded to local public health clinics has remained stagnant for five years. "Local governments cannot continue year after year to fill the gaps in public health funding," she said. The Capital-Journal reports that lawmakers will use the input "to set funding priorities" for next year's state Legislature (McLean, Topeka Capital-Journal, 8/6). For further information on state health policy in Kansas, visit State Health Facts Online.