Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Kansas House Breathes Life Back Into Medicaid Expansion Bill
The Associated Press: Kansas House Advances Medicaid Expansion; Final Action Next
The Kansas House on Wednesday advanced a bill expanding Medicaid to more low-income, non-elderly adults, a proposal that was denied votes and floor debates for four years. The measure passed a first-round House vote 83-40 and will see final action Thursday. ... Supporters won the decisive initial victory arguing the expansion would be budget-neutral, support struggling health care providers and increase access to care. ... The legislation passed the first round as Congress is considering changes to the Affordable Care Act, including phasing out the funding for Medicaid expansion. The Kansas House bill includes a provision that would end the program if the federal government decreases funding below 90 percent. (Kite, 2/22)
Wichita (Kan.) Eagle: Kansas House Advances Medicaid Expansion
The vote came after a bill to expand Medicaid had been tabled Monday in a House committee until at least April 3. Expansion supporters amended a separate bill Wednesday to add Medicaid expansion; that passed 85-40. After numerous other amendments failed, the bill advanced in the House, 83-40. The bill still must win final House passage before heading to the Senate. (Salazar, 2/22)
Topeka Capital Journal: House Votes To Approve Bill Expanding Medicaid In Kansas; Teacher Tenure Bill Also Passes
Gov. Sam Brownback has repeatedly denounced proposals for broadening Medicaid offerings in Kansas under the Affordable Care Act signed into law by President Barack Obama. Initial cost projections by the state’s Division of Budget, run by the Brownback administration, pegged the overall cost of Medicaid expansion to the state at more than $100 million for two years. Several lawmakers who endorsed Medicaid expansion suggested the budget director artificially inflated the cost estimate. (Carpenter, 2/22)
KCUR: KanCare Expansion Supporters Muscle Bill Through Kansas House
Wednesday’s vote was the first on Medicaid expansion in the House or Senate since the U.S. Supreme Court made it an option for states in a 2012 ruling. Rep. Susan Concannon, a Beloit Republican, spearheaded the rescue effort, reminding House members that the state’s rejection of expansion has cost Kansas an estimated $1.7 billion in additional federal funds over the last three years. “We have left that (money) on the table” Concannon said. (McLean, 2/22)
And in other Kansas Medicaid news —
KCUR: Kansas Lawmakers Considering ‘KanCare Fix’ Despite Objections From Brownback Administration
Kansas was out in front of just about every other state in 2013 when it fully privatized its Medicaid program and renamed it KanCare. The switch to managed care was one of the first big policy changes made by Gov. Sam Brownback, who promised it would both improve health care and lower costs. ... Some lawmakers are tired of hearing complaints about KanCare from doctors and hospital administrators in their districts. They’re working on a measure that would require the managed care organizations to standardize some of their business practices, such as credentialing providers. It also would establish an independent review process to settle disputed claims. (McLean, 2/23)
