Although we fell one vote short in our effort to bring KanCare expansion to the Senate floor today, we are extremely pleased that 23 Senators demonstrated the willingness to stand up for the democratic process, which has been blocked by Senate leadership. The courage they demonstrated shows us that KanCare expansion is supported by the […]

By Gov. Laura Kelly | April 28, 2019 With every passing day, more Kansans feel the impact of the state’s failure to expand Medicaid. It’s our neighbor struggling to get access to affordable health care. It’s a friend who works full-time — and works hard — but can’t afford private insurance or a doctor’s visit. […]

By Lt. Gov. Lynn Rogers | April 24, 2019 Last year, Gov. Kelly and I traveled across the state, listening closely and carefully to Kansans. We pledged that our administration would focus on their priorities. That’s why, nearly three months ago Gov. Kelly and I released our plan to expand Medicaid. It will provide quality, […]

By Nina Ainslie | April 21, 2019 I am a retired physician. I volunteer at Flint Hills Community Clinic in Manhattan, providing free care to low-income uninsured patients. Most of the patients I see are employed. They are not slackers. They clean motel rooms, stock grocery stores, cashier at convenience stores, work in restaurants, provide […]

By Sherman Smith | April 24, 2019 A new analysis from a national health insurance advocate predicts Kansas could provide coverage to low-income families through Medicaid expansion without compromising the state budget. The analysis, which traces savings from a spike in federal funding and subsequent tax revenue, coincides with a meeting Wednesday between Republican legislative […]

By Andy Marso | April 14, 2019 In a small back room of his Kansas City, Kansas, art studio, Michael Brantley pointed out a painting stretching across one wall. It was a bird’s-eye view of a man playing a trumpet that Brantley said was once part of a temporary exhibit at the American Jazz Museum. […]

Letter to the editor: Doctor for Medicaid expansion As a retired doctor and lifetime rural Kansas resident, I understand well how access to health care can be a matter of life and death for families and communities. Kansas faces many challenges maintaining services in rural communities. Solutions will require a combination of technology, innovation, risk-taking […]

Letter to the editor: Subverting the democratic process Sen. Wagle is making a mockery of the democratic process by not allowing the Kansas Senate to vote on the expansion of Kansas Medicaid (KanCare). Instead, she wants to head it back to committee, effectively blocking a vote. It appears she cares more for undermining the newly […]

Michelle chats with Sheldon Weisgrau, senior policy advisor for the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas, in the wake of a major report by CBS on the increasing number of rural hospital closures. Michelle and Sheldon discuss the fact that it is far more likely that hospitals in the 14 states (including Kansas) that have not […]

By Sheldon Weisgrau, Senior Policy Advisor Over the course of the decade-long effort to expand Medicaid in Kansas, opponents have grasped at a number of gimmicks that impose barriers to providing health coverage to as many as 150,000 hardworking Kansans. The latest comes from the state of Utah, which just received federal approval to implement […]