Study: Fewer Heart Deaths Tied To ACA’s Medicaid Expansion

By Bruce Japson | June 5, 2019 The expansion of Medicaid benefits has been linked to “lower cardiovascular mortality in middle-aged adults” in states that expanded such health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act, new research indicates. Heart attacks are a leading cause of death in the U.S. and new research in JAMA Cardiology […]

April Holman: Delaying KanCare expansion only causes harm

The failure of lawmakers to pass Medicaid expansion in 2019 will have heartbreaking consequences for tens of thousands of low-wage working Kansas who are stuck in the health care coverage gap. By now, what happened this session has been fairly well publicized. The House passed an expansion bill by a wide majority. The Senate came […]

Topeka Capital Journal: ‘You want it bad, you get it bad’: Republican rift clouds path for Medicaid expansion

By Sherman Smith | May 15, 2019 A rift between Republican factions in the Kansas Legislature and pressure applied by Gov. Laura Kelly threaten a tenuous agreement to produce a Medicaid expansion plan this year and vote on the legislation in January. Medicaid expansion supporters in the House are frustrated that Senate leadership intends to […]

Salina Journal: Healthcare providers support Medicaid expansion

By Jason Beets | May 15, 2019 Two area healthcare providers say hospitals and clinics would benefit from Medicaid expansion. The Kansas Legislature will undoubtedly reconsider Medicaid expansion next year, after supporters fell one vote short of overruling Senate Republican leadership’s decision to block debate of the measure earlier this month. Officials from the Salina […]

No Mercy: How A Kansas Town Is Grappling With Its Hospital’s Closure

By Sarah Jane Tribble | May 14, 2019 A slight drizzle had begun in the gray December sky outside Community Christian Church as Reta Baker, president of the local hospital, stepped through the doors to join a weekly morning coffee organized by the Fort Scott, Kan., chamber of commerce. The town manager was there, along […]

KCUR: Kansas Lawmakers Had A Deal To Expand Medicaid Next Year, Until They Didn’t

By Jim McLean | May 13, 2019 A deal to clear the way for Medicaid expansion next year that some Kansas lawmakers thought they had brokered in the waning hours of their just-finished legislative session appears to be unraveling. Instead, the conservative leaders and moderate rank-and-file Republicans find themselves splitting in an intra-party fight. Rep. […]

Critical Condition: Stories of Health in the Heartland

This short film, created by award-winning filmmaker Ky Dickens, features community members and health professionals from across Kansas sharing their challenges and triumphs as they strive to take care of themselves, their families, and their communities.

Wichita Eagle: Medicaid expansion won’t come to Kansas this year after last-ditch effort fails

By Jonathan Shorman | May 4, 2019 Medicaid expansion won’t happen in Kansas this year, leaving lawmakers to develop a new plan for 2020 that some Republicans hope will be more conservative. The Legislature adjourned early Sunday without approving an expansion plan backed by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. That marked a defeat for Kelly, who […]