TOPEKA, KANSAS – Calais Sherry, a 33-year-old Topekan, found stability and peace of mind in healthcare services delivered through Medicaid during her pregnancies. However, her reliance on mental health services for depression has made life challenging after her access to Medicaid lapsed in August. Losing her insurance has not only impacted her ability to manage her health but has also had a cascading effect on her ability to maintain her housing, pay bills, and meet transportation needs.
Governor Laura Kelly, a Democrat, brought her “Healthy Worker, Healthy Economy” campaign for Medicaid expansion to a nonprofit behavioral health facility, underlining the potential benefits if the state Legislature were to expand Medicaid eligibility to approximately 150,000 Kansans. Currently, 40 states and the District of Columbia have extended healthcare access to millions of low-income working individuals, with the federal government covering 90% of the expansion costs and states contributing the remaining 10%.
Governor Kelly emphasized the critical role of the Legislature in making Medicaid expansion a reality in Kansas. While the state’s House and Senate approved a Medicaid bill in 2017, it was subsequently vetoed by then-Republican Governor Sam Brownback. Governor Kelly is set to submit her sixth expansion plan to legislators in January, but current GOP leaders in the Legislature remain opposed to bipartisan efforts to expand eligibility.
This political stalemate means that both Kansas residents and healthcare providers are missing out on an estimated $66 million in monthly government assistance for healthcare.
According to Andy Brown, the commissioner of behavioral health at the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, Medicaid expansion would result in millions of dollars being annually directed toward community mental health programs across the state. An analysis by the Kansas Health Institute suggests that expanding Medicaid could benefit an estimated 24,000 Kansans, particularly if the program added 108,000 adults. A separate study by Mental Health America revealed that 18% of adults with mental illness in Kansas lacked insurance, compared to 11% nationally.
In Shawnee County, expansion would make an additional 3,600 residents eligible for Medicaid, and an infusion of $31 million in new annual healthcare spending could generate around 1,200 jobs within the county. Topeka Mayor Mike Padilla stressed that Medicaid expansion would provide much-needed relief to address behavioral health issues and public safety concerns.
States that have expanded Medicaid have seen over 1,000 additional mental health visits on average at federally qualified health centers. Bill Persinger, CEO of Valeo Behavioral Health Services, pointed out that Medicaid expansion would inject $1.5 million into Valeo, which currently operates on a $25 million annual budget. Approximately 30% of Valeo’s 6,500 clients have jobs but lack health insurance.
Sherrie Vaughn, executive director of NAMI Kansas, highlighted that individuals who couldn’t access mental health services due to being uninsured or underinsured often turned to self-medication. She noted that 19% of those with a mental illness also struggled with substance abuse disorders, leading to challenges within their households and, in some cases, homelessness or incarceration.
Jon Antrim, regional director for Global Medical Response, which includes multiple air and ground medical transport operations in Kansas, asserted that Medicaid expansion could alleviate strain on the state’s first responders. Increasing Medicaid coverage would ensure that more Kansans had reliable access to primary medical care, reducing the burden on 911 services, which often respond to calls involving low-pay or no-pay patients.
“The financial impact is about $4 million worth of uncompensated care to Topeka,” Antrim noted, underlining the significant cost savings that could be achieved through Medicaid expansion in Kansas.
