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At the end of this month, we say goodbye to two amazing board members. Before they transition off of the board, we want to recognize the leadership of Michael Shockley and Dan Lord. Dan and Michael each served as board chair within the last three years, leading the organization in their unique ways. Their contributions to the Health Fund over the last nine years, too numerous to list, go far beyond their tenure as board chair.

Dan Lord, a family and marriage therapist and former pastor, joined the Health Fund in 2012 as a Program and Evaluation Committee member, joining the full board in 2014. With his expertise in board governance, Dan chaired the Governance Committee and served as board chair. During his tenure, Dan served as the board lead on an extensive review and update of the organization’s bylaws, policies, board orientation, and board training process. 

As board chair, Dan shepherded the organization through the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, conducting all but one of his eight board meetings as chair remotely. He was a thoughtful and insightful partner as the organization adapted its operations during the early pandemic. Dan traveled to multiple Grantmakers in Health conferences and spent a great amount of time building relationships with board members and staff that helped ensure a strong organization. Dan’s expertise as a pastor and in family and marriage therapy were put to good use in reviewing grant proposals and programs as well as contributing to self care workshops and providing invaluable input to our sermon series. 

Michael Shockley joined the board in 2014. With a strong background in investments, Michael immediately began making an impact on our investment committee. During his tenure leading the investment committee from 2016 to 2021, he played a critical role in regularly reviewing and updating our investment policy statement, instituted regular spending and risk analyses, and was a key participant in discussions about our private investments. 

As Michael took on additional board leadership opportunities, his dedication to the mission and work of the Fund and his incisive questions were valuable to helping us develop even more impactful programming. Michael traveled with staff to investment and Grantmakers in Health conferences and spent countless hours mentoring staff on investment strategy. As a lifelong learner, Michael was a model to all board members and staff. Beyond the Health Fund, Michael also plays a key role serving on boards of other organizations such as Ember Hope and is always quick to connect organizations to find partnership opportunities to help the least among us.

Dan and Michael both served as members of the CEO search committee in 2017 and have been supportive thought partners for President David Jordan; board members who became friends. Both servant leaders, they were willing to serve in any capacity and were committed, most importantly, to the Health Fund’s mission. We’ll miss having them as board members but will look forward to them continuing to contribute in the future.

Child care is important to a healthy start for kids and families as well as to our economy. To inform early childhood policies, recently Governor Kelly announced that the Kansas Early Childhood Transition Task Force is embarking on a statewide community engagement tour to discuss the challenges communities face in supporting children through their earliest years.  

The Task Force Wants to Hear from You!

The United Methodist Health Ministry Fund encourages you to share your community’s challenges and your ideas on what our state can do to ensure all Kansas children thrive and enjoy the best possible future.

Families, service and care providers, community leaders and business representatives are encouraged to attend the nearest regional meeting. These meetings are open to the public, and pre-registration is not required.

Participants will engage in facilitated discussions designed to generate feedback on how the state is administering early childhood programs and how Kansans interact with the state’s governance system. Hearing directly from Kansans like you will ensure this process results in the best outcomes for our state and our children.

Tour Schedule
Tuesday, June 27th

9AM: Chanute—Neosho County Community College (Student Union) – 800 W Fourteenth Street, Chanute, KS 66720
2PM: Wichita—Child Start – 1002 S. Oliver Street, Wichita, KS 67218

Wednesday, June 28th

9AM: Garden City—Russell Child Development Center – 2735 N. Jennie Barker Road, Garden City, KS 67846
2PM: Hays—Rockwell Administrative Center – 323 W 12th Street, Hays, KS 67601
5PM: Salina—Donna L. Vanier Children’s Center – 155 N Oakdale Avenue, Salina, KS 67401

Thursday, June 29th

9AM: Manhattan—Manhattan-Ogden School District—College Hill Early Learning Center – 2600 Kimball Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502
1PM: Topeka—Bishop Professional Development Center – 3601 SW 31st Street, Topeka, KS 66614

Friday, June 30th

10AM: Overland Park—Shawnee Mission School District—Center for Academic Achievement – 8200 W. 71st Street, Overland Park, KS 66204
1PM: Kansas City—Children’s Campus of Kansas City – 444 Minnesota Ave, Kansas City, KS 6610—Floor 3

The Early Childhood Transition Task Force, a bipartisan group of Kansans representing business, government, advocacy and early childhood sectors, was created in early 2023 by Gov. Laura Kelly to help address one of our state’s most important challenges – giving our next generations the strongest possible start to life. The Task Force is charged with assessing the state’s existing early childhood landscape and bringing forward recommendations for a potential new cabinet agency to house most or all state programs for young children and their families in order to improve coordination and efficiency while removing barriers. 

Community Health Workers are a vital part of Kansas health care. Recently, 20 Kansas organizations joined the Health Fund in signing onto a comment letter to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to show their support of this profession. In partnership with these organizations, we delivered a letter to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) asking for their continued support of CHWs in Kansas through an improved reimbursement strategy. 

The letter, found here, asks that KDHE strengthen their approach to CHW reimbursement strategy by:
 

1. Allowing flexibility in who can supervise a CHW and where a CHW can be employed to be reimbursed, specifically by community-based organizations.
2. Ensuring there is adequate reimbursement for the services provided by CHWs.
3. Committing to ongoing partnership with stakeholders to ensure the policy is implemented.

By ensuring the sustainability of CHWs in Kansas, our kids can thrive, our communities will benefit and the future of health care in Kansas will be a little brighter.

If you’re interested in learning more about what CHWs do and how you can support them, visit: Kansas CHWs.  You can read the full letter here and see the full list of partners who joined us in supporting CHWs in Kansas.

In addition to the sign-on letter, the Health Fund also submitted in-depth comments regarding the proposed CHW payment policy, which you can read here.

Thank you to our partners who join us in this endeavor.

HUTCHINSON, Kan.— United Methodist Health Ministry Fund honored Monica Murnan with the 2022 Kim Moore Award for Visionary Leadership at a May 2 celebration in Hutchinson. Murnan is a former Kansas State Representative and currently serves as Director of Community Support Services at Greenbush.

Since 2017, the Health Fund has honored recipients in a chosen strategic field of work whose leadership has had a positive effect on the health of a specific group of persons. For 2022, the Fund invited nominations for a leader previously or currently serving in the strategic area of early childhood development.

Murnan received the honor for her outstanding work with children in Kansas as a licensed teacher and administrator in public schools, the non-profit arena, education service center settings and in public service.

“Monica has dedicated her life and career to improving the health and wellbeing of children in her community and across the state,” said John Wilson, President and CEO of Kansas Action for Children. “She has raised the collective expectations for how we treat children in the earliest years of their lives.”

Throughout her career, Murnan has shown leadership and prevailed through advocacy for early childhood development. She was the founding executive director of the Family Resource Center, one of the largest childcare centers in Kansas and also helped develop the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas.  

Murnan has served the public at the Kansas State House, on the Pittsburg City Commission, as the mayor of Pittsburg and as the House Minority Leader’s appointee to the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund. She currently chairs the Kansas Action for Children board of directors.

“Monica’s passion for this work has resulted in thousands of children receiving high-quality early learning opportunities, thousands of parents getting supports they need to be better caregivers, and hundreds of early childhood educators and practitioners growing professionally,” said Wilson.

The recipient is honored during the Health Fund’s annual awards celebration. The individual receives a cash award of $500, and if associated with an organization, that agency receives an additional $2,000 to use as it deems.

Kansas Hospital Association receives Janet Sevier Gilbreath Project of the Year Award

HUTCHINSON, Kan.— Kansas Hospital Association was honored with the 2022 Janet Sevier Gilbreath Special Project Recognition Award at a May 2 celebration in Hutchinson. The annual award, named in honor of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund’s first chairperson, is given to one funded project each year best exemplifying the Fund’s vision of strategic philanthropy and demonstrating scale, results, operational excellence, and social justice.

Kansas Hospital Association (KHA) was honored for its leadership in building sustainable rural health care for the future of Kansas. Through partnerships, data driven research and active community engagement, KHA developed a new model of health care delivery, the Primary Health Care (PHC) model.

As Kansas continues to face challenges in delivering rural health care, KHA has answered the call. Kansas has more financially vulnerable hospitals than any other state and this issue is exacerbated by declining populations in rural regions.

“More than 10 years ago, the Kansas Hospital Association and Healthworks boards recognized the importance of looking to the future to ensure access to health services in rural communities would remain,” said Chad Austin, president and CEO of the Kansas Hospital Association. “Kansas hospitals provide essential health care services to a growing population of rural residents. Kansas communities depend on hospitals to be there when they need them – to respond swiftly to emergencies, to help patients cope with acute and chronic illness and to care for those who have no place left to turn – 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. It is an honor to be recognized for this work.”

The Kansas Hospital Association, Kansas’ trade association of hospitals dedicated to improving hospital care and achieving optimal health for Kansas, and their non-profit health foundation, Healthworks, have partnered with the Health Fund to advance rural health for nearly a decade. In 2014, with a grant provided by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund and research conducted through Healthworks, KHA brought forth this new model of health care delivery, the PHC model.

Over the last several years, KHA has worked with policymakers, stakeholders, and the public through education on the changing health care needs of rural Kansas and the benefits of the PHC model. They have built public engagement and held conversations with local communities to develop a process that works for all.

In the winter of 2020, Congress passed the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) model, which mirrored the Primary Health Center model, and in 2021 Kansas became the first state to pass state legislation establishing the REH model.

According to United Methodist Health Ministry Fund President David Jordan, “We are looking to the future of rural health care in Kansas with optimism. The work of KHA is building a sustainable and effective delivery model that will continue to serve all Kansans.”

During the celebration, Monica Murnan, former Kansas State Representative and Director of Community Support Services at Greenbush was recognized as the 2022 recipient of the Kim Moore Visionary Leadership Award for her outstanding work for Kansas child.

2022 Year in Review

As we reflect on 2022 and look forward to the work ahead, it is important to celebrate where we have been and the partnerships that we have forged to improve health. Inside:

• A new strategic plan and focus area updates
• Program highlights
• Board and staff updates
• Award announcements
• Financial summary

Applications due: The next nationwide cohort begins in January 2024.

The Good Neighbor Experiment (GNE) is a cohort-based learning process for congregations who wish to engage their community as neighbors. GNE is rooted in the practices of Asset-Based Community Development and the Christian Faith. The material has been used in congregations since 2017 and the Neighboring Movement team has refined the material with each cohort led. The process includes a 4 week worship series, online events with other participating churches from across the country, 3 action-based “Labs” of small group materials you do with your own congregation (each 5 weeks long) and congregational coaching for churches; all occurring over a 4 month period.

The Health Fund is excited to partner with NeighboringMovement.org and the Lilly Endowment to offer Great Plains United Methodist Churches a special opportunity for current or new signup Healthy Congregations (HC) teams to participate in the The Good Neighbor Experiment (GNE) at no cost. Not a Great Plains United Methodist Church? You are still welcome participate in GNE – please visit https://neighboringmovement.org/gne to learn more.

To get started, please fill out the below interest form. There is no obligation – staff will reach out to you to guide next steps and answer questions. To learn more about GNE first, please visit the GNE website. Questions? Please email dashinika@healthfund.org or ian@neighboringmovement.org.

Good Neighbor Experiment Interest Form

Good Neighbor Experiment Healthy Congregations Special Opportunity Interest Form

Not with a Kansas or Nebraska (Great Plains Conference) United Methodist Church? You can still participate in GNE - please visit https://neighboringmovement.org/good-neighbor-experiment

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GNE is available at no cost to current and new-signup Healthy Congregations teams. Not already in Healthy Congregations? You can sign up and gain access to benefits of participation, including this and other special opportunities supporting congregational and community health ministry. We'll reach out to answer any questions and help guide you along the way.

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HC Participating Churches List Agenda UMC Alma UMC Neb Atwood UMC Augusta UMC Aurora UMC Neb Baldwin City First UMC Baldwin City Ives Chapel UMC Belle Plaine UMC Bellevue Aldersgate UMC Neb Bennington UMC Bladen UMC Neb Blair First UMC Neb Blue Hill UMC Neb Bonner Springs UMC Broken Bow UMC Neb Chapman UMC Neb Colby UMC Columbus First UMC NE Columbus UMC Concordia First UMC Corbin UMC Cozad UMC Neb Dakota City UMC Neb Davenport UMC Neb Derby Madison Avenue UMC Derby Woodlawn UMC DeWitt UMC Neb Douglass UMC Downs UMC Eddyville Grace UMC Neb Ellis UMC Elm Creek UMC Neb Elmwood St. Paul UMC Neb Emporia First UMC Emporia Grace UMC Erie Federated Church Eudora UMC FaithWestwood UMC Neb Florence UMC Fredonia UMC Fremont Calvary UMC Neb Glasco UMC Grand Island First/Faith UMC Neb Grand Island Trinity UMC Great Bend Trinity UMC Halstead UMC Harvard First UMC Neb Hastings First UMC Neb Hastings Grace UMC Hays First UMC Hiawatha First UMC Hoisington First UMC Holstein Grace UMC Neb Holton First UMC Hooper Faith UMC Neb Howard UMC Hoxie UMC Hutchinson First UMC Iola Wesley UMC Ithaca UMC Neb Jetmore UMC Juniata UMC Neb Kearney First UMC Neb Kincaid/Selma UMC Kirwin UMC LaCygne UMC Lawrence First UMC Leawood UMC Lincoln St. Luke UMC Neb Lindsborg UMC Louisburg UMC Lyona UMC Madison Trinity UMC Neb McCool Junction UMC McLouth UMC Melvern UMC Miller UMC Neb Minneapolis First UMC Mount Hope UMC Murdock Ebenezer UMC Neb Newton First UMC Nickerson UMC O'Neill First UMC Neb Ogden Friendship House Olathe Aldersgate UMC Olathe Church of the Resurrection -west campus Olathe Grace UMC Olive Crest UMC Neb Omaha Clair Memorial UMC Neb Omaha First UMC Neb Omaha St. Andrews UMC Neb Omaha St. Paul UMC Neb Ong UMC Neb Oskaloosa UMC Ottawa First UMC Overland Park Heritage UMC Overland Park Indian Heights UMC Overton UMC Neb Palmer UMC Neb Paola UMC Parsons Wesley UMC Pittsburg College Heights UMC Pretty Prairie & Murdock UMCs Reading UMC Red Cloud NE First UMC Republican City UMC Neb Richter UMC Rock UMC Russell Trinity UMC Saffordville UMC Salina Church of the Cross UMC Salina First UMC Salina University UMC Schuyler Christ UMC Neb Seward UMC Neb Shickley UMC Neb Silver Lake UMC St. Francis UMC St. Paul UMC NE Sterling UMC Tecumseh UMC Topeka First UMC Topeka Highland Park UMC Topeka New Hope UMC Tri-Parish (Admire, Allen, Miller) Vinland UMC Wahoo First UMC Neb Wamego UMC Waverly First UMC Neb Waverly UMC Westridge UMC Neb Wichita Aldersgate UMC Wichita Cedar Chapel UMC Wichita Chapel Hill Fellowship UMC Wichita East Heights UMC Wichita New Covenant UMC Wichita University UMC Wichita West Heights UMC Williamsburg UMC Wilson UMC Winfield First UMC Woodbine UMC Worden UMC

Check this list of participating Healthy Congregations and select your church if it is listed. If you don't see your church, don't worry - complete the below and we'll follow up with you.

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More about the Good Neighbor Experiment:

Who is it for?

GNE was created for local congregations of Christian churches. It is done best when 4-12 people from a church are willing to commit to the full scope of the training, including attending all the online kickoff events and personally participating in all 15 weeks of the small group curriculum.

NOT a church growth program

While some congregations do experience numerical growth, GNE is not intended to increase attendance on Sunday mornings or financial contributions. Instead, GNE is meant to create renewed vitality and to help the congregation become more deeply embedded within its community. GNE is for churches that are tired of creating programs that nobody wants to come to. Many of us have been taught that you can only engage your neighbor through evangelism or by providing a service to them; GNE offers another option. Throughout the experiment, churches are invited to move from scarcity to abundance and to see their role shift from service provider to community connector.

How do you participate?

GNE offers two ways to participate in a cohort:

• Nationwide cohort: The Neighboring Movement staff leads two cohorts a year that will usually start in April and July.
• Local facilitator/coach: If you would like to become a neighboring coach for local congregations near you as they participate in GNE and beyond, please contact ian@neighboringmovement.org.

Curriculum and Continuation

Learn more about the GNE curriculum and alumni program on their website.

Cost and Commitments

Responsibility for Churches

• Financial Costs: Great Plains Conference (UMC) church participation is covered at no cost. For other congregations, cohorts cost $1000 per church, though some local or regional conferences or organizations may provide financial support, depending on the area.
• People Power: Churches are asked to form a team with a minimum of 4 lay people and 1 church staff person who are committed to attending every workshop and doing all 15 weeks of the small group curriculum.

Responsibilities of Individuals

• Action Ready: GNE only works if the church is committed to actually engaging their neighbors. All participants should have the expectation of meeting their actual neighbors, both where they live and in the neighborhood of the church.

Kansas workers, health providers and employers increasingly rely on broadband access for their jobs, health care and enterprises. Held December 12 in Topeka, “Broadband Access and Telehealth: Exploring Policy Approaches for Kansas” engaged state policymakers, hospital and health system leaders, insurers and rural network directors during a presentation of recent studies and program developments followed by a policy leader panel offering perspectives on future broadband expansion and telehealth usage.

The program was hosted by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, REACH Healthcare Foundation, and the Kansas Health Institute.

Featured speakers:

• Jade Piros de Carvalho, Director of the Kansas Office of Broadband Development – Update on Kansas Broadband Plan and State Broadband Grants
• Dorothy Hughes, Ph.D., MHSA, University of Kansas School of Medicine – Consumer and Health Provider Perspectives on Telehealth

Policy leader panel:

• Kari Bruffett, President & CEO, Kansas Health Institute
• Jennifer Findley, Vice President, Education & Special Projects, Kansas Hospital Association
• Brock Slabach, Chief Operations Officer, National Rural Health Association
• Angie Strecker, Vice President, Provider Relations and Medical Economics, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas

This opinion piece by Health Fund President David Jordan originally appeared in the Kansas Reflector on November 17, 2022, the second in a two-part series on current and emerging challenges and how Kansans are looking ahead to develop innovative solutions and ensure health care for generations to come.

Health care is vital for our communities — and under increasing pressure. In part 1 of this series, we looked at challenges Kansas faces in supporting the health care systems and workforce needed for our communities to thrive.

By recognizing shifting demographics, workforce challenges and changes in health care delivery, we have the opportunity to build a sustainable health care system for the future.

To plan ahead and better understand the health care workforce crisis, United Methodist Health Ministry Fund commissioned research examining the current health professional education pipeline in Kansas. KU School of Medicine and McPherson College researchers analyzed 2019 program completion data using the National Center for Education Statistics’ Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS).

As health care faces significant staffing shortages, the report illustrates an opportunity for Kansas — with health profession programs located throughout the state — to strengthen that foundation and increase our homegrown workforce.

In 2019, 11,804 students graduated from 459 health profession programs located across 51 Kansas institutions. Most (62.7%) completed degree programs of two years or less in duration. The largest number of graduates completed degree programs in nursing or allied health.

With most graduates from programs with two years or less of training, to reduce credit loss and barriers to additional training and degree attainment we need to ensure accessible transfer pathways from two-year to four-year post-secondary institutions. We also should examine policies to require credit transfers between Kansas higher education institutions.

Likewise, we need to align secondary, technical education and postsecondary education programs, and ensure health care training completed in high school is transferrable and aligned with degree programs and employer needs.

We should continue to invest in nontraditional workforce development programs such as Gov. Laura Kelly’s recently launched Office of Apprenticeship, which seeks to develop and train new talent in critical industries such as healthcare.

We need to examine scope of practice and payment policies to best use our workforce, and implement smart systems and policies enabling every provider on the team to practice to the top of their scope.

One example is the newly-recognized community health worker program in Kansas, which trains community members in a certificate program to provide crucial health coaching, resource and care coordination services, education, and navigation services. CHWs help consumers better navigate systems and reduce use of high-cost services. They allow providers to focus on practicing to the top of their scope, reducing burdens on overworked staff. While CHWs are now certified, we need to change Medicaid reimbursement policies to ensure providers can be paid for their services.

We have an opportunity to better leverage providers such as physician assistants, dental therapists and others to provide care under doctor-led teams. Expanding team members’ scope of practice can increase capacity and address workforce challenges.

We can leverage technology to maximize our workforce and better serve Kansans. Telehealth provides that opportunity. Before COVID-19, just 11% of US consumers were using telehealth, but in 2020 its unique advantages (especially in rural areas) became clear. Now, consumers and providers agree telehealth is here to stay, playing a key role in integrated, patient-centered systems of care.

Ensuring all Kansans have access to reliable broadband allows us to distribute workforce and re-design our health system in a different way. Residents can access hard-to-recruit specialty care in their communities, benefiting them while reducing burdens of recruitment. However, we must change policies to foster this innovation for the long term.

Workforce competitiveness requires a financially viable system. Kansas is one of only 11 states that has not expanded Medicaid, putting hospitals and other providers at financial risk. Expansion would eliminate high levels of uncompensated care, helping prevent further hospital closures and benefitting all Kansas health providers.

Changing needs require new approaches. Under the Rural Emergency Hospital model, hospitals continue providing emergency services and routine care but discontinue acute inpatient care.

Beyond direct workforce and health system issues, we need to ensure Kansas has community supports to ensure health care workers remain in Kansas, including child care. A 2020 study reported only 3% of Kansas counties met desired capacity — before COVID-19. While solving the child care crisis requires sustained work at all government levels, we can take steps today, including better use of child care subsidies.

There is no single solution. Increasing our health care workforce requires research, collaboration, policy change and willingness to change the status quo. Kansans, working together, can ensure our communities have health care and thrive for generations. Join the conversation at https://communityconversationsks.com.

This opinion piece by Health Fund President David Jordan originally appeared in the Kansas Reflector on November 10, 2022, the first in a two-part series on current and emerging challenges and how Kansans are looking ahead to develop innovative solutions and ensure health care for generations to come. View part 2: Looking ahead, here’s how we can support the health care workforce of a changing Kansas

To plan for the future and better understand the health care workforce crisis, United Methodist Health Ministry Fund commissioned research examining the current health professional education pipeline in Kansas.

Health care is vital for our communities, but our ability to maintain the workforce needed to adequately deliver that care is under pressure. In this two-part series, we look at current and emerging challenges, as well as how Kansans are looking ahead to develop innovative solutions and ensure health care for generations to come.

Kansas faces many challenges in delivering health care, especially in rural areas. The state is experiencing shifting demographics, uninsurance rates higher than the national average, and difficulty attracting and retaining workers.

As we plan for the future, we need to consider how outside factors will affect demand for workers, who we are recruiting to the health care workforce, where and how they will be trained, how technology will impact care delivery, and where providers will need to be located.

Kansas’ population trends will affect demand and workforce composition

Our population is growing slowly, mostly in cities, and older, as depicted below. WSU CEDBR projects by 2064 a 33% decline in rural population, a 6.5% decline in micropolitan areas and that one quarter of Kansas residents will be over age 65. Older and rural populations tend to be less healthy and require additional care.

At the same time, over the past 20 years, the Kansas population has grown more diverse, a trend expected to continue. A 52.5% increase in minority populations (any group other than non-Hispanic White) generated the only population growth in Kansas this century.

That trend makes it critically important for Kansas to address longstanding racial and ethnic disparities in health, poverty rates and educational attainment. Training and hiring culturally competent health care workers will become increasingly important to addressing health inequities and building a health care system to meet future needs.

COVID-19 worsened an already inadequate supply of providers

Before COVID-19, many Kansas counties already had an inadequate supply of health professionals. As the below Kansas Department of Health and Environment figures depict, the majority are considered health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) for both primary and mental health care — lacking the health professionals necessary to meet their population’s health care needs.

COVID-19 exacerbated that existing workforce challenge. In a 2021 KFF report, 3 in 10 health care workers said due to the pandemic they have considered leaving health care. Earlier this year, McKinsey and Company reported 32% of RNs surveyed in November 2021 said they may leave in the next year.

Provider retirements will create additional pressure – a Kansas Health Institute brief illustrates that in 2020, nearly 4 in 10 (39.2%) of primary care providers in Kansas were over the age of 55, rising to nearly half in some regions (45.2% in southwest Kansas and 42.5% in southeast Kansas).

Kansas lags national insurance rates, reducing competitiveness for health care professionals

Uninsured patients and resulting uncompensated care complicate financial sustainability for health systems, impacting daily operations and long-term viability of health care — especially in rural communities and communities of color.

Kansas is one of 12 states that have not expanded Medicaid, evidenced in our stagnant uninsurance rate. According to KHI, as the national uninsurance rate declined to 8.6% in 2021, Kansas’  rate remained at 9.2%. This was the first time in decades our uninsurance rate exceeded the national average. The difference in 2021 primarily reflects a higher uninsured rate in Kansas versus the U.S. among working-age adults.

Historically, uninsured rates in rural counties are among the highest in Kansas. There are also significant disparities among Kansas residents by race and ethnicity. Those identifying as Hispanic or Black are more likely to be uninsured in Kansas than the United States. In Kansas, uninsurance rates were 20.3% for Hispanic residents and 14.1% for Black or African American, versus 17.7% and 9.6% U.S. averages, respectively.

Before implementation of the Affordable Care Act, Kansas boasted a better uninsurance rate than the national average but now lags.

Beyond higher-than-national-average uninsured rates, the failure to expand Medicaid negatively affects hospital finances and results in more uncompensated care. In fact, 44.3% of uncompensated care in critical access hospitals in Kansas could be eliminated by expanding Medicaid. Because Kansas has not expanded Medicaid, we have more financially vulnerable hospitals than any other state.

The high uninsured rate and financial instability make us less competitive in recruiting providers versus surrounding states that have all expanded Medicaid.

In part two of this series, we’ll move beyond the challenges and explore how Kansans are collaborating to develop innovative solutions. To learn more, visit https://communityconversationsks.com.