United Methodist Health Ministry Fund Release
HUTCHINSON - New modeling shows 13,000 fewer Kansans would be able to enroll in Medicaid under the “One Big Beautiful Bill” recently passed by the U.S. House, and the state would lose $3.77 billion in total Medicaid funding. Such losses would lead to higher uninsured rates and create more financial struggles for rural hospitals already on the brink of closure.
These results were recently released by Manatt Health, which conducted the analysis at the request of Kansas health philanthropies United Methodist Health Ministry Fund and REACH Healthcare Foundation. The two organizations wanted to better understand the financial and enrollment impacts of the bill, which would cut $700 billion from Medicaid and is awaiting a vote in the Senate.
Medicaid, the public health insurance program that covers more than 366,000 Kansans, is funded jointly by the state and federal government. It provides low-income parents, children, seniors and people with disabilities with health insurance. Adults who do not have children do not qualify for Medicaid in Kansas.
While many of the bill’s deepest funding cuts and new restrictions are aimed at states that expanded Medicaid to cover more people, the analysis shows Kansas will still face significant coverage losses and funding reductions over the next 10 years.
“If this bill passes, it will cause long-lasting harm to thousands of families across Kansas and seriously threaten the survival of rural hospitals across the state,” said Brenda Sharpe, president and CEO at REACH Healthcare Foundation.
Manatt said the losses are even greater than shown in the analysis, as data limitations made it unable to model all the provisions in the bill. The estimates do not account for prohibitions on states setting up any new provider taxes or increasing assessments for other providers. That will cause Kansas health care providers, including nursing homes and other health providers, to lose critical funding over time and cause them to become even more financially vulnerable.
Coverage losses due to the bill’s changes to the Affordable Care Act’s Health Insurance Marketplace also couldn’t be modeled; however, they will result in additional Kansans losing health insurance.
Not only will the bill remove people’s health insurance, but it also will remove food assistance. The bill includes $300 billion in cuts from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
“Congress is trying to rush a plan through the process that will take health care and food assistance away from tens of thousands of Kansans, including children, seniors and people with disabilities,” said David Jordan, president and CEO at the Health Fund. “At a time when hospitals are trying to keep their doors open and working families are struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food on their tables, we cannot afford these cuts.”
Kansas already has more hospitals at risk of closure than any other state in the country. Sixty-three rural hospitals are currently at risk, and 87% of Kansas rural hospitals are operating in the red. These hospitals struggle to survive with existing federal funding. Provisions in the bill would cause them to lose billions, making it even harder to stay open. When rural hospitals close, it removes job opportunities in addition to access to health care, creating a ripple effect in small communities.
Access the report online here: https://healthfund.org/a/manatt-medicaidupdate/