Month: February 2015

Proposed budget reduces grants for safety net clinics

by Dave Ranney, KHI News Service

Gov. Sam Brownback’s plan for plugging a more than $325 million hole in the current fiscal year’s budget includes a $254,000 cut in state-funded grants for safety net clinics that provide care for the poor and uninsured.

The governor also has proposed taking an additional $378,000 from the grant program in fiscal 2016 and 2017.

The House Social Services Budget Committee heard testimony on the proposal Monday.

Denise Cyzman, executive director at the Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved, asked the committee to leave the $378,000 in the grant program’s budgets for fiscal 2016 and 2017.

The association, she said, would not be asking legislators to restore the $254,000 cut from current year spending.

“We recognize that these are really challenging budget times,” Cyzman said after the hearing. “The $254,000 for us was easier to give up because we’d received some unanticipated funding from (Kansas Department for Health and Environment) earlier in the year. So, given that, we were OK with not getting that restored.

“But the big concern is losing the $378,000 in (fiscal) 2016 and 2017,” she said. “That’s a 5 percent cut and a time when our data shows that we’re seeing 9 percent more patients than we were a year ago.”

KAMU represents the 43 safety net clinics in Kansas that serve more than 252,000 patients, almost all of whom are low-income or uninsured.

Prior to the proposed $254,000 rescission, the clinics had access to $8.2 million in state-funded grants this budget year.

The grants, Cyzman said, have helped the clinics offset the costs associated with seeing more patients, installing electronic health-record systems, adjusting to administrative changes that accompanied KanCare and developing health homes for patients with mental illnesses.

KanCare refers to the state’s $3 billion Medicaid program administered by three managed care organizations.

The committee is scheduled to discuss the KDHE budget and funding for the safety net clinics Tuesday afternoon.

Rep. Will Carpenter, a Republican from El Dorado and chair of the committee, asked the panel’s members “to be cognizant of the fact that we are broke.”

Still, Carpenter and others on the committee expressed strong support for the safety net clinics.

“They’re one of the best things we get for our money,” said Rep. Randy Garber, a Republican from Sabetha.

The nonprofit KHI News Service is an editorially independent initiative of the Kansas Health Institute and a partner in the Heartland Health Monitor reporting collaboration. All stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link back to KHI.org when a story is reposted online.

– See more at http://www.khi.org/news/article/proposed-budget-reduces-grants-for-safety-net-clinics#sthash.4pISFPDM.dpuf

Public safety diversity hearing to take place Feb. 5

The mayor’s public safety diversity effort will hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. Feb. 5 at the Commission Chambers, lobby level, City Hall, 701 N. 7th St., Kansas City, Kan.

According to information from the mayor’s office, the Mayor’s Public Safety Recruitment Task Force and the Department of Justice are seeking public comments about diversity in recruiting public safety officers such as police officers and firefighters.

“Our Task Force meetings have generated thoughtful discussion and innovative ideas,” Mayor Holland said in a news release. “Now we need to hear from our residents. It is imperative their input is heard and considered as we move forward.”

The goal of the task force is to form an action plan by April 2015 that includes steps to guide Unified Government Commissioners and administration to improve diversity in public safety recruitment.

One of the members of the task force, human rights activist Alvin Sykes, said, “Certainly, the actions that the mayor has initiated in this regard should help achieve that growth in police and firemen being hired as well as being promoted from within.”

He said he was happy to see that recent promotions in the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department included black officers and “that was a step in the right direction.”

Diversity also applies to females, there are only about four black females in the Police Department, and something should be done to increase that percentage as well as the percentage of other minorities being hired and promoted, Sykes said.

The public hearing on diversity will take place at the start of the Unified Government Commission meeting at 7 p.m. The meeting will be broadcast on UGTV (Time Warner Channel 98-2, Google Fiber Channel 141 and WOW Channel 25) and will be archived on the Unified Government’s YouTube Channel. More information is on the UG’s website at www.wycokck.org.

Snow melting today, more snow on the way Wednesday

Today, temperatures may rise enough for the snow to melt in Wyandotte County, but more snow will be on the way on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.

Today the high may be 48 degrees with sunny skies, the weather service said.

But cold arctic air is headed our way on Wednesday, and temperatures will drop all day, according to the forecast. Temperatures will start at about 25 degrees at 6 a.m. Wednesday, and by 6 p.m. will drop to about 18 degrees, according to the weather service.

Snow is likely to fall Wednesday, after noon, forecasters said. The chance of precipitation is 90 percent. From 1 to 3 inches of snow is possible, the weather service said.

Wednesday night, expect a low of 6, with a wind chill reading of between minus 4 and 1, along with winds gusting as high as 21 mph, according to the weather service.

Thursday’s high will be 27 degrees, then Friday, temperatures will rebound to a high near 48, the weather service said. Friday night, the low will be near 34.

Warmer weekend weather is on the way. Saturday, expect a high near 55, with mostly sunny skies, according to the weather service. Sunday, the high will be near 47. Monday’s high will be 46, the weather service said.

For more weather information, visit www.weather.gov.