Brownback, paddlers float idea of Kaw River recreation Web viewBrownback cited conversations with...
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The Topeka Capital-Journal Survey: Manufacturing growth to aid Midwest economy Business Conditions Index climbs for second straight month Posted: October 1, 2013 - 10:05am By The Associated Press OMAHA, Neb. — A new survey of business leaders in nine Midwest and Plains states suggests that manufacturing growth will help fuel the regional economy through the end of the year, according to a report released Tuesday. The overall Mid-America Business Conditions Index climbed for a second straight month in September, rising to 54.8 from 53.8 in August, the report said. “Despite all of the domestic economic uncertainty, the Mid-America survey points to positive growth for the final quarter of 2013,” said Creighton University professor and economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey. “Growth among durable-goods manufacturers more than offset pullbacks among nondurable producers and value-added service firms.” Goss said weaker agriculture commodity prices had slowed growth for businesses linked to agriculture. And, he said, exports and farm income growth were down from earlier in the year. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth, while a score below that suggests decline. The survey of supply managers covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota. The survey index on business confidence dropped to 51.8 last month from 53.9 in August. “Uncertainty surrounding implementation of health care reform and the congressional-presidential budget impasse pushed supply managers’ economic outlook lower for the month,” said Goss. September’s survey included a question asking how the Affordable Care Act was affecting hiring. More than a fourth, or 26.3 percent, reported that the health care overhaul law was making their companies more reluctant to
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The Topeka Capital-Journal
Survey: Manufacturing growth to aid Midwest economyBusiness Conditions Index climbs for second straight monthPosted: October 1, 2013 - 10:05am
By The Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. — A new survey of business leaders in nine Midwest and Plains states suggests that manufacturing growth will help fuel the regional economy through the end of the year, according to a report released Tuesday.The overall Mid-America Business Conditions Index climbed for a second straight month in September, rising to 54.8 from 53.8 in August, the report said.“Despite all of the domestic economic uncertainty, the Mid-America survey points to positive growth for the final quarter of 2013,” said Creighton University professor and economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey. “Growth among durable-goods manufacturers more than offset pullbacks among nondurable producers and value-added service firms.”Goss said weaker agriculture commodity prices had slowed growth for businesses linked to agriculture. And, he said, exports and farm income growth were down from earlier in the year.The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth, while a score below that suggests decline.The survey of supply managers covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.The survey index on business confidence dropped to 51.8 last month from 53.9 in August.“Uncertainty surrounding implementation of health care reform and the congressional-presidential budget impasse pushed supply managers’ economic outlook lower for the month,” said Goss.September’s survey included a question asking how the Affordable Care Act was affecting hiring. More than a fourth, or 26.3 percent, reported that the health care overhaul law was making their companies more reluctant to hire new workers. Overall, according to the survey, 37.5 percent of supply managers indicated that their companies either reduced hiring or hours worked as a result of the act.
Kansas' taxes short of expectations in past three monthsPosted: September 30, 2013 - 5:13pm
By The Associated Press
A new report says Kansas collected slightly less in taxes than expected in the first quarter of the fiscal year, but officials believe the shortfall actually may be a positive economic sign.The Department of Revenue reported Monday the state collected $1.37 billion in taxes from July through September, about $8.5 million below expectations.Corporate income tax collections during those three months fell nearly 12 percent short of projections. The state had expected to take in $97 million and instead collected less than $86 million.The department says the shortfall might reflect businesses buying more equipment than expected and claiming bigger tax breaks as a result.
Oklahoma tribe seeks to expand casino into KansasA.G. Schmidt opposes effortPosted: September 30, 2013 - 6:17am
By The Associated Press
COLUMBUS — An Oklahoma tribe is asking Kansas for permission to expand its casino operation at Downstream Casino Resort into the state.The Joplin Globe (http://bit.ly/16MnMzs) reported a consultant for the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma and the casino has contacted the Cherokee County, Kan., Commission and city governments in Baxter Springs and Galena, Kan., about the proposal. It would also need support from the Riverton School District.The casino wants to have Class 3 gaming, which consists of dice games and roulette, with the Kansas expansion because Oklahoma law prohibits it in casinos there except in electronic form.The plan would expand the casino north into nearly 124 acres in Kansas that currently serve as the casino’s parking lot.Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt is opposing the effort.
Lower boat taxes to sink government revenuePosted: September 27, 2013 - 5:20pm
By Aly Van Dyke
Taxing entities in Shawnee County could face a $600,000 shortfall in property taxes in 2015, when the state’s new taxing rate for boats sets in.The 2013 Legislature approved decreasing the state’s boat tax from a 30 percent assessment rate to 11.5 percent next year and 5 percent in 2015. That means a
$25,000 boat — the local average — will owe $55 in taxes to Shawnee County in 2015, compared to the $331 it would pay today.Based on current figures, Shawnee County would collect just $32,443 from boat taxes in 2015 — meaning it will cost the county more to collect the money than what the tax bring in.“It could easily cost us $60,000 a year to collect $30,000 in taxes,” said Shawnee County appraiser Mark Hixon.The tax generated $214,264 in 2012.While money coming into taxing entities could be less, those in the watercraft industry say the lower tax will be a boon for sales.Jeff Mesler, co-owner of Lakeside Marine Service Inc., 1444 S.W. Auburn Road, said sales have dropped from 10 years ago, when he used to sell between 100 and 200 boats a year, to just 38 boats last year.“When you have a lot of customers registering their boats in Texas because of taxes, it’s pretty simple to figure out how to fix it,” he said.Other proponents argue the lower taxes will bring the state enough registrations to make up the shortfall. But some Shawnee County officials aren’t sold.At current appraised values and a 44.196 mill levy, Shawnee County alone would lose $181,821 in boat taxes in 2015. With a tax bill of $55, the county would have to register nearly 3,300 more boats valued at $25,000 to recoup the costs. This year, the county registered 13,142 watercraft.Changing a boat’s registration to save a few dollars might not be worth the hassle to some, Shawnee County Commissioner Bob Archer said.“Anytime something like this happens, there is a shift in the tax burden to real estate,” he said, describing the hit to property taxes as “another drag on our future revenue.”The move was to encourage people to buy and register boats in Kansas, rather than in surrounding states that have lower taxes. A $40,000 boat in Shawnee County, for example, would have paid $530 in taxes just to the county last year — more than the county taxes owed on a $100,000 home.Marilyn Flinn, another co-owner of Lakeside Marine, predicted the lower tax would encourage people to buy and register boats in Kansas. Many Shawnee County boat owners register and store their vehicles in Oklahoma or other states as a result of Kansas’ high taxes, she said.“Getting that percentage down is going to help a lot,” Flinn said. “The tax is considerable, and it doesn’t go down very fast.”In Oklahoma, a brand-new boat owner would pay taxes amounting to 3.25 percent of the boat’s suggested retail price. After that, the taxes decrease by 35 percent each year until the 10th year of ownership, after which the taxes stay flat.The owner of a $40,000 boat, for example, would owe $1,300 its first year but only $27 in its 11 year of ownership.Because Kansas’ tax is tied to its appraised value, the same boat would pay lower taxes initially, but that figure would decrease only marginally, coinciding with the depreciation of the boat.
Kansas does have a lower registration fee than Oklahoma. Registering a boat in Kansas costs $32.50 every three years, compared to Oklahoma, where boat owners pay as much as $151 in annual registration costs. That figure decreases slightly until the 11th year of ownership, when it remains flat.Boats in Kansas are taxed according to their taxing unit, so the $600,000 shortfall is a rough estimate, Hixon said. But the effect is the same: School districts, cities and services, such as the airport, library and transit, will have to find a way to compensate for the change.“It may work,” Hixon said. “It may stimulate commerce. Boat dealers may suddenly get a spike in demand. Time will tell, either way.”
Health care exchanges slow to roll outNavigators urge patience as overloaded system proves hard to accessPosted: October 1, 2013 - 3:17pm
Tweets by @andymarsoBy Andy Marso
With the federal health care exchanges less than a day old, navigators urged patience Tuesday for consumers struggling to access the overloaded online system.As predicted by officials from the Kansas Insurance Department, the healthcare.gov website through which uninsured Kansans will be able to purchase 2014 health coverage on the private market wasn’t user-friendly on its first day."We have been cautioning people to wait a while to try to get on the exchange," Linda Shepperd, the department's health policy director, said in a prepared statement. "Glitches like the ones that are happening, with such a large roll-out of technology, shouldn't be seen as unusual, even without a partial government shutdown. People wanting to get on the exchange will have to exercise some patience.""Patience" also was the word of the day for "Navigators" trained to help people use the site at the Shawnee County Health Agency and the Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved.After going to the site's home page, entering their state and clicking on a bright green "Apply" button, they were faced with a screen that asked them to "Please wait.""We have a lot of visitors on our site right now and we're working to make your experience here better," the screen stated. "Please wait here until we send you to the log-in page. Thanks for your patience!"After getting past that page, some attempts to create an account were scuttled by a page that said, "The system is unavailable."
House Republicans seeking to tie funding to keep the government operating to the dismantling of the health care reform signed in 2010 were quick to pounce on the "glitches" as evidence of the reform's failure.The House Education and the Workforce Committee, chaired by Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., sent out two emails within an hour Tuesday afternoon blasting the exchanges and the law as a whole.Sheldon Weisgrau, director of KAMU's Health Reform Resource Project, said it was "time to turn down the heat a little" on the rhetoric and said that the fact that the website is overloaded is a good sign."I think it's great," Weisgrau said. "I think it shows that there's a lot of interest in this."Navigators at both sites said they weren't seeing people walk in and ask questions but were fielding a lot of phone calls.Paige Ashley, a navigator at the county health department, said she had once gotten to the log-in page and input her account information, but not much farther. Ashley said she will be among navigators who will participate in public help sessions Thursday at the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library. She also has appointments set up for one-on-one help sessions starting Oct. 10."Hopefully it will be working by then," Ashley said.In the meantime, Ashley said, consumers should gather the information they will need to sign up for an insurance plan, such as the Social Security numbers and dates of birth for all family members to be covered. They also should be thinking about their health care needs and what type of coverage would be best for them."I've been telling folks to spend this time learning about this," Ashley said.Weisgrau stressed there are still 180 days after Tuesday to enroll in one of the exchange plans, and that whether people enroll today or in December, their benefits won't kick in until Jan. 1, 2014."I don't think people realize that," Weisgrau said.The open enrollment period for the following calendar year's insurance coverage is intended to mimic those usually seen in employer-based insurance.Gov. Sam Brownback and other Republican leaders refused $31.5 million in federal money for Kansas to set up its own exchange.
Research center: Kansas economy growing slower than national paceNonfarm growth pegged at 1 percent in state, 1.4 percent nationwidePosted: September 26, 2013 - 10:43am
By The Associated Press
WICHITA — A Wichita State University research center says the Kansas economy is growing at a slower rate than the nation’s economy overall.
The Center for Economic Development and Business Research forecast in a report released Thursday that next year’s nonfarm employment growth will be 1.4 percent, a gain of 19,000 jobs.It says the number of jobs in Kansas has grown 1 percent so far this year and has not kept up with the growth in the state’s labor force. The Kansas unemployment rate rose to 5.9 percent in August.The largest growth forecast for 2014 is expected to be in the service sectors. Education and health services are expected to add 4,254 jobs.No Kansas industry is expected to reduce employment, but government jobs will lag behind overall job growth.
State insurance official urges uninsured to wait before buying on exchangeAll Americans must buy insurance by Dec. 15 to be covered Jan. 1Posted: September 30, 2013 - 4:53pm
By Megan Hart
Officials with the Kansas Insurance Department urged people who don’t have health coverage to visit the exchange — but don’t do it Tuesday.Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger and representatives from her department and the two insurance companies selling on the exchange in Shawnee County held a public meeting Monday afternoon at the Topeka and Shawnee County Library to explain the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The library’s Marvin Auditorium was at capacity, with some people standing in the back until seats opened up.Praeger said people who are currently uninsured have until Dec. 15 to purchase coverage and still be covered by Jan. 1, when almost all Americans will be required to have insurance or pay a penalty. People who want to purchase coverage through Kansas’ federally run exchange probably would do well to wait a few days or weeks, until the bugs are worked out, she said.“Let someone else be the guinea pig,” Praeger said.People who missed the Monday meetings still can get information at the library, because several librarians have received training to help people sign up for coverage. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas will hold a meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the Blue’s Cafe Dining Room at its headquarters, the public entrance of which is on S.W. Polk between S.W. 11th and 12th streets. Shawnee County Health Agency will host a meeting at 10 a.m. Oct. 8 at 1615 S.W. 8th.The exchange call center is open 24 hours a day at (800) 318-2596, or at (855) 889-4325 for people who use TTY text telephones to communicate. Information also will be available atwww.healthcare.gov or www.cuidadodesalud.gov.
Linda Sheppard, director of the Kansas Insurance Department’s accident and health division and project manager for implementing the Affordable Care Act, said Monday’s turnout was an improvement from 2011, when few people attended a series of meetings on the health care law. She said it appears people are interested in how the law will affect them.“There was a lot of controversy (in 2011),” she said. “People thought the Supreme Court was going to overturn it. They thought Congress was going to repeal it.”Sandy Warren, vice president of operations for the Easter Seals Capper Foundation in Topeka, said Monday’s meeting was one of several about the health care law she attended during the past few months.“I just wanted to make sure that we would be able to answer questions from employees,” she said.Here are some of the questions asked and answered Monday:Question: Are dental plans available through the exchange?Answer: Yes, but they have to be purchased separately from medical plans.Question: Does the out-of-pocket expenditures limit only apply to in-network expenses? Answer:Yes. Check the network carefully when you buy a policy.Question: If you get divorced or your spouse dies, can you buy different coverage mid-year?Answer: Yes. You can also if you give birth, lose your job or adopt a child.
Hospitals report delays in payments, treatment from KanCare companiesState, insurers say service is improvingPosted: September 29, 2013 - 4:01pm
By Megan Hart
Some hospitals say paperwork delays are slowing care for some patients and payments for them as KanCare nears the end of its first year.Carrie Saia, chief executive officer of Holton Community Hospital, said one of their patients had to wait a week for a cardiac “stress test” because of delays authorizing tests, which she said has been a problem with the three companies administering KanCare. The patient didn’t suffer any complications during the wait, she said.KanCare, which rolled out in January, moved most of the state’s 350,000 Medicaid recipients into plans administered by three private companies: Sunflower State Health Plan, Amerigroup and United Healthcare. Gov. Sam Brownback pitched KanCare as a way to achieve substantial savings on medical costs while improving care. Earlier this month, he announced $37 million had been saved so far, which he said would allow 650 more people with physical or developmental disabilities to get off the waiting list for in-home services.Saia said she was skeptical of the savings. When Saia was interviewed Thursday, she said some of the hospital’s staff members still were working on getting paid correctly
for services performed in March, though rural health clinics affiliated with the hospital haven’t had the same difficulties.“We expected there to be some bumps, but not 10 months into it, so many bumps,” she said. “The reason they’re saving so much money is we’re not getting paid correctly.”Cindy Samuelson, Kansas Hospital Association vice president for member services and public relations, said hospitals around the state have reported problems getting reimbursed for services they perform and getting “prior authorizations” — permission from an insurance company to provide a certain treatment — quickly. Some hospitals and clinics haven’t reported problems, she said, while others say problems are frequent.“It’s not just happening at one hospital. It’s not just happening with one of the MCOs,” she said.The MCOs, or managed care organizations, don’t have to follow the “prompt payment” law that other insurers do, Samuelson said, which requires insurers to pay most claims within 30 days provided it was a “clean claim” that provided all necessary information. Companies who failed to pay on time would be charged 1 percent interest on the claim each month.Robert Moser, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said the MCOs also have an incentive to meet quality standards, because a percentage of their payments will be withheld if they don’t meet goals set by the state.Hospitals estimate it is taking three to 10 days to authorize treatment, Samuelson said. The state has attempted to deal with the issues, but the insurers haven’t been as cooperative so far, she said.“Really, KDHE has been very responsive,” she said. “We’re hoping to get that same kind of response from the MCOs.”Moser, who was a family practice physician for 22 years, acknowledged there have been some issues with the change in running Medicaid. KDHE, the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, KHA, the Kansas Medical Society and the three MCOs have been meeting to discuss issues and come up with solutions, he said.The MCOs are compiling a weekly summary of the top three to five issues they are dealing with and developing plans to address them within a specific time frame, Moser said, and they have pledged to hire more staff and improve staff training. He said service has improved, and 97 percent of clean claims are being processed in 20 days.“There has to be more customer service to the providers, as well as the consumers,” he said. “I understand the frustration from the providers.”Some of the confusion arises from one of KanCare’s strengths, Moser said: It allows more flexibility to meet patients’ needs. Some services, like home-based care after a person leaves the hospital, used to be denied out of hand, but the MCOs now can allow it if they believe it would help the patient more than moving to a rehabilitation unit, he said.Another goal, getting patients care that is within medical guidelines, can cause some difficulties if doctors aren’t used to those standards, Moser said. For example, an insurance company won’t automatically approve an X-ray or MRI for a person complaining of lower back pain, because those tests often don’t yield much useful
information, and the insurers want to “make sure we’re not jumping to the most expensive test first,” he said.Representatives of the three MCOs said they are improving their service and that building relationships with providers is their priority.Monica Stoneking, spokeswoman for Sunflower State Health Plan, said the company’s average time for processing a clean claim is about six days. Prior authorizations are being processed in an average of two days, she said.Sunflower is holding daily “workgroups” to solve issues and has weekly calls where providers can share their concerns, Stoneking said. It also will host meetings for providers around Kansas this fall, she said.Maureen McDonnell, spokeswoman for Amerigroup, said 99 percent of prior authorizations for hospitalized patients are completed in one day and 79 percent of outpatient prior authorizations are completed within three days. Prior authorization isn’t required for emergency room procedures, she said, and clean claims are paid in an average of five days.Molly McMillen, spokeswoman for United Healthcare, said the company is offering weekly meetings for providers and other communication tools, and welcomes feedback.Jerry Slaughter, executive director of the Kansas Medical Society, said members reported some issues with prior authorization and prompt payments, but difficulties are to be expected in any large-scale undertaking, he said.“It’s never going to be as smooth as everyone might like,” he said. “I would expect by year’s end they will have some of those problems resolved.”
Topeka hospitals prepare for influx of patients after ObamacareHired people to help patients sign up for insurancePosted: September 28, 2013 - 7:14pm
By Megan Hart
The Topeka hospital systems are preparing for more people seeking health care starting in October as those who were without insurance enter the medical system.Individuals will have to purchase insurance or pay a penalty by Jan. 1 under the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. An exchange where people without job-based or government-provided health insurance can buy coverage will open Oct. 1.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 46 million people, or about 14.8 percent of the population, didn’t have insurance when they conducted the study in the first quarter of the year. Of those, about 34.5 million hadn’t had insurance for one year or longer, and about 5.2 million were children.
The Congressional Budget Office estimated about 25 million of the uninsured will gain coverage as the exchanges open and some states, not including Kansas, expand Medicaid to people with incomes up to 138 percent of the poverty line, or about $31,322 for a family of four. Hospitals and primary care doctors in some states have begun raising the alarm that they may be overwhelmed when people who had been uninsured gain coverage and start seeking care.Nancy Burkhardt, spokeswoman for Stormont-Vail Regional Health Center, said the health system is teaching staff about the exchange so they can help uninsured patients get coverage. The system also will have a “certified application counselor” to help patients sign up for the exchange.Debra Cartwright, chief financial officer for St. Francis Health Center, said their system also is training certified application counselors to help patients understand their options.“These professionals will be available to help patients review insurance options on the federal exchange and understand how the government can provide tax credits to help them pay for coverage,” she said in an emailed statement.Cartwright said Kansas residents still might have a challenge because the legislature decided against expanding Medicaid. Kansas currently limits eligibility to families earning 32 percent of the poverty line or less — about $550 per month for a family of three.“In Kansas, this means that some people will make too much money to qualify for Medicaid, but may still be too poor to qualify for assistance in the federal insurance marketplace,” she said.As more people become insured, they also will need to find a doctor, which they can do by calling Stormont-Vail’s Health Connections, Burkhardt said. The call center, (785) 354-5225, can help with referrals on a 24-hour basis, she said.“We anticipate an increase in people looking for a primary care physician,” she said.A report by the Kaiser Family Foundation showed community health centers and “safety net” hospitals in Massachusetts had 12 percent higher patient volume after passing health reforms similar to the ACA, meaning hospitals processed 100,000 more visits and community health centers dealt with 50,000 more. Increased demand, combined with declining reimbursements, caused a $70 million shortfall for hospitals in 2010. About one-fifth of adults in Massachusetts reported having difficulty finding a doctor in 2009, either because doctors in their area weren’t interested in new patients or didn’t accept their insurance.Kansas might be better prepared than some states for an increase in patients. The state had about one primary care physician for every 1,723.8 people in 2011, compared to a nationwide average of one physician for every 2,664.7 people nationwide.The overall number, however, doesn’t account for variation within the state. Chase County had one physician for every 33,400 people, while Wichita County had one physician for every 795.1 people. In Shawnee County, the ratio was one for every 1,651.3 people.Cartwright said St. Francis also was preparing for an influx of patients and added two doctors to its network in August, with two more expected to join in October. She also pointed to a new clinic near Lake Shawnee and another planned near Brewster Place,
which she said would offer a less-expensive alternative to a hospital visit in some cases.“We also recognize that high deductible insurance plans put a big burden on families, so we’ve been working hard to build care options that cost people less money while still delivering the highest quality care,” she said.Other measures St. Francis has adopted include setting up “care pathways” to treat patients so they can leave the hospital more quickly and starting an “accountable care organization” to treat chronic conditions before they send a person to the emergency room, Cartwright said. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, an accountable care organization is an agreement among different kinds of providers to manage patients’ cases so they get treatments they need but avoid duplication.Nationwide, health systems expect many of those gaining insurance to have chronic health conditions. A 2005 study conducted with data from the National Center for Health Statistics’ National Health Interview Survey found 15.6 million people, or about 45 percent of people younger than 65 who weren’t insured, had a chronic condition. The study defined chronic conditions as including diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, heart disease, asthma, anxiety, depression, arthritis, gout, lupus, fibromyalgia, severe headache/migraine, cancer, chronic bronchitis, liver condition, stroke and emphysema.About 1.2 million uninsured people had diabetes, 4 million had hypertension, 3.3 million had high cholesterol and 1.7 million had heart disease. The total for those conditions may be less than the 10.2 million you get by adding them, because one person could have multiple conditions.Of those who had chronic conditions, 27 percent said they hadn’t visited a health professional in the past year, and 49 percent they decided to forgo care or filling their prescriptions because of the cost. That can set them up for more costly complications down the road, as hypertension increases the odds of a heart attack and untreated diabetes can lead to amputations, blindness and kidney failure.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Kansans may have fewer insurance choicesKansans can choose from 37 plans, average in other states is 53Posted: September 24, 2013 - 11:53pm
By The Associated Press
A federal report says that Kansans who buy health coverage in a new online marketplace could have fewer choices for plans than residents of other states.The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says Kansas residents will be able to choose from among an average of 37 qualified health plans.Kansas is among 36 states where the federal government has set up the health insurance exchange. The average number of plans for those states is 53.
The HHS report also provides estimates of premiums.It says a Kansas family of four with a $50,000 income could pay an average of $619 a month for a benchmark policy known as the “second-lowest-cost silver plan.” But that could drop to $282 with federal subsidies.
Kansas awarded $3 million under ACAMoney will help fund expansion, access to insurance rate databasePosted: September 24, 2013 - 4:20pm
See the latest in national business newsTweets by @regina_marie_sBy Regina Stephenson
Kansas won more than $3 million in grant funding to update insurance rate information after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced the latest distributions under the Affordable Care Act.CMS, a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, announced $67 million in funding to 21 states on Monday. This is the third round of insurance rate review grant awards. The funding is intended to help states implement websites where consumers can compare insurance coverage and premiums from various companies, which is a mandatory component of the ACA.The money will go to the Kansas Insurance Department, which got $1 million in funding during the first round of insurance rate review grants. Neil Woerman, IT director for KID, said the money will help implement a policy manual and template for insurance companies to use to report to KID. After several extensions, Woerman said KID has spent a little more than half of the first grant.“We’ve been very frugal with that,” Woerman said. “Because we were still spending rate review funding one money, we did not apply for rate review funding two.”This third round of funding, which will provide the department with $3,130,296, is earmarked for further development of an “all-payer claims database,” according to a news release from CMS, and increasing database access to the public and research institutions, such as the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and The University of Kansas.KID already has a database that gathers information on insurance rates, called the Kansas Health Insurance Information System. The database was created by Kansas legislation passed in 1990, Woerman said in an email, and is operated by KID and KDHE. Woerman said the department applied for the CMS grant because the current database is difficult to navigate and isn’t easy to use for research or comparisons because there hasn’t been a standard for what insurers report or the format they use.“A major push on the part of the federal government is transparency, for people to see what health insurance systems cost,” Woerman said. “That data is buried in the KHII system. What we’re trying to do is make that data easier for the public to find out.”
Kansas regulator, firm, SCHA plan health care meetingsMeetings may answer questions about Affordable Care ActPosted: September 25, 2013 - 5:02am
By STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, the state’s largest health insurance company, and the Shawnee County Health Agency will hold town hall meetings beginning next week to provide information about the federal health care overhaul.Praeger has scheduled separate meetings for Monday afternoon and evening at the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library.Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas plans 14 meetings across the state in October and November. The first of the company’s meetings is Oct. 1 in Lawrence, with a second Oct. 3 in Topeka.The Shawnee County Health Agency will host two meetings to explain ACA changes. The SCHA meetings will be at 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 26 and 10 a.m. on Oct. 8, both at the organization’s location, 1615 S.W. 8th, in the auditorium.Under the federal law, consumers can begin enrolling Oct. 1 in health plans offered through online insurance marketplaces. Blue Cross is offering coverage on the new exchange.The exchange for Kansas has been set up by the federal government.
Brownback plays role in immigration documentariesSet of films to anchor New York Film Festival in OctoberPosted: September 24, 2013 - 4:21pm
By Tim Carpenter
A series of documentary films delving into Gov. Sam Brownback's political maneuvering as a U.S. senator in the failed quest to bring about comprehensive immigration reform will hit the big screen at the New York Film Festival in October.Brownback, who played a prominent role as a Republican in development of immigration legislation in the early 2000s, opened his office in Washington, D.C., to directors and producers Michael Camerini and Shari Robertson. The filmmakers shot from 2001 to 2007 before assembling the first of a dozen segments for the project.Behind-the-scenes deliberations, public debate, and introspective moments with Brownback and a large cast of political operatives were compiled into the series examining the nation's political system through the lens of immigration policy.
Ten films in "How Democracy Works Now: Twelve Stories" will be shown at the Lincoln Center in New York City as part of the film festival. One of two films with significant involvement by Brownback, "Sam in the Snow," will be featured Oct. 1 for reporters in advance of the screenings from the collection Oct. 10-12.The "Snow" film outlines Brownback's eagerness to push ahead on comprehensive immigration reform in 2002. In years since, tea party activists and Republicans have punished some U.S. politicians who spoke favorably about a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants."It's very much focused on Brownback's quandary about immigration," Camerini said in an interview Tuesday. "The idea that you can be that conservative, and that centrist or leftist on immigration, doesn't compute for the average person.""Within the limits of political reality, he stayed with it. I think it really hurt him in his presidential bid," Camerini said.Brownback was a co-sponsor of a bill embraced by U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., creating a legal path to citizenship for illegal immigrants in the United States.Brownback launched a campaign in late 2006 for the Republican presidential nomination, but withdrew in the fall of 2007 long before the primary voting in 2008. He had difficulty raising money and differentiating himself from several other conservative GOP candidates in the field.On the trail, Brownback was haunted by lingering irritation with his cooperative approach on immigration reform legislation with Kennedy."It's about an extreme as polarity as you can think of," Camerini said.Camerini said lessons emerging from that era of debate resonated now as immigration reform continued to display political magnetism."It is possible for people who disagree on some issues to collaborate — to make a compromise, to make bipartisan deals that are good policy," he said. "It's a model for what's going to have to happen if we're going to do anything about immigration."He said immigration overhaul in the United States could become law if House Republicans were willing to bargain. The Democrat-led Senate and Democratic President Barack Obama have called for change. Political demographics may serve to motivate federal politicians to close the partisan divide, he said."There is a deal to be made from the middle," Camerini said. "It's not as good as a deal that Brownback and Kennedy were shaping, if you're an immigrant, but it's a pretty good deal. There is a chance for the Republican Party to create something that most Americans will see as a reasonable compromise."
Brownback urges communities to take on obesity fightGovernor encourages community activists to take local approach to fighting obesityPosted: September 30, 2013 - 1:14pm
By Andy Marso
Gov. Sam Brownback urged health care advocates from across the state Monday to take a local approach to fighting obesity that focuses on incentives and events.Brownback spoke at the Ramada Hotel and Convention Center to a group of about 200 gathered for the Kansas Governor's Council on Fitness' second annual Kansas Obesity Summit.Brownback emphasized the importance of reversing the trend line in a state in which two-thirds of the adult population is now overweight or obese.“We’re eating ourselves to death," Brownback said. "Obesity, gluttony — this is us killing ourselves.”Brownback cited conversations with billionaire investor Warren Buffett and Wal-Mart executive David Glass in outlining some possible solutions.Brownback said Buffett once told him that the key to making public-sector or philanthropic endeavors work is to imbue them with incentives like those that weed out unsuccessful companies in the private sector.Glass once told him that when he was hired at Wal-Mart he told the other leaders there that he didn’t know what a good corporation looked like, but he did know what a good store looked like.The implication being that big things are built from the ground up, locally.As an example of incentive-based health efforts, Brownback cited his Governor's Weight Loss Challenge, in which he and a team of four others set a weight-loss bar and then encouraged other teams of five state employees to try and beat it. Those that did got a piece of a $30,000 prize pool donated by sponsors.“I would urge you as people leading this charge in the state of Kansas to really spend a lot of time thinking about the incentive structure,” Brownback said.Brownback also lauded the effect of local events like 10K races that get communities talking and training together."Events drive people," Brownback said.That advice was reflected in practice by Lisa Moritz, the Greeley County health nurse and the Greeley Unified School District 200 school nurse. Brownback presented Moritz, of Tribune, with the Individual Health Champion award for her work in keeping schools open during off-hours for walking and organizing local running events with themes like Full Moon or Freeze Your Biscuits Off.Other award winners included the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department, Scott Wadle of Wichita, HaysMed and the Garden City Schools Wellness Team USD 457.The summit's keynote address was delivered by Doug Gruenbacher, a primary care physician from Quinter who was a torchbearer at the 2012 Olympics in London.Robert Moser, the secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said there are many theories as to why the state’s obesity rate is increasing, with one being that many in the state are moving away from the physical activity of a farming lifestyle without adjusting their caloric intake accordingly.
"We're just boiling down to where we're putting in more calories than we're burning," Moser said.But Moser said some anti-obesity initiatives already seem to be bearing fruit within some demographics, noting that the percentage of obese children from low-income families has dropped."It’s not that it isn’t possible,” Moser said.Brownback also stressed optimism over resignation in the fight against fat, likening it to the anti-smoking campaigns that have made a serious dent in tobacco use since public health advocates started them decades ago.One of the keys for Kansas, he said, was to get residents to appreciate the state's natural beauty more. Why go to Colorado for a hike, Brownback said, when there are seven miles of trails right behind Cedar Crest.“I'm very, very sick and tired of us as Kansans saying there’s nothing to do here,” Brownback said.
Brownback, paddlers float idea of Kaw River recreationGovernor: Appreciation of river lacking among KansansPosted: September 26, 2013 - 5:49pm
By Tim Carpenter
BELVUE — Canoe paddler Sam Brownback and about 100 fellow enthusiasts Thursday cruised down a section of the Kansas River to highlight underappreciated recreational opportunities of the waterway.The flotilla of kayaks and canoes departed the Wamego boat ramp, executed a lunchtime pit stop on a large sandbar and exited the Kaw at a new ramp on the eastern edge of Belvue.Pilots of colorful craft snaking down the northeast Kansas river were occasionally stalled by sand in shallow flats. But folks on the water passed through towering stands of cottonwood trees, watched clusters of small birds sweep over the water and took in corn fields puzzlingly close to eroding banks.Brownback, serving as master of ceremonies of the tour, said a personal objective was to convince more Kansans to be involved in such outdoor activities as hiking, bicycling, hunting, fishing and rowing. Natural resources in the state — the Tallgrass Prairie and Kansas River, for example — stand at the ready, but aren’t adequately appreciated, he said."What we're trying to do is talk to Kansans about Kansas," the governor said. "Kansans don't know Kansas well."He said accounts of people drowning in the Kansas River led to public apprehension about the river as a viable venue.
"Too many people are scared of this river," Brownback said. "It's beautiful. We should be proud."In 2012, U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Brownback convened in Manhattan to celebrate designation of the Kansas River as a piece of the National Water Trail. The listing is designed to promote river recreation, encourage community stewardship and inspire local tourism.The river — an important source of drinking water in eastern Kansas — begins at the confluence of the Republican and Smoky Hill rivers east of Junction City. It meanders about 170 miles across the flood plain eastward to join the Missouri River in Kansas City, Kan.In 1864, the state declared the Kansas River nonnavigable to enable railroad and bridge companies to build without restriction. That was reversed in 1913 when the river reclaimed its status as a navigable stream. Commercial traffic will never return, but use of the river for recreation is a realistic option.Mike Calwell, who helped form Friends of the Kaw in 1991 to oppose dredging, has devoted decades to the cause of building appreciation for the river. He has been part of constructing 15 of the 18 boat ramps that dot the water's edge."I fell in love with it, and I figured other people could, too," Calwell said. "We're changing the river from a pollution, dumping resource to a recreational resource."His audience during the dedication of the new Belvue ramp included colleagues in Friends of the Kaw, volunteers who contributed to the ramp project, members of Brownback's Cabinet, students from Wamego High School, and officials from Manhattan, Topeka and Belvue.Topeka City Council members Karen Hiller and John Campos flexed their muscles and powered through to the end of the river tour. Both sense that a shift in attitude about recreational aspects of the Kansas River can contribute to the drive in Topeka to develop a riverfront area that has had a crusty, industrial feel for years."I like fresh water and being out in the natural environment," Hiller said. "I think a lot of people do."Campos said the governor and Friends of the Kaw were moving in the right direction in terms of transforming the river's image."It's an unleveraged asset in the state and the city of Topeka," he said.Brian Leaders, a landscape architect with the National Park Service's rivers, trails and conservation assistance program, said the importance of the river float Thursday was that it could serve as a catalyst to building a greater connection to the waterway."The governor has wanted to move this to the next level," said Leaders, who paddled in a canoe with Brownback. "We're trying to get all the communities along the river to partner with us to help develop awareness and activities that promote the river."
Kansas GOP leader responds to court budget concerns'The budget sky is not falling,' Senate vice president says
Posted: September 29, 2013 - 1:50pm
By John Milburn
The Associated Press
A top Senate Republican is suggesting to a court-appointed budget panel that there are other options available to prevent cuts in operations of the Kansas judicial system.Senate Vice President Jeff King sent a letter dated Friday to members of a newly appointed budget council that will look at ways to increase funding and improve efficiencies within the state court system. King, who is also chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in the letter that not everything that has been said about the court budget is accurate.“Though some of you may have heard otherwise, the budget sky is not falling,” King wrote.Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss announced Sept. 19 that he was forming the 10-member advisory council to review the possible consequences of current spending levels, including closing court offices and furloughing judicial branch employees. The council’s first meeting is Oct. 7 in Topeka.King said his letter was intended to inform the council of what efforts were done by a similar commission appointed in 2010 that looked at a variety of judicial issues, including funding. King said he wasn’t trying to stymie the new council’s work, but instead he wanted to make it aware of what has been recommended but not implemented by policymakers.“To the extent that it is viewed as an olive branch, I welcome that,” King said. “More positive relations between the judicial branch and the legislative branch would be helpful to everyone, especially the people of Kansas.”Helen Pedigo, spokeswoman for the judicial branch, said Friday she wasn’t sure if the council members had received the letter and declined to comment.The courts have felt a budget squeeze since the Great Recession, which started in 2007. Legal filing fees have risen to help fill the gap, but the Supreme Court ordered furloughs in 2010 and 2012.The current judicial branch budget calls for more than $127 million in spending through June 30, 2014. Legislators also approved the budget for fiscal year 2015 with a slight increase to almost $128 million. Both amounts are 3 percent below the $132 million appropriated to the courts in 2013. Salaries account for 96 percent of the judicial branch’s spending annually.King said the court’s budget for 2015 wasn’t cut from the current spending levels and that legislators didn’t have a funding request in front of them from the courts at the time the budget was settled. He said he expected legislators to revisit the 2015 court budget in light of the recent request made by Nuss.“These issues often seem more polarizing than they are,” King said.He wrote in his letter that the Supreme Court could “promote” legislation seeking to dedicate all court docket fees to fund the judicial branch, as well as rules allowing increases in fees, as was recommended by the earlier commission.
Legislators ignoring audits turn back on good government The Kansas Legislature operates a special auditing division with power to investigate, report and publish astoundingly researched evaluations of state and local government.Work by the Legislative Division of Post Audit is a skeptic taxpayer's dream come true. The division's analysis ought to be required reading during an era in which political declarations of financial accountability serve as the honey of electoral life.Republican, Democratic and independent voters in Kansas have demonstrated a taste for detailed information about whether tax dollars were being wasted or consumed thoughtfully.Recent page-turning audits have delved into financial details of the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, Kansas Lottery and Kansas Department of Commerce. The division's staff piled into the Kansas City, Kan., public school district, Larned State Hospital and the Kansas state treasurer's office. For the past four decades, accountants and researchers in the audit division have produced reams of accurate, unbiased information.Objective of these audits -- presented to House and Senate members of the audit committee wrapped in distinctive blue folders and available to computer users online at www.kslpa.org -- is to examine whether agencies and programs are effective in carrying out their duties, efficient with their expenditure of resources and compliant with all laws, rules and regulations.In a bitter defeat for advocates of good government, the target audience pays scant attention to these reports."I don't think most legislators realize how valuable this information is, especially new legislators," said Rep. Virgil Peck, a Tyro Republican. "The Legislature seldom implements the recommendations."Peck, known among peers to espouse an extreme form of fiscal conservative, has held in his hands audits that could save the state millions of dollars annually. A modest example, he said, was an assessment outlining how much economic benefit could be derived from requiring state government employees to live in Kansas."There's $2 million," Peck said. "We haven't done anything with that."Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, a Topeka Democrat rarely on the same political page with Peck, said he was in complete agreement with the House member about indifference among legislators to audits.Only reports with the most earth-shattering results draw sustained attention from the typical lawmaker, Hensley said."That's a pretty rare exception," said Hensley, who has served on the joint audit committee for more than 20 years. "It's unfortunate we have such a great post audit division that does such a good job and all too often their work is put on a shelf and forgotten."Legislators will soon have new opportunities to redeem themselves.
In December, auditors are expected to finish an assessment of security controls at state agencies. An evaluation of economic development programs -- the follow-up to a previous report -- is due in January. One month later, auditors plan to release a review of state services provided people with developmental disabilities.Perhaps legislators can add these to their reading list, and make a habit of studying audits intended to take some of the guess work out of their job.
Hensley: Swearing-in of Brownback court pick delayed to avoid retention voteBy waiting until Jan. 3, Stegall won't face vote until 2016Posted: September 24, 2013 - 11:29am
By John Hanna
The Associated Press
Governor Sam Brownback’s chief spokeswoman said Tuesday that the Kansas Senate’s top Democrat has no grounds to suggest the swearing-in of Brownback’s chief counsel as a state appeals judge is being delayed to avoid a November 2014 statewide vote on whether the appointee stays on the bench.Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley questions why Caleb Stegall isn’t scheduled to take his seat on the Court of Appeals until Jan. 3. The GOP-dominated Senate confirmed Stegall’s appointment to the state’s second-highest court on Sept. 4, during a special legislative session that Brownback called to repair Kansas’ first-degree murder sentencing law.However, Brownback’s office pointed to a letter that Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss wrote to the Republican governor and top Republican legislators in late August, telling them the Court of Appeals would need additional money if the new judge joined it later this year.Court officials have said the timing of Stegall’s swearing in was dictated by the budget and a need to remodel space at the Kansas Judicial Center near the Statehouse for a new judge’s suite.“Mr. Hensley’s comment that there is some ulterior motive in the timing is unfounded,” Brownback spokeswoman Eileen Hawley said.Even after being confirmed, Court of Appeals members are on the ballot every four years, with voters asked whether each should remain on the bench. A new judge faces such a vote in the first general election after a full year on the court.If Stegall took his seat before Nov. 4, he would face his first statewide retention vote in the November 2014 general election. But with his swearing-in set for next year, he won’t be on the ballot until November 2016.“Is it possible that what they’re trying to do is to distance themselves from the controversial nature of the appointment itself?” Hensley, of Topeka, said Monday during an interview with The Associated Press. “That’s exactly what it suggests to me.”
Brownback’s nomination of Stegall to a new Court of Appeals seat received an unusual amount of attention partly because of Stegall’s ties to the governor.The appointment is also the first under a law that has the governor name Court of Appeals judges, subject to Senate confirmation. It took effect in July.Under the previous system, still in place for Kansas Supreme Court justices, a nominating commission screened applications and named three finalists. Legislators had no role after the governor’s appointment.Both systems require retention elections, however.When ending their regular, annual session in June, lawmakers along with the judicial branch didn’t expect a confirmation vote on a new Court of Appeals nominee to occur until early next year — and they budgeted accordingly.Judicial branch spokeswoman Helen Pedigo said the timing of the swearing-in wouldn’t be an issue “but for the special session.”Hensley said he already considers Stegall a member of the court because the Senate confirmed him. Stegall plans to remain on Brownback’s staff until January.Also, Hensley noted that Brownback and other conservative Republicans who supported changing the Court of Appeals selection process argue the new method is accountable to the public because elected legislators are involved.“Then, why shouldn’t he stand for retention as soon as possible?” Hensley said of Stegall.A similar issue arose in 2005, when Justice Eric Rosen joined the Kansas Supreme Court. Then-Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius announced Rosen’s appointment in early October 2005, but he wasn’t sworn in for another seven weeks, until mid-November. Instead of facing his first retention vote in November 2006 — with GOP conservatives’ criticism of Supreme Court decisions on funding for public schools still fresh — Rosen was on the ballot two years later.At the time, then-Kansas House Speaker Doug Mays, a Topeka Republican, suggested the timing was designed “to get around the will of the people,” calling it “fundamentally wrong.” Democrats publicly voiced no qualms.Meanwhile, retention elections haven’t proven to be much of a hurdle to judges staying on the bench since the system replaced partisan elections in 1960. No Supreme Court justice or Court of Appeals judge has failed to receive 62 percent of the vote since.
Roberts to be a 'no' vote on Obamacare fundingLack of funding compromise may prompt government shutdownPosted: September 25, 2013 - 11:58am
By Tim Carpenter
U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts intended to make clear in voting that started Wednesday opposition to funding President Barack Obama's health insurance reform law as Congress weighed policy questions linked to a potential federal government shutdown.The Republican from Kansas vowed not to support legislation with financing for the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, despite almost certainty the measure will clear the Senate. The U.S. House, with consent of all four members from Kansas, adopted a different stop-gap spending measure deleting federal money for the health law passed in 2010.Intense partisan conflict about Obamacare could prompt the type of government paralysis experienced in the mid-1990s when Bill Clinton was president."I cannot vote to further legislation that does not hold true to the demands of millions of Americans who have said Obamacare is hurting their families, their businesses and our nation's economic recovery," Roberts said. "I cannot support efforts to keep Obamacare and its consequences on our economy and our nation's future."U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., has spoken in the past about concern with provisions of the ACA and argued it was time to "stop forcing Americans to pay the price of Obamacare-driven dysfunction."The Senate completed a bipartisan procedural vote Wednesday to prepare for debate on the House bill following a 21-hour speech by Sen. Ted Cruz. The Texas Republican complained not enough of his GOP colleagues were fighting to choke funding for Obamacare.Senate Republicans were interested in advancing the House version deleting cash for Obamacare, while the majority Democrats in the Senate were eager to press ahead so they could adopt an alternative that fully funds the health law.The House, Senate and White House would need to reach agreement on a funding package by Monday to avoid closure of federal offices the next day. The goal is a bill keeping agencies operating after the start of the new fiscal year Oct. 1.In anticipation of a government shutdown, Moran introduced legislation with U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., to exempt specific federal employees and programs from a budget impasse.The bill would guarantee uninterrupted funding of domestic National Guard disaster relief, continue military pay for service members and allow issuance of paychecks to U.S. Department of Defense civilian workers in combat zones."The financial well-being and readiness of those serving our country must not suffer due to gridlock on Capitol Hill," Moran said. "As indecision continues, this legislation will give our military members, critical civilian workers and National Guard assisting in disaster relief the certainty they deserve."
Local spots affected as government shuts downBrown v. Board, USDA, other federal installations wait for word on fundingPosted: October 1, 2013 - 10:19am
By Andy Marso
Various federal agencies in Topeka put signs on their doors Tuesday announcing they were no longer open as gridlock in Washington, D.C., caused a government shutdown that spread across the country.The Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site was closed along with all other national parks, which also removed access to their websites with a note that read "Because of the federal government shutdown, all national parks are closed and National Park Service webpages are not operating." Users were directed to the Department of the Interior's main page.An employee at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency's regional hub at 2641 S.W. Wanamaker Road said she and others were in the office only to perform shutdown duties. They were on furlough, she said, and referred questions to an agency representative in Washington.That representative, Pat Engel, said the agency that operates the USDA's crop insurance programs will be shutting down entirely.“It would be all services," Engel said Tuesday morning when asked which of her agency's functions will be affected. "There are no excepted employees at RMA, and I am in fact leaving the office now.”The Risk Management Agency website and those of other USDA agencies were down Tuesday, with a note that read: "Due to the lapse in federal government funding, this website is not available. We sincerely regret this inconvenience."Gov. Sam Brownback released a statement saying the state is girding itself for the effects of the federal shutdown, which "has loomed as a possibility for some time now.""We are focused on problem-solving and are taking steps to help minimize the effects of a federal government shutdown," Brownback said. "We have built up a healthy cash reserve with more than $400 million in the bank and are actively working with our state agencies to minimize any disruptions to services. We are as prepared as we can be for it, and we expect that it will eventually be resolved.”Miranda Steele, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said federal-state partnerships programs are continuing with no impact for now, but could be affected if the shutdown drags on. Within KDHE, those programs include vaccines for children and the WIC program that provides nutrition and health services to pregnant women and children under 5."We hope there’s a resolution soon so we don’t have to worry about it being impacted,” Steele said.With many Department of Defense civilian positions furloughed, military installations like Fort Riley and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-operated parks and campgrounds also will limit operations.Sgt. Mike Lavigne, a public affairs officer at Fort Riley, said furloughs on the base could number in the hundreds. He said some offices will be closed entirely, while others will be staffed only with "minimal essential manning.""We’re advising anyone who has business at Fort Riley to call the individual office prior to coming to the post to make sure it’s open, and if it is open, that it’s not swamped,”
Lavigne said, adding that the base will prioritize to ensure the most critical services are available to military personnel and their families. Some federal services are scheduled to continue despite the shutdown that will furlough approximately 800,000 federal workers. The USDA's inspections of meat and poultry processing operations will remain in place, as will the Federal Aviation Administration's air travel safety services. Military veterans services, such as those provided by the VA Eastern Kansas Medical System, will continue but some benefit programs may be affected."Both VA Medical Centers are open and fully operational," Jim Gleisberg, VA Eastern Kansas spokesman, said of the system's hospitals in Topeka and Leavenworth.Federal courts like the U.S. District Court at 444 S.E. Quincy remain open and operating, though some civil trials may be postponed due to employee furloughs. Social Security payments will continue, but some other services in that department will be unavailable. Medicare and Medicaid benefits remain in place for now but could be affected if the shutdown continues.The government shutdown comes after House Republicans voted to make continued funding of government contingent on scuttling the federal health care reforms spearheaded by President Barack Obama, a Democrat.Democrats have blamed Republicans for fixating on the health care bill that was signed into law in 2010.Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., laid the blame for the shutdown at the feet of his Democratic Senate colleagues.“In the past 72 hours, Republicans have offered up three different solutions to give the American people what they want — a government that works for the people and protection from the health care law that is hurting patients and the economy," Roberts said in a prepared statement. “The Senate Democrats have not considered a single one of these solutions."
Editorial: Democrats need bigger issues than StegallPosted: September 25, 2013 - 8:10pm
By The Capital-Journal
Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, D-Topeka, should find another drum to bang.His frequent, repetitive criticisms of the state’s new process for selecting and confirming nominees to the Kansas Court of Appeals, and the first judge to be appointed under that process, have become predictable, and tiring.Hensley’s latest criticism suggests that the swearing in of Kansas Court of Appeals appointee Caleb Stegall was delayed until January to allow Stegall to avoid a retention vote in November 2014. Because Stegall will have less than a year of service when the 2014 election rolls around, he won’t face a retention vote until 2016.Hensley sees skulduggery in the timing, never mind the fact court officials say the swearing in was scheduled for January because they hadn’t budgeted for the salaries of Stegall and his staff prior to January and that it will take time to renovate space at
the Kansas Judicial Center for the new personnel. Stegall is filling a new position, not replacing a judge who will be vacating quarters.Democrats were on the other side of this issue in 2005, when former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius announced her appointment of Kansas Supreme Court Justice Eric Rosen in October. Rosen was sworn in seven weeks later and Republicans made the same argument about avoiding a retention vote that Hensley is making now. Republicans were wrong then, and Hensley and the Democrats are wrong now.History has shown Supreme Court justices and Court of Appeals judges have nothing to fear at election time — as long as they show up at the polls with a valid photo ID. Voters have never failed to retain all the justices and appellate judges on the ballot. There is no reason to think that will change.The only real reason for Hensley to raise the issue at this point is to score points in advance of the 2014 elections, when Gov. Sam Brownback, other statewide elected officials and legislators will be on the ballot.Democrats got scalded in the 2010 and 2012 elections. They hold no statewide offices or congressional seats. Their numbers are few in the Legislature. Hensley is the ranking Democrat in the Legislature, and House Minority Leader Paul Davis, D-Lawrence, is Brownback’s likely general election opponent.The Democrats need issues that will resonate with voters. They will need more than Caleb Stegall.Members of The Capital-Journal Editorial Advisory Board are Gregg Ireland, Mike Hall, Fred Johnson, Ray Beers Jr., Garry Cushinberry, Joyce Martin, John Stauffer, Frank Ybarra and Sally Zellers.
The Wichita Eagle
Hispanic business forum planned for Oct. 23 By Molly McMillin The Wichita Eagle Published Thursday, Sep. 26, 2013, at 11:31 a.m. Updated Thursday, Sep. 26, 2013, at 5:42 p.m.
Gov. Sam Brownback will lead a discussion on empowering small businesses at a Hispanic Business Forum in Wichita on Oct. 23.
The forum includes two panel discussions, one titled “Resources to Make Your Business a Success,” and a general session titled “Showcasing Your Business.”
The half-day event is sponsored by the Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission, the Wichita Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City, and the Kansas Department of Commerce.
Panelists for the first discussion include Rhonda Harris, Kansas Department of Commerce minority- and women-owned business director; Jamie Hofling, NetWork Kansas senior product manager for economics; Charles Dilliehunt, Kansas Department of Transportation program consultant; and Wayne Bell, U.S. Small Business Administration district director in Wichita.
Caleb Asher, president and CEO of Sprout Communications in Topeka, will give the general-session presentation.
The second panel discussion will include Brownback; Pat George, Department of Commerce secretary; Patricia Ramirez-Cebert, Earles Engineering & Inspection president; Diana Ramirez, owner of Express Employment Professionals and Specialized Recruiting Group; Michael Barrera, director of National Coalitions and Entrepreneurship, the Libre Initiative; and Derrick Bauer, president and CEO of Zumit Corp.
The forum will take place at the National Center for Aviation Training at 4004 N. Webb Road.
For more information or to register, visit KansasCommerce.com/HispanicForum or call 785-296-2994 by Oct. 11.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/26/3022476/hispanic-business-forum-planned.html#storylink=cpy
Kansas officials brace for health care roll-out By Dion Lefler The Wichita Eagle Published Monday, Sep. 30, 2013, at 8:14 p.m.
Kansas Insurance Department and health officials are braced for uncertainty Tuesday when the federal health insurance exchange for Kansans goes live online.
The exchange, also known as a marketplace, will offer eligible state residents a new way to buy insurance and qualify for federal subsidies to pay for it under provisions of the Affordable Care Act.
The website for the federal exchange is www.healthcare.gov.
The state insurance department has also established an informational website atwww.insureKS.org to help people who have questions.
Department spokesman Bob Hanson said staff members there aren’t sure what to expect and will be waiting along with the rest of the country to see how the system roll-out goes on its first day.
The insurance department will be limited to more or less an advisory role in the change. Gov. Sam Brownback and the state Legislature, dominated by Republican opponents of the health care act, declined to have Kansas set up its own exchange, making it almost entirely a federally-run system here.
Still, if people call the insurance department with questions or problems with the new exchange, “our consumer assistance people will do whatever they can to help them,” Hanson said.
Kansas residents can contact the consumer assistance division at 800-432-2484 or 785-296-7829.
Also available are “navigators” associated with local nonprofit clinics, including Wichita’s GraceMed Clinic, which has hired four navigators and plans to add two more.
Dave Sanford, chief executive officer of GraceMed, said he’s not sure how many people will call for insurance help Tuesday, but the clinic has added an extra phone line to handle the traffic if it’s heavy. Also, uninsured people who come to the clinic for treatment will be informed of their options for seeking insurance help, he said.
“My concern is a lot of people, even with all the articles and all the buildup, don’t know what it’s about,” he said.
On the eve of the big change, Insurance Commissioner Sandy Prager, Hanson and other members of Prager’s staff were at the Topeka Public Library on Monday holding informational meetings for several hundred people on the ACA roll-out.
Topeka was the eighth community they have visited out of 13 where they plan to hold meetings by Oct. 22. They’ll be in Independence on Wednesday, Emporia on Thursday, Garden City on Oct. 16, Liberal on Oct. 17 and Kansas City, Kan., on Oct. 22.
The full schedule is available at www.insureKS.org.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/30/3031875/kansas-officials-brace-for-health.html#storylink=cpy
Many in Kansas awaiting open enrollment to see whether health marketplace works for them
By Kelsey Ryan The Wichita Eagle Published Saturday, Sep. 28, 2013, at 8:18 p.m. Updated Sunday, Sep. 29, 2013, at 9:53 a.m.
For one veteran’s family – and millions of other people across the country – Tuesday will reveal whether the Affordable Care Act really can give them access to affordable health insurance through the new online health marketplace.
“The big question is will we be able to afford comparable coverage to what we have now and what will our options be?” said Lindsey Stillwell, 29, whose husband, Matt, is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
For those without insurance or who want to shop around, the new online health marketplace – the open enrollment for which begins Tuesday – will be a one-stop online store to see what insurance is available and how much it will cost.
Stillwell, of Valley Center, said she now pays about $650 a month for health care for herself and their three children, one of whom has a congenital heart defect. Her husband served as a combat medic in Iraq and was on a routine patrol in December 2009 when he was ejected from a truck, she said, suffering severe lower-back injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Lindsey Stillwell worked for 10 years before quitting to take care of her husband and to take classes at Wichita State University.
“The things he saw as a medic were horrible things that nobody wants to see,” she said.
His ongoing medical care is covered by veterans benefits. But Lindsey Stillwell will be looking to the health marketplace for coverage for herself and their children after finding out that her current plan under Blue Cross Blue Shield is no longer considered comprehensive coverage and therefore doesn’t meet the requirements of the federal law.
She has been researching as much as she can and is hoping the rates will still be affordable for her family. But she has her doubts, because her family seems to fall into the new Medicaid doughnut hole.
The Stillwells may have too much money to qualify for Medicaid in Kansas but not enough to receive subsidies on the new federally facilitated marketplace. Her husband’s veterans benefits are counted as income under Kansas Medicaid, but they aren’t counted as income on the marketplace, she said.
“We’re in the gap, and there are a lot of people in that position. ... I’m disappointed that Kansas has been as conservative as it has. There are so many people struggling.”
Marketplace enrollment
The new health insurance marketplace isn’t for everyone.
“This only affects between 15 and 20 percent of the population that doesn’t have health insurance,” said Kit Wagar, Affordable Care Act specialist for the regional Health and Human Services office in Kansas City. “Most people still get it from their employer.
“The marketplaces are mostly for people with modest incomes who cannot afford the employer plan they’re offered. Affordable coverage means it is no more than 9.5 percent of their income. It’s also for people who don’t have job-based insurance or who are looking for a better deal on the private market.”
About 365,000 Kansans, or about 13.1 percent of the population, were uninsured in 2011, according to data from the Kansas Health Institute.
More than half of Kansans are covered by employer-based insurance, while about one-third are covered by a public program such as Medicare or Medicaid, according to the institute.
Of all the uninsured, about 59 percent are ages 19 to 44, and two-thirds are white non-Hispanic. About 75 percent of the uninsured are working.
Small employers can also look for plans on the marketplace. Only employers with 50 or more employees are required to offer insurance under the law. However, federal officials said last week that delays in the system would keep small businesses from actually signing up for a month or so, although there will be information online that allows them to do some comparison shopping.
For the first year, open enrollment will last six months, until March 2014.
“As long as people sign up for coverage on the marketplace by Dec. 15, their coverage will start on Jan. 1, 2014,” Wagar said.
“For a lot of people, this might be the first time in years they’ve had a chance to buy insurance. There’s no reason to hurry. They have two months to look over the options and pick a plan that works best for them. ... The bigger date is Jan. 1, when people start to see the benefits of this law.”
Wagar compares the website for signing up, www.HealthCare.gov, to Amazon.com. First, you have to create an account with basic information. It also will ask what kind of policy you’re looking for and whether you’re eligible for other programs, like Medicaid. People will have to put in their Social Security numbers and estimate their income for 2014.
Plans, ratesFederal officials announced last week that an average of 37 health plans will be available in Kansas as part of the online health insurance marketplace.
But despite rate and subsidy calculators created by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Kansas Department of Insurance, consumers still are not able go online – or elsewhere – to get actual pricing and coverage information about the plans until Tuesday.
What is known about the plans is that each, by law, must cover what government has deemed essential health benefits: emergency services, hospitalization, maternity and newborn care, mental health and substance use disorder services, prescription drugs, laboratory services, preventive and wellness services, chronic disease management and services for children, including oral and vision care.
Insurance companies are allowed to take certain factors – with limits – into consideration when setting rates. Those factors include an individual’s age, family size, tobacco use and location. Pre-existing conditions can no longer be used to determine coverage or costs under the law.
Data released last week showed some average premium costs based on age and location for seven regions in Kansas. The data showed the Wichita area had the lowest rates in the state and that rural areas had the highest rates.
Consumers will have the option of buying bronze, silver, gold or platinum plans, which describe how much cost-sharing – deductibles and co-pays – will be included in the plan design. There will also be catastrophic plans that have a lower cost for people younger than 30 or with low incomes.
For 55-year-olds, the lowest-cost bronze plan premium is about $257 per month for someone in the Wichita area but $340 for someone in southwest Kansas. The minimum gold plan premium is $380 in the south-central region, compared to $501 in the southwest region. Those rates are before government subsidies or tax credits.
The trend is the same for other ages. A 22-year-old in Wichita could pay $170 for the minimum gold plan, while a person of the same age in southwest Kansas would pay about $224.
“Those rates depend on different provider networks and the deals the insurers cut with local hospitals and providers,” Wagar said.
The law also caps the total out-of-pocket expenses consumers can pay, so every plan includes a limit at which insurance picks up virtually all medical expenses.
Wagar said he encourages people who are looking at the plans to set a monthly budget and determine whether they want higher or lower deductibles and to pay attention to co-pays. He also said people should check to see whether the prescription drugs they require are covered under the different plans and whether they need to have coverage out of network.
No Medicare impactSenior citizens and others who are on Medicare are basically unaffected by the new law, Wagar said.
“They just need to enroll and choose their plans like they always have,” he said. “Medicare supplement plans are heavily regulated because we didn’t want older people getting ripped off. Those are what some people buy to pay for parts that Medicare does not cover, and they aren’t affected by the Affordable Care Act either.”
Wagar said the rates for older people should also come down because there is now a rule that insurance companies can’t charge older people more than three times what they would charge a younger person. On the flip side, that means rates will likely increase for younger people seeking coverage.
Young invinciblesOne major concern about the Affordable Care Act is that healthy young people won’t sign up to get coverage to offset the costs of the older and sick people who need more care.
One of these young invincibles is Sara Utley, a Wichita State University graduate who is an accountant.
Although the health law has a provision that dependents can stay on their parents’ health plans until age 26, it wasn’t an option for Utley.
She said she had health insurance through an employer for a couple of years at the beginning of college but was paying about $150 every pay period and seeing a doctor only once or twice a year.
“I just felt like I was spending way too much money on health insurance for being relatively healthy,” she said.
Utley said she is interested in looking at the rates on the marketplace, as well as seeing if she can get vision and prescription coverage.
“I’m very much looking forward to getting back on health insurance since I’ve had a few issues that I haven’t been able to get treated and didn’t even know where to go.”
She’s not sure whether most young people will be like her and look into the marketplace. For the first year, those who forgo health insurance will be faced with a tax penalty of $95 for an individual or 1 percent of their income, whichever is greater. The penalty increases over time.
“Honestly, I don’t think the first-year penalty is much money for the first year,” she said. “It seems like the penalty is more of a slap on the hands to say ‘Please get insurance next year.’ ”
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/28/3027539/many-in-kansas-awaiting-open-enrollment.html#storylink=cpy
Obamacare no longer a political debate, Sebelius says
Though House Republicans and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, clearly think otherwise,
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius contends that the Affordable Care Act is no
longer a political debate. “It’s what we call the law,” she said at a conference last weekend in Kansas City,
Mo. “It was passed by the United States Congress. It was signed into law by the president in March of
2010. It was upheld by the Supreme Court in July of 2012. The president was re-elected. It’s the law.”
Read more here: http://blogs.kansas.com/weblog/2013/09/obamacare-no-longer-a-political-debate-sebelius-says/#storylink=cpy
Data shows Wichita area’s health insurance rates will be lowest in state in online marketplace
By Kelsey Ryan The Wichita Eagle Published Wednesday, Sep. 25, 2013, at 10:47 a.m. Updated Sunday, Sep. 29, 2013, at 9:53 a.m.
Wichita-area residents will have the lowest rates in the state on plans available from the new online health insurance marketplace, according to data released by the federal government.
But consumers still are not able go online – or elsewhere – to get actual pricing and coverage information about the plans available to them.
That information at www.HealthCare.gov won’t be made available until Tuesday, when enrollment is scheduled to begin under the federal Affordable Care Act.
Federal officials announced Wednesday that an average of 37 health plans will be available in Kansas as part of the new online health insurance marketplace that begins Tuesday. Starting in 2014, insurance companies can set an individual’s rate based on age, family size, tobacco use and location.
Kansas has been divided into seven regions: Kansas City area, Northeast, Northcentral, Northwest, Southwest, Southcentral and Southeast.
Insurance companies make their own determinations on how different regions compare. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, one of the companies offering plans on the new marketplace, says that the cost of care for different regions is a significant factor.
Other factors include environmental, demographic and socioeconomic issues.
Consumers will have the option of buying bronze, silver, gold or platinum plans, which describe how much cost-sharing will be included in the plan design. There will also be catastrophic plans that have a lower cost for people younger than 30 or with low incomes.
For 55-year-olds, the lowest-cost bronze plan premium is about $257 per month for someone in the Wichita area but $340 for someone in southwest Kansas, and the minimum gold plan premium is $380 in the Southcentral region, compared to $501 in the Southwest region.
The trend is the same for other ages. A 22-year-old in Wichita could pay $170 for the minimum gold plan, while a person of the same age in southwest Kansas would pay about $224.
The Kansas City area – which includes Leavenworth, Wyandotte, Johnson and Miami counties – and the rest of northeast Kansas are also cheaper than the rural regions of the state. The Kansas City area has the greatest number of plans available in the state, especially in the silver and gold categories.
Four companies have signed up to offer plans through the marketplace in Kansas: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, Blue Cross of Kansas City, Coventry Life and Health, and Coventry Health Care of Kansas. Coventry is offering both a PPO and an HMO product, which is the reason for the two different companies.
According to a news release, the average premium in Kansas for the lowest-cost silver plan will be $260 and the lowest-cost bronze plan will be $197.
The release gives a couple of examples of rates but no detailed information on what the plans include. One example is a 27-year-old living in Kansas who makes $25,000 per year; he would pay $107 per month for the lowest-cost bronze plan and $145 per month for the silver plan, taking into account tax credits.
Another example is for a family of four in Kansas with an income of $50,000 per year; the lowest bronze plan would cost $144 per month.
Without actual plans and prices online, however, consumers get only a rough idea about what their costs might be and what the plans will cover.
Enrollment will be open through March 2014. Those who do not have health insurance after Jan. 1 will face a tax penalty of about $95 or 1 percent of their income, whichever is greater.
Those who live in states that did not expand Medicaid and would have been eligible for Medicaid had it been expanded will not have to pay the penalties.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/25/3020547/federal-officials-tout-affordability.html#storylink=cpy
Officials reaffirm clients can keep case managers under KanCare
By Dion Lefler The Wichita Eagle Published Tuesday, Sep. 24, 2013, at 7:58 p.m. Updated Tuesday, Sep. 24, 2013, at 11:04 p.m.
Seeking to lay to rest one of the most persistent concerns about privatizing state support for the developmentally disabled, the head of the state’s disability services department vowed late Tuesday that all of the people served will be able to keep their current case managers after KanCare takes over their home- and community-based services.
Maintaining the relationship between the developmentally disabled and case managers they’ve worked with – in some cases for many years – has been a go-to-war issue for many in the disability community as the state moves toward providing all Medicaid-funded services through three private insurance companies.
Two Wichita meetings sponsored by the Kansas Department for Aging and Family Services on Tuesday left family members and service providers expressing frustration at what they said were vague answers on case management at the forum.
Later Tuesday night, department Secretary Shawn Sullivan guaranteed that all developmentally disabled people who want to keep their case managers after KanCare takes over on Jan. 1 will be able to do so, even if it means that KanCare providers have to hire them as subcontractors.
“We’ve consistently said for two years people will be able to keep their case manager,” Sullivan said. He said he has the backing of Gov. Sam Brownback, and it’s been written into the KanCare contracts and the state budget law.
Confusion about case management arose in a big way Tuesday at meetings held in Wichita by state and insurance company officials who are implementing the plan.
At issue was a concept called a “medical home,” which will be phased in as KanCare adds disability supports to the system it already runs providing medical care to the disabled, low-income families with children and pregnant women.
Kim Brown, director of managed care for the department, calls the health home “care coordination on steroids,” because it oversees virtually all of the medical, behavioral and long-term care services that a covered person receives.
People with certain long-term physical and mental conditions will be assigned a medical home to oversee their care.
While officials at Tuesday’s meetings repeatedly assured attendees that they would not be forced to change case managers, confusion entered the picture when the discussion turned to medical homes.
Because medical homes and the state’s current system of targeted case management offer many of the same services, federal Medicaid officials won’t pay for both. State officials initially said Tuesday that clients would be able to opt out of the medical home in order to keep their case managers. But they could not provide details on how that would happen.
Christine Gafford, chief operating officer of MCDS, a service provider based in McPherson, said she thinks the answers given at the meeting were vague and “it actually has me more concerned” than when she got there.
Likewise for Kevin Fish, executive director at ARC of Sedgwick County. He said he thought the opt-out system would cause a lot of confusion among clients.
Dennis George, father of a 27-year-old man with autism, said he was reassured by the commitment that his son will be able to stay with the case manager who has known him for years and is deeply familiar with his care needs.
“I didn’t want to wind up with some kind of manager who doesn’t even know him,” George said. “Change is something autistic people don’t do well with.”
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/24/3019588/meeting-fails-to-provide-clear.html#storylink=cpy
Enrollment levels at Wichita schools highest since 1975
By Suzanne Perez Tobias The Wichita Eagle Published Wednesday, Sep. 25, 2013, at 4:09 p.m. Updated Sunday, Sep. 29, 2013, at 2:40 p.m.
Enrollment at Wichita schools this year has reached 51,169 students, up 530 from last year and the highest since 1975.
Enrollment has grown by more than 2,300 students over the past decade.
“We continue to see good, consistent growth,” Superintendent John Allison said Wednesday.
“I think that speaks very positively about how our community and our parents see our schools, about the quality of education their students can receive and about the choices they have as they look at education.”
The largest growth again this year is in the district’s elementary schools, with an increase of 328 students. Middle school enrollment is the highest since 2003, with a total of 10,267 students. High school enrollment is up as well, with the largest increase – 114 students – at South High.
Each year on Sept. 20, students statewide are counted for their school’s official enrollments. The number of students enrolled is used to determine the district’s per-students state funding for the school year – this year, $3,838 for every full-time student.
The National Center for Education Statistics predicts that school enrollment across the country will hit record levels every year through at least 2020, reflecting expected increases in the size of the school-age population.
Allison said the district has added and shifted teachers and support staff to schools with higher population increases to help manage class sizes.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/25/3021096/enrollment-levels-at-wichita-schools.html#storylink=cpy
Derby, Colwich elections may be small preview of things to come under new voter law
By Dion Lefler The Wichita Eagle Published Monday, Sep. 30, 2013, at 9:15 p.m. Updated Monday, Sep. 30, 2013, at 9:15 p.m.
As Derby and Colwich voters go to the polls to decide tax and bond issues for their cities over the next week, 120 prospective voters will be sidelined for failure to provide proof of citizenship to election officials.
The elections are the first to be held in Sedgwick County since Jan. 1, when a new law took effect requiring voter registrants to provide citizenship documents – generally a birth certificate or passport – or have their voting privileges suspended.
But while the numbers of voters involved are small, opponents say it’s a preview of what will happen when much larger elections come around, if things don’t change.
Those who support the law say it’s a meaningful hedge against voting fraud and that anybody who really wants to vote can and should get the required documents.
More than 17,000 prospective voters’ registrations currently are in “suspense” statewide as a result of the law, designed by Secretary of State Kris Kobach and passed by the Legislature to prevent ineligible people from voting and possibly changing the outcome of elections.
‘It’s just wrong’Rep. Jim Ward, D-Wichita, is a staunch opponent of the new law. He said he doesn’t think it makes sense to exclude 120 voters over missing paperwork when only two noncitizens have been proven to have illegally cast ballots in Sedgwick County in the past 10 years.
He said the suspended voters could make a big difference in a light-turnout special election in a small city.
“It’s frustrating and disappointing when you look at the suppression of the vote,” said Ward, who unsuccessfully sought to change the law during a special session of the Legislature last month.
His amendment to follow federal standards and allow sworn affidavits to establish voters’ citizenship was ruled out of order in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. A nearly identical measure by Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau, also D-Wichita, met the same fate in the Senate.
Of the 107 suspended voters in Derby and 13 in Colwich, Ward said: “That’s 120 people who are not going to be allowed to participate in an important local government issue. This is the direct result of not taking care of this during the special session.”
‘Personal responsibility’However, Rep. Pete DeGraaf, R-Mulvane, who represents a large part of Derby, said if people can’t vote, “they can solve the problem” by getting the required documents.
“No. 1, they need to take personal responsibility and get off suspension,” he said. “Most people have a copy of their birth certificate. It’s an important document to keep with you.”
Those who need one can get it in about two weeks by contacting the state where they were born, providing proof of identity and paying a fee, DeGraaf said. The fees for a replacement birth certificate generally range from $9 to $30, depending on the state, according to data compiled by the National Center for Health Statistics.
DeGraaf said that when someone obtains a certificate, it’s a higher level of proof than swearing out a statement because a state will check to make sure that someone was actually born when and where they say they were.
“You’re getting third-party verification,” he said.
DeGraaf said people who have problems getting the proper documents can call him on his cellphone at 316-613-1899, and he’ll try to help them get through any red tape.
Vote starts slowSedgwick County Election Commissioner Tabitha Lehman said her office sent notices to voters when their registrations were suspended and has tried to call those who provided phone numbers.
In addition, she said, she sent sample ballots and instructions on how to complete registration to the suspended voters in Derby and Colwich in preparation for the Oct. 8 election.
The suspended voters will have until the end of the day Monday to submit their proof and to vote, Lehman said.
Derby’s ballot question would extend a one-half percent local sales tax, with the proceeds to go to parks and recreation, library maintenance and operating costs, and fire and rescue. There are 13,952 registered voters in the city limits, Lehman said.
Colwich is asking voters for permission to issue $1.65 million in bonds to build a swimming pool. There, 791 voters are eligible, Lehman said.
Voting got off to a slow start with advance voting opening at a single location: Lehman’s office at the Historic Courthouse in downtown Wichita. From Wednesday through Monday, nine voters cast their ballots at the office – seven from Derby and two from Colwich, election officials said. Lehman said she did not expect a lot of people to vote at that office because of the distance to the communities involved.
She said she expects voting to pick up in Derby with the opening of an advance voting site in the city for three days before the election. That site, at Woodlawn United Methodist Church, 431 S. Woodlawn, will be open noon to 7 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Colwich is too small to justify an advance voting site, so most voters will probably wait until the Oct. 8 election day, when they’ll be able to vote at the city building, Lehman said.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/30/3031929/derby-colwich-elections-may-be.html#storylink=cpy
Kansas Department of Labor to move to former Ryan International Airlines buildingWICHITA — The Kansas Department of Labor, which is temporarily located at the Finney State Office Building, has signed a lease at the former Ryan International Airlines building at 266 N. Main St.
“They looked at several buildings,” says Chuck Knapp, Department of Administration spokesman.
“Labor decided that that building best met their needs.”
The 10-year lease, which has two renewal options of five years each, is for 9,113 square feet.
Level 3 Communications and Hubris Communications are already at the building. Level 3 is
downsizing its space, and that’s what the Department of Labor is taking.
Knapp says the department had been in another downtown building but was having some issues, so it
made a quick move to the Finney building.
Craig Simon of Landmark Commercial Real Estate handled the deal for the Main Street lease, which
begins Nov. 1.
Simon also recently handled the sale of that building when Tom Schmeidler of SBA Construction, his
brothers and another investor purchased the property out of foreclosure.
More news is coming about the building soon.
There’s also news coming about another departure from the Finney building.
In June, Have You Heard? reported that nine state agencies, including more than 700 employees, will
leave the city-owned building at 230 E. William when the state’s lease expires on Sept. 30, 2014.
The largest tenant, the state Department for Children and Families, has said its space at the Finney
building is inadequate.
“The city was very good at getting architects in and trying to meet the needs of DCF,” Knapp says.
He says DCF is still planning to vacate the building next year, though.
One of the other state agencies in the Finney building is close to signing a lease elsewhere. Look for that
news and more on the Main Street building in the coming weeks.
Read more here: http://blogs.kansas.com/haveyouheard/2013/09/26/kansas-department-of-labor-to-move-to-former-ryan-international-airlines-building/#storylink=cpy
John Carmichael to replace Nile Dillmore in Legislature
By Denise Neil The Wichita Eagle Published Saturday, Sep. 28, 2013, at 3:20 p.m.
John Carmichael, a local lawyer and state Democratic Party secretary, was unanimously elected by Democratic Party precinct members on Saturday to replace Nile Dillmore, D-Wichita, who announced in August that he would resign his seat in the Kansas House of Representatives.
Three of the four precinct members were present for the vote, which took place at the jury room at the Sedgwick County Courthouse. The fourth couldn’t make it because of a business obligation.
Carmichael, who was unopposed in his bid for the seat, will represent the 92nd District at least until the 2014 election.
“I’m looking forward to carrying on the fine legislative tradition of Nile Dillmore,” Carmichael said Saturday.
Carmichael will not officially begin his term until after Dillmore’s retirement date, which is Sept. 30. Then, he’ll have to be sworn in. The process could take about two weeks, he said.
But he’s already been hearing from constituents about problems in the district, he said.
“I’ve got a steep learning curve ahead of me,” he said. “ I have about 90 days to get ready before I have to be there in January.”
Dillmore, a 13-year veteran of the Legislature, said in August that he wanted the end of his time with the Legislature to coincide with his October retirement from his regular job with a Wichita credit union.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/28/3026726/john-carmichael-to-replace-nile.html#storylink=cpy
Eagle editorial: Shutdown looms large Published Thursday, Sep. 26, 2013, at 12 a.m.
Republicans in Congress are fond of quoting a Democratic senator’s statement that the Affordable Care Act will be a “huge train wreck.” But it is Congress that is about to jump the rails and take the federal government and the economy with it, as the weak president looks on.
Americans are suffering from Capitol Hill showdown fatigue, but this is serious.
The fiscal year will end Monday, setting up the U.S. for its first government shutdown since 1996 if Congress doesn’t act on spending legislation.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew warned Wednesday that the nation will run short of money by Oct. 17 if Congress doesn’t agree to raise the debt ceiling. He also pointed to the 2011 impasse and its resulting S&P downgrade of the U.S. credit rating as what not to do. “If Congress were to repeat that brinksmanship in 2013, it could inflict even greater harm on the economy. And if the government should ultimately become unable to pay all of its bills, the results could be catastrophic,” Lew wrote.
The current farm bill also expires Monday. The traditionally bipartisan process of crafting such legislation is broken, with the two chambers split on how deeply to slash food-stamp funding and the future uncertain for farmers and anti-hunger advocates.
Given the context, it made no sense for the Senate to waste 21 hours this week on a fake filibuster of the ACA by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas – a meaningless exercise assisted by Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., unfortunately.
And in the end Wednesday, even Cruz voted to open Senate debate of the House-passed bill that would keep the government operating past Monday while defunding the health care law and crippling its Oct. 1 enrollment launch.
With the Democratic-led Senate and Democratic president sure to oppose linking the two issues, and Republican-led House unlikely to blink, a disruptive shutdown looms large – even though polls indicate that nearly 60 percent of Americans oppose shutting down the government and risking a default over the health care act and 80 percent think threatening a government shutdown during budget debates is no way to negotiate.
In addition, some House Republicans want to tie any increase in the debt ceiling to a number of stalled items on their agenda, such as approval of the Keystone XL pipeline and regulatory rollbacks as well as an ACA delay.
Worst of all is the answer to the question of who put these variously reckless and clueless people in charge: We did.
The moment demands pragmatic, decisive, foresighted, apolitical leadership. Americans are about to learn whether it now exists in Washington, D.C., only in history books.
For the editorial board, Rhonda Holman
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/26/3021268/eagle-editorial-shutdown-looms.html#storylink=cpy
Former VP nominee Paul Ryan in Wichita for Brownback fundraiser
By Dion Lefler The Wichita Eagle Published Wednesday, Sep. 25, 2013, at 1:47 p.m. Updated Sunday, Sep. 29, 2013, at 9:53 a.m.
In Wichita for a fundraiser for Gov. Sam Brownback, U.S. Rep. and former vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan dared Democratic senators in swing states to vote down a House bill that would defund implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
In a short interview before the $2,000-and-up fundraiser, Ryan reiterated his opposition to shutting down the government to force a showdown over the national health care act, also known as Obamacare.
Ryan said the House’s current approach, a bill that funds all of government except Obamacare, will be a challenge to Democratic senators from states where the health care act isn’t popular.
The Senate voted Wednesday to shut down debate on the bill following a 21-hour filibuster by Obamacare opponent Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, clearing the way for Senate Democrats to strip out the anti-Obamacare provision and send the rest back to the House.
“We want the Senate to play this out,” said Ryan, R-Wis. and House Budget Committee chairman. “We want to see how Mary Landrieu in Louisiana’s going to vote, or Mark Pryor in Arkansas, or Kay Hagen in North Carolina. We want to see what the folks in West Virginia and Montana and these open Senate seats are going to do because we really believe that most people don’t want to see Obamacare start because it’s going to damage their state in life.
“We want to make sure that they (senators) take these votes, and if they don’t repeal Obamacare, defund or delay it, then we’ll adjust our strategy accordingly and keep pressing for it in the House.”
October will be a critical month for the health care act and the ongoing Republican effort to stop it.
Two things happen Tuesday, Oct. 1: That’s the day that Americans will be able to shop for health care and qualify for subsidies to pay for it through health care exchanges run by states, or in Kansas’ case, the federal government.
It’s also the start date for the fiscal year, and if Congress doesn’t pass a spending resolution, government functions begin shutting down for lack of funds.
Ryan, however, indicated he thinks the real showdown over the health care law will come when the federal government reaches its debt ceiling, projected to happen sometime in mid-October.
Failing to raise the limit on government debt could put the country in default on its outstanding loans, which would send shock waves through world financial markets.
Ryan said that will put pressure on the president to negotiate over implementation of the act. Ryan said the law is “not ready for prime time” and his immediate goal is to delay its implementation for individuals for a year, to match the delay the president approved on the law’s mandate that businesses provide insurance options for employees or face tax penalties.
Ryan is also a leading deficit hawk in Congress and said the debt limit has been historically effective in bringing presidents to the table for spending-reduction talks.
“When the president says he’s not interested in negotiating, he already negotiated twice on the debt limit,” Ryan said. “That’s what Bowles-Simpson (a deficit-reduction commission) came from; I was a member of that commission. He already negotiated for the Budget Control Act” that led to the federal budget sequester.
“Most of the recent budget agreements in the past – Gramm-Rudman, the Bush 1990 deal, the Clinton-Gingrich deal – have resulted from debt-limit negotiations and this time’s going to be no different in my judgment,” he said.
Ryan, Mitt Romney’s running mate in the 2012 election, is considered a contender for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016. He spoke briefly to local media before the fundraiser, which was closed to reporters.
Before he was elected to Congress, Ryan was an aide to Brownback when Brownback was a senator. Ryan praised his former boss for fiscal discipline and a pro-growth agenda as governor.
“This is the kind of example that we could use in Washington,” Ryan said.
Brownback said if he were still in the Senate, he’d be taking the same stances as Ryan on the health care act and the deficit.
“I think Paul has the right analysis on it,” Brownback said. “Most people don’t want to shut the government down. The route doesn’t get you where you want to go. It would be better off trying to focus on things that can produce some longer-term change.”
Tickets to the fundraiser started at $2,000, which got the donor and a guest into a lunchtime reception with Brownback and Ryan.
Prices rose in steps to the $15,000 “Flint Hills” contribution level, which entitled the donor to have their picture taken with Ryan and Brownback, to attend a VIP reception and participate in an “executive roundtable” with the politicians.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/09/25/3020811/former-vp-candidate-ryan-in-wichita.html#storylink=cpy
The Kansas City Star
Lawsuit filed in Kansas to block science standard
September 26BY JOHN HANNAThe Associated Press
TOPEKA — An anti-evolution group filed a federal lawsuit Thursday to block Kansas from using new, multistate science standards in its public schools, arguing the guidelines promote atheism and violate students’ and parents’ religious freedom.
The group, Citizens for Objective Public Education, had criticized the standards developed by Kansas, 25 other states and the National Research Council for treating both evolution and climate change as key scientific concepts to be taught from kindergarten through 12th grade. The Kansas State Board of Education adopted them in June to replace evolution-friendly standards that had been in place since 2007.
The new standards, like the ones they replaced, reflect the mainstream scientific view that evolution is well-established. Most board members believed the guidelines will improve science education by shifting the emphasis in science classes to doing hands-on projects and experiments.
The group, a nonprofit organization based in the small community of Peck, south of Wichita, was joined in its lawsuit by parents of public school students across the state. They’re suing the board, its 10 members, Education Commissioner Diane DeBacker and the state Department of Education.
The case is the latest chapter in a long-running debate in Kansas over what to teach students about 19th century naturalist Charles Darwin’s theories on evolution and scientific developments since. Kansas has had six different sets of science standards in the past 15
years, as conservative Republicans skeptical of evolution gained and lost board majorities.
The lawsuit argues that the new standards will cause Kansas public schools to promote a “non-theistic religious worldview” by allowing only “materialistic” or “atheistic” explanations to scientific questions, particularly about the origins of life and the universe. The suit further argues that state would be “indoctrinating” impressionable students in violation of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution’s protections for religious freedom.
John Calvert, a Lake Quivira attorney representing the group and the parents, said the new standards are particularly troubling because students would start learning evolutionary concepts in kindergarten. Calvert was a key figure in past Kansas evolution debates and helped found the Intelligent Design Network, which contends that life is too complex to have developed through unguided evolution.
“By the time you get into the third grade, you learn all the essential elements of Darwinian evolution,” Calvert said in an interview with The Associated Press before the filing. “By the time you’re in middle school, you’re a Darwinist.”
Kansas uses its standards to develop statewide tests given to students each year to judge how well schools are teaching, which in turn influence what happens in classrooms. New tests could take up to four years to develop.
The lawsuit suggests that if the federal court won’t block the standards completely, it could bar the state from implementing standards dealing with the origins of life and the universe until high school and require schools to incorporate “adequate and reasonably complete information” about those topics afterward.
The information included in the lawsuit is reminiscent of material skeptical of evolution inserted at the urging of Calvert and other intelligent design proponents in science guidelines adopted by a conservative-led State Board of Education in 2005.
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/09/26/4510571/lawsuit-filed-in-kansas-to-block.html#storylink=cpy
School enrollments up in Johnson County, Olathe has biggest increase September 24BY JOE ROBERTSONThe Kansas City Star
Preliminary enrollment numbers show gains across the board in Johnson County school districts, including Shawnee Mission, which has been expecting its declining enrollment trend to level out.
Shawnee Mission reported a K-12 enrollment of 27,450 after the state’s annual census day, Sept. 20. That would be an increase of 13 from last year’s official count.
Olathe again recorded the largest increase in the county as its enrollment hit 29,171 — an increase of 299 students from a year ago.
Combined, the six county districts’ preliminary totals show an increase of 766 students, from 92,462 to 93,228.
The enrollment figures have been reported to the state, and some adjustments may be made before they become the official enrollment for the school year.
Shawnee Mission, whose enrollment boomed in the 1960s to more than 45,000 students, for many years had been the largest school district in the area. But it has been losing numbers as its population ages and neighboring Johnson County districts took on most of the new growth.
A year ago, the district saw an unexpected drop of more than 300 students, but officials welcomed the apparent small increase this year.
Blue Valley continued its steady growth, increasing by 181 to 21,768.
De Soto was up by 88 students to 6,892, Gardner-Edgerton rose by 99 to 5,533, and Spring Hill grew by 86 to 2,414.
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/09/24/4504843/school-enrollments-up.html#storylink=cpy
Brownback leads river float trip September 26
WAMEGO, Kan. — Gov. Sam Brownback will lead state officials and outdoor enthusiasts in a float trip along a stretch of the Kansas River.
Thursday morning’s canoe and kayak excursion is part of the administration’s efforts to tout the recreational and economic value of the 173-mile river.
About 100 people were expected to participate, starting in the northeast Kansas town of Wamego and ending about 10 miles downstream at Belvue.
The Kansas River was designated in July 2012 as a National River Trail by the U.S. Department of Interior, one of about a dozen nationwide.
Brownback has been active as governor in events that encourage outdoor recreation throughout Kansas.
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/09/26/4509072/brownback-leads-river-float-trip.html#storylink=cpy
Former Republican seeks Democratic nomination for Kansas Secretary of State September 25
SALINA, Kan. — Former Republican state senator Jean Schodorf says she will run for Kansas Secretary of State next year as a Democrat.
Schodorf, from Wichita, confirmed her intention to fun Tuesday during a meeting of the Saline County Democratic Party. Schodorf will challenge incumbent Republican Secretary of State Kris Kobach.
After serving 12 years in the state Senate as a moderate Republican, she lost a bid for re-election after conservative Republicans targeted her for defeat in 2012. Schodorf switched her party affiliation to Democrat in September 2012.
The Salina Journal reports (http://bit.ly/1flzjQp ) Schodorf said she plans to officially file for office Oct. 11.
Mission Hills businessman Randy Rolston already has filed to run for the Democratic nomination.
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/09/25/4506624/former-republican-seeks-democratic.html#storylink=cpy
