Kansas state employees can choose between two health insurance companies after the Health Care Commission voted Monday to move forward with Aetna and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas.
When news broke that the state could save nearly $240 million by choosing Aetna as state employees’ single health plan administrator, state employees quickly expressed concerns.
The federal poverty level from 2008 determines eligibility for Kansas’ program that provides low-cost insurance for children who don’t quite meet Medicaid income requirements. But that could change.
Navigators help people enroll in Medicaid and insurance on the federal marketplace. Federal funding cuts by the Trump administration mean Kansas will have fewer navigators.
Kansans are uninsured at a rate higher than the rest of the country for a third straight year, but the effects of Medicaid “unwinding” have yet to be seen, recent U.S. Census Bureau data shows.
A record 171,000 Kansans enrolled this year in the subsidized health insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act, but the expiration of tax credits lowering premium costs is likely to slash enrollment in 2026.
Gov. Laura Kelly unveiled Thursday her proposal for a Medicaid expansion package that includes a work requirement, revenue streams to offset the state’s cost, abortion restrictions, and other provisions to address concerns raised by opponents.
Navigators with Cover Kansas will be available in the Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health lobby Thursday to help people sign up for coverage through the federal Health Insurance Marketplace.
Kansas has fallen behind national health insurance trends for the second year in a row, with thousands of state residents falling into a health care coverage gap.
A Kansas advocacy organization said state records indicated children comprised two-thirds of the 45,000 people who have lost Medicaid coverage for procedural reasons since the restart in April of eligibility assessments halted during the COVID-19 emergency.
