By Dave Ranney
KHI News Service
Monday, Nov. 20, 2006
TOPEKA State welfare officials are asking for
an additional $32.5 million to make ends meet in Fiscal 2007, which ends June 30.
Much of the request stems from the state losing a long-simmering dispute with the federal government
over how
it has
paid for mental health services for children in foster care.
“The argument had to do with our (foster care) contractors not being licensed managed care providers and providing a lot of mental health services,” said Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services Secretary Gary Daniels. “The feds have said, “No, you can”t do that,”” he said. “So now we”re having to pay back the Medicaid pool because that”s where the deficit is.”
Daniels said SRS now
needs to put an additional $15.9 million in the state”s Medicaid pool, which is used to underwrite health care services for the poor, disabled and elderly. That money is needed in the current budget year, which started July 1 and runs through June 30, 2007.
Also, to permanently resolve the dispute with federal Medicaid officials the state”s foster care contractors are being paid on a fee-for-service basis for their mental health services.
Daniels announced the
funding request
recently during SRS” annual “Stakeholders Meeting” with its constituents. SRS, he said, also
must pay back $3.3 million it”s received for foster children who were placed with relatives whose homes were not licensed.
The two payments are separate from the $32.4 million that SRS and the Kansas Health Policy Authority gave back to the federal government earlier this year after several audits questioned the state”s handling of Medicaid-funded services for school children.
No surprise
“We”ve known about this for quite some time
this debate between SRS and the
feds,” said Sen. Dwayne Umbarger, R-Thayer and chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
“I”m aware of the issues, and I have to tell you I”m very supportive of Gary Daniels and positions SRS has taken,” Umbarger said. “It”s unfortunate the feds don”t share our commitment on these issues.”
The settlements, he said, are in keeping with federal efforts to rein in Medicaid
spending by shifting more of the costs onto the states.
“Lightning speed”
Federal officials also have questioned SRS” policies governing group homes for children in state custody and access to mental health services in community settings.
Both issues, Daniels said, have been addressed in waivers recently approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
“We”re moving at lightning speed on some of these issues,” Daniels said. Also included in the supplemental request:
*
$2.9 million
to provide child care assistance for an additional 599 children.
*
$2.1 million
to offset a drop in federal aid for state hospitals and group homes for the developmentally disabled.
*
$134,000
to pay for an additional 246 funerals for the indigent.
*
$1.9 million
to overhaul the department”s antiquated email network.
*
$6.3 million
for 143 full-time positions needed to address caseload increases, comply with new federal requirements and enhance investigations of child abuse and neglect.
“We had a significant reduction in staff about four years ago,” Daniels said. “Since then, all of our caseloads have risen. We need to catch up.”
SRS has forwarded its request for an additional $32 million to the Division of Budget.
“It”s being looked at,” said budget director Duane Goossen.
Goossen declined to predict how much of the requested supplemental would survive the budget-setting processes.
“There”s really not much I can say at this point,” he said.
Contact Dave Ranney at
dranney@khi.org
or 785-233-5443.