Rep. Dan Hawkins: Able-bodied have health care options

One of my friends asked me recently why I was not in favor of Medicaid expansion. How could I not support providing health care to thousands of low-income Kansans?

It’s important to hear the entire story on who is already covered and who the new additions would be with Medicaid expansion.

Our state’s Medicaid program, KanCare, currently provides health care to the following populations: pregnant women up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level; mothers for one year after birth up to 150 percent of poverty level; children whose family incomes are up to 250 percent of poverty level; parents of children up to 38 percent of poverty level; those with a qualifying disability through the Social Security Administration; those who are currently applying for and awaiting disability determination; those with physical disabilities; those with developmental disabilities; those with traumatic brain injuries; the frail and elderly; the blind or visually impaired; children with autism.

In addition, the state supports community mental health centers to support the mentally ill who are uninsured. It also supports programs to compensate hospitals that treat the uninsured, and it supports safety-net clinics to treat the uninsured.

So what population would be included in Medicaid expansion? It would expand eligibility to able-bodied adults up to 138 percent of the poverty level – able-bodied adults with other health care options.

Kansas currently has 425,000 people on Medicaid. That is nearly a sixth of the population. Medicaid expansion could result in about 150,000 newly eligible. That would result in a fifth of our population being eligible.

But even those numbers may be selling things short. Evidence from other states shows their initial estimates were severely low. In Colorado, enrollment came in 207 percent more than expected.

I agree that the state has a responsibility to provide a health care safety net for the poor, disabled and elderly. My concern begins when we expand that to able-bodied adults with other health care options.

This story was originally published November 23, 2015 at 6:01 PM with the headline "Rep. Dan Hawkins: Able-bodied have health care options."