Jill Docking, Sandy Praeger caution against state control of Medicare

The Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor and the Republican state insurance commissioner joined Wednesday to condemn plans for a state takeover of Medicare.

“This is a topic that’s kind of been overlooked ... It’s a bad idea,” said Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, who is retiring in January after 12 years in office. “Why would we play politics with something like senior health care?”

Jill Docking, who is running for lieutenant governor on the ticket with gubernatorial candidate Paul Davis, said shifting Medicare from federal to state control would affect 448,000 beneficiaries – and not in a good way.

“After serving and contributing to Kansas communities for your entire lives, you deserve much more respect and assurance than you are getting from your current governor,” Docking told about 40 senior citizens who gathered in Seneca Park for the event. “Gov. (Sam) Brownback and certain legislators have experimented enough on our state.”

Praeger and Docking object to a plan for Kansas to join a multi-state “health-care compact” that would shift control of federal funding of medical care – including Medicare – from the federal government to the state. The states in the compact would still receive federal tax money for health care, but in the form of a block grant that they could use for plans of their own design.

The conservative Republican-dominated Legislature and the governor approved a bill to join the compact as a way to try to exempt the state from the provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The compact would need congressional approval to go forward.

Praeger said congressional approval is unlikely, but possible if Republicans, who already control the House, gain control of the Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections.

Republicans who support the compact say Medicare would not be adversely affected. Gov. Sam Brownback said he would oppose any changes to Medicare when he signed the bill earlier this year.

Brett Hildabrand, R-Shawnee, who sponsored the compact legislation, said recently that the Affordable Care Act posed a greater threat to Medicare in the long term. “I think liberals are trying to create scare tactics with senior citizens with what it’s going to do to Medicare, where again I think this solidifies Medicare and strengthens that source of revenue,” he said.

A lifelong Republican, Praeger is a moderate who has split with her party in this election, endorsing the Davis-Docking ticket and Dennis Anderson, the Democratic candidate running to replace her as insurance commissioner.

State Rep. Jim Ward, D-Wichita and ranking minority on the House Health and Human Services Committee, said a Davis victory would most likely keep Kansas out of the compact.

Although the compact has already been approved in concept, it would take a second bill to implement the plan, which Davis would veto, Ward said. There are enough Democrats and moderate Republicans in the House to sustain such a veto, he said.

Allison Lemons, 68, attended the rally. She said she opposes the compact because her brother, who has cerebral palsy and multiple other disabilities, is covered by Medicare’s close cousin, Medicaid.

She said Brownback’s KanCare program, which farmed administration of Medicaid out to three private insurance companies, has “been an unmitigated disaster.” She said her brother was forced to give up his psychologist and “we live in panic he’s going to lose his case manager” who coordinates his care.

“Why would you support turning Medicare over to the state when they’ve already proven they can’t run these health programs?” Lemons said.

This story was originally published October 29, 2014 at 2:39 PM with the headline "Jill Docking, Sandy Praeger caution against state control of Medicare."