Via Christi, Wesley hospital CEOs warn of looming healthcare crisis | Opinion

With the federal government now shut down and healthcare funding caught in the crosshairs, we write as hospital leaders on the front lines of Kansas healthcare to urge immediate action on a critical issue: the expiration of enhanced premium tax credits.

These credits help more than 160,000 Kansans afford their health insurance — and if they’re allowed to lapse, the damage will ripple through families, hospitals and entire communities across Kansas.

If the credits do expire, people who obtain health insurance through the individual marketplace will face an estimated 77% average increase in out-of-pocket costs.

For example, a Kansas family of four making $64,000 could see their annual premiums increase over $2,500.

These increases will make health insurance unaffordable for many and threaten a widespread loss of coverage across the state. One recent report estimates that the uninsured rate in Kansas will increase by 32%, the 8th highest increase of any state in the country.

People with chronic conditions like heart disease and diabetes would lose access to affordable treatment and medicine, leading them to postpone or even forego the care they need.

Preventable hospitalizations are likely to increase as a result.

Hospitals in rural areas — where access to care is already fragile — will be hit hardest. In some communities, residents may see a reduction in healthcare services, while in others, they may lose access to care altogether.

Such consequences have an impact far beyond those rural areas, however.

Our hospitals, which already provide services to people across the state, will see an even greater strain as emergency rooms become overburdened and uncompensated care increases.

These looming threats to Kansas healthcare have prompted us to write our congressional delegation and ask them to prioritize a solution.

We urge you to join us.

Please contact your representatives in Washington D.C. and ask them to extend these vital tax credits.

Our communities and the hospitals that care for them are counting on their leadership.

- Kevin Strecker is CEO of Ascension Via Christi and Bill Voloch is president and CEO of Wesley Healthcare, the two main hospital systems serving Wichita and south central Kansas.