Long Term Care Funding Advocacy Continues
As expected, the Senate passed their mega budget bill yesterday without any additional funding to support a full rebase for nursing facility rates or any additional funds to support homes supplying underfunded Medicaid care to residents. The House Appropriations Committee is expected to put together its mega budget bill early next week, and we continue to educate and advocate to ensure that long term care is properly funded for the ever-growing number of seniors in our state.
Salon Licensing Bill Continues Forward
HB 2408 which clarifies once and for all that adult care homes and hospitals are not required to have salons licensed by the Boards of Cosmetology or Barbering received a hearing in Senate Public Health and Welfare this week. Committee members indicated strong support for the bill and we expect to see it moved out of committee next week for consideration by full Senate.
No Patient Left Alone Act Receives Senate Hearing
After passing by a wide margin in the House, HB 2264 garnered many more opponents at a Senate hearing this week. LeadingAge Kansas offered testimony in support of the bill specifically because it establishes visitation rights for residents/patients while allowing to continue doing what is necessary to maintain Medicaid/Medicare participation and payment. We also believe the liability protection given to providers in the bill is a necessary trade-off when the state blocks a health care provider from establishing their own policies and guidelines around health care needs and infection control. Opponents of the bill believe it does not go far enough to ensure visitation and do not like the liability protections given to providers while following the open visitation requirements.
Bill Tracker
SB 6 Restricting the authority of the secretary of health and environment and local health officers to prevent the introduction and spread of infectious or contagious diseases.
SB 62 Enacting the protect vulnerable adults from financial exploitation act.
SB 277 Regulation of temporary health care staffing agencies
HB 2023 Creating the crime of interference with the conduct of a health care facility
HB 2264 Enacting the patient right to visitation act to require patient care facilities to adopt visitation rules to allow certain relatives and other persons, including clergy, to visit terminally ill patients and other patients making major medical decisions
HB 2292 Establishing tax credit and grant program to support health care apprenticeship programs
HB 2408 Exempting certain services provided in an adult care home from board of cosmetology and barbering oversight
