TOPEKA — Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer’s office on Monday announced that a Holiday Inn in east Wichita will be the site of a July 7 forum on how to cut more than $200 million from the state’s Medicaid budget.

Though the forum will be open to the public, participation will be limited to those who pre-register.

Space will be “extremely limited,” according a press release from the Lieutenant Governor’s Office. Registration will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

Last week, the office announced plans for hosting forums in Topeka, Dodge City, and Wichita. At the time, the Wichita location had not been determined.

The selected Holiday Inn’s address is 549 S. Rock Rd. in Wichita.

The forums will feature small-group discussions rather than individual speakers addressing large numbers of people. The discussions will be led by facilitators from Deloitte, an international consulting firm.

The Wichita forum will be from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The other forums’ times and locations:

• Topeka - From 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., June 22, Maner Conference Center, SW 17th St & SW Western Ave.

• Dodge City - From 9 a.m. to noon, July 8, Magouirk Conference Center, 4100 W. Comanche.

Colyer, who’s leading a task force on Medicaid reform, will attend all three sessions. He and Gov. Sam Brownback have said the state needs to cut $200 million to $400 million from the state’s Medicaid budget by fiscal 2013, which begins July 1, 2012.

In Kansas, Medicaid is the second largest general fund expenditure, trailing only K-12 education. The program’s cost has nearly doubled from $1.25 billion to $2.8 billion since 2000.

The elderly and disabled account for about one-third of the program’s beneficiaries but about three-fourths of its costs. Nearly two-thirds of the beneficiaries are children, families, and pregnant women. They account for less than one-fourth of the costs.

Brownback is expected to attend the Topeka session. His attendance at the Wichita and Dodge City sessions remains uncertain.

“His schedule hasn't been set for July,” said Sherriene Jones-Sontag, the governor’s press secretary.

Jones-Sontag said as of last week, about 300 people had signed up for the Topeka gathering, 120 for the Wichita forum, and 40 for the event in Dodge City.

People wanting to attend the forums are asked to RSVP, using one of the following links:

• Topeka

• Wichita

• Dodge City

The public also may RVSP by contacting Alisha Kirby at (785) 296-2213 or by emailing rsvp@ks.gov. Attendance will be limited.

The forums are being funded by the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City, the Kansas Health Foundation, the REACH Healthcare Foundation, the Sunflower Foundation and the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.