Just in time for the 2019 Kansas legislative session, the Kansas Health Institute and the Kansas Legislative Research Department have released Kansas Medicaid: A Primer 2019, an in-depth “handbook” describing the Kansas Medicaid program. It provides basic facts and information about Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in Kansas. This is the fifth edition of the Primer, following 2005, 2009, 2014 and 2017 versions.
In the two years since the last edition of this report, federal policy has continued to evolve, and more change is likely to be on the horizon. KanCare, the state’s comprehensive managed care program, has been in place for six years and recently was extended through 2023. This report captures data from those six years, as well as from the pre-KanCare period.
The Primer includes:
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- Overviews of Medicaid, CHIP and KanCare;
- Summary of program expenditures in Kansas;
- Analysis of recent enrollment trends; and
- Information about covered services and populations.
Medicaid and CHIP play a substantial role in the Kansas health care system by providing coverage for health services and long-term care to the state’s most vulnerable populations. Understanding the current system may be helpful to policymakers as they consider policy decisions in Kansas.