1 February 2005

Governor Sebelius Delivers Keynote Address at National Health Conference

Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius will give the keynote address at the 2005 National Health Policy Conference, held February 2-3, in Washington, D.C. She will speak on “A Healthy Kansas: Confronting the Quiet Crisis in Health Care” Wednesday, February 2, before a large audience of health care professionals. Other scheduled speakers include Mark McClellan, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.

Governor Sebelius will provide an overview of health care issues from the perspective of a single state. She notes, “Although no state is completely typical, Kansas often ranks near the middle on almost all state health-care ratings. We’re in the middle of the country, and the middle of the rankings. What’s happening here is most likely happening across the country.”

Drawing on her experience as legislator, state insurance commissioner, and governor, Sebelius observes, “Kansans express deep concerns over health care. In fact, the survey found that this issue is our citizens’ number one concern. And when I talk with doctors and hospital administrators, they raise similar doubts. In the end, no one truly believes the health care system is headed in the right direction.”

She will outline her proposals for increasing access to high-quality health care, with particular emphasis in building private-public partnerships that would increase the availability of affordable insurance to small businesses.

“We must also address the needs of specific populations – the working poor, those who retire before becoming eligible for Medicare, and the large population of uninsured young people, who fall between the cracks of parental insurance, college coverage, and employment-based insurance.”

In the end, she notes, the federal government and the states must combine to address health care needs across the country: “Some problems are too large for a single state to address, and thus we need to encourage the regional and national pooling of risks for some groups, so that states know the limits of their insurance and cost liabilities.”