15 February 2005
Gov. Sebelius tours Pittsburg hospital, talks health care and education
PITTSBURG, Kan. – Governor Kathleen Sebelius again called on legislators to join her in supporting efforts to control health care costs and expand access during a visit to Mt. Carmel Regional Medical Center in Pittsburg today. She spoke with doctors and hospital staff after touring the facility.
“When I travel around our state, the issue I hear more about than any other is health care. Families are having a hard time paying for care. Businesses are having a hard time paying for insurance for their employees,” the Governor said.
“Southeast Kansas has the third-highest rate of uninsured residents in the state. More than one in eight people in this area don’t have health insurance. That hurts their health and the health of their kids. Plus, the unpaid bills from the uninsured drive up costs here at Mt. Carmel and at hospitals statewide,” she continued.
Governor Sebelius has teamed up with Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger on the HealthyKansas initiative, which seeks to reduce costs statewide and to expand access to quality care for children, low-income parents and small businesses.
One plank in that effort is the Governor’s proposal to reform the state’s health care operations, pooling purchasing power to negotiate better deals. That proposal is in danger of being blocked by the Legislature.
“I’ve said many times that Kansans are facing a ‘quiet crisis’ in health care. But if the Legislature doesn’t get serious, stop the political gamesmanship, and start working in a responsible way on some solutions, that crisis will get louder and louder until they can’t help but hear it up in Topeka,” Sebelius said.
The Governor has called health care one of the two major issues impacting the creation of jobs in Kansas, with schools being the second. She spoke briefly about recent school finance proposals put forward by legislators.
“There are 57 days left until the Supreme Court’s deadline, so I’m encouraged that they are coming forward with proposals. The plans I’ve seen so far, however, leave a lot of unanswered questions,” the Governor said.
“In particular, I’m concerned that the proposals continue to ignore the real costs of educating a child. Then there’s the matter of where the money will come from. It’s good that they’re moving forward, but I think we’re all just looking for more details,” she said.
