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A Message from the President & CEO Linda MowBray: Our Kansas Commitment
Today is Friday, March 7, 2025, and with it brings the 36th day of this year’s Legislative Session.
SB 88 –
This week started bright and early Monday with a hearing in the House Health and Human Services Committee on SB88 which requires the long term care ombudsman and staff to receive specific training from the Alzheimer’s Association on dementia. We testified in support of this measure and pushed back against the Ombudsman’s attempt to amend the bill with more lenient language. The Committee Report recommended passage of the bill without the amendment. A vote from the committee of the whole on the bill will be early next week.
Sub for HB2007 - House Passes Legislative Budget
House Passes Legislative Budget- including full rebase and $20 per day Medicaid add-on for Nursing Homes. The bill was received and introduced in the Senate and referred to the Ways and Means Committee. This committee is chaired by one of our champions, Senator Rick Billinger. The KDADS budget was reviewed on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. Although the committee had many questions, our rebase and add-on were not among them. The committee will continue hearing different agencies budget all next week and will hopefully hold a vote on Thursday or Friday.
Also on Tuesday, the HMG team from Texas and their local administrators visited the statehouse.
Leticia Caballero, Kendal Kappeler, Matt Memmer, Shelby Kendrick and Courtney Lee, met with Senator Dietrich, Representatives Haskins and Howe. They left information with Senator Claeys office. According to Leticia, “All offices were receptive and appreciative of the role we have in the healthcare spectrum.”
HB2392 - Facilitating nursing workforce development by setting maximum education levels for instructors at nursing schools as a requirement for state approval.
On Wednesday, the House Commerce, Labor and Economic Development Committee heard testimony that would ultimately allow a nurse to teach courses one level lower than their current degree or licensure. That would eliminate the need for Masters Prepared Nurses being required to teach certain levels of nursing students. The committee members asked tough questions but saw the value in opening up the teaching pipeline to ease workforce shortage. The Committee Report recommended that the bill be passed. This is expected to occur next week.
SB 276 –
AN ACT concerning health and healthcare; relating to the state fire marshal; requiring the State Fire Marshal to complete certain annual training in person-centered care and responding to individuals with Alzheimer's disease and intellectual and developmental disabilities; removing the State Fire Marshal from the adult care home licensure act and the providers of disability services act; amending K.S.A. 39-925, 39-928, 39-929, 39-938, 39-2005, 39-2008 and 39-2012 and repealing the existing sections.
A hearing was to be held Thursday, March 6, 2025, in Public Health and Welfare. Your comments were very helpful in crafting our testimony in support of this bill. The bill was pulled from the calendar after overwhelming opposition to the bill has left the proponents working on an amendment that offers language thought to be more palatable to the opponents. A new hearing date has yet to be set.
Next week, many of the bills we are tracking will move on for final action, so I expect a great deal of hurry up and wait to occur. We will have the opportunity to present testimony with LeadingAge KS on the staffing agency situation in our communities. Social Services Budget Committee Chairman Beuhler has provided us with a platform to provide education to Legislators on the cost both in dollars and quality when agency is needed.
Thank you for trusting us to be your voice in the legislature. As always, I am grateful for the opportunity to serve you.
Linda MowBray, President/CEO
lmowbray@khca.org
(785) 267-6003
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