Topeka, Kan. – A state senator wants Kansas lawmakers to restore $22 million in cuts for Medicaid reimbursements imposed by Governor Mark Parkinson.
Republican Senator Jeff Colyer of Overland Park, who is a physician, planned to offer the proposal during Senate debate Wednesday on a budget bill for the current fiscal year.
Parkinson, a Democrat, imposed the reduction in December as he sought to balance the state budget. The cut amounts to a 10 percent reduction in the rate paid to health care providers.
Colyer says restoring the cuts will leverage an additional $60 million in federal matching funds for Medicaid programs.
The bill before the Senate ratifies several steps Parkinson imposed to balance the budget, including reducing transfers in funds for highway maintenance.