Anderson best choice for insurance chief

It’s almost becoming old hat; moderate Republicans endorsing Democrats for office.
Current Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger last week threw her support behind the campaign of Dennis Anderson, a Democrat running for Praeger’s office.
Praeger, a longtime Republican who has served as Insurance Commissioner for 12 years, said she endorses Anderson because he supports the expansion of Medicaid and is against Kansas joining a pact of states that want to take over federal health programs, including Medicare.
Kansas’ current efforts to privatize Medicaid should be enough evidence that assuming control of Medicare is a bad idea. About 450,000 Kansans receive Medicare. Gov. Brownback’s administration has proposed joining a compact of other states to request Medicare funds be put under each state’s control, as Kansas did with Medicaid.
When Brownback urged the privatization of Medi-caid, he predicted it would save Kansas $1 billion over five years. Instead, it has lost $72.6 million in the first six months of 2014; on top of losing $110 million in 2013.
Clearly, some things are better left to the feds.
Anderson’s opponent, Republican Ken Selzer, is against the expansion of Medicaid. That alone has denied approximately 78,000 low-income Kansas residents from receiving health coverage. The expansion allows those earning up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level — an annual income of about $16,104 for an individual — to receive health insurance. Currently, the income limit for individual Kansans to receive Medicaid is 38 percent of the federal poverty level.
Even if Anderson is elected, it will be an uphill battle to reverse course. Last year, Kansas legislators voted to impose a permanent ban on expanding the program.
Those in favor of expanding  Medicaid, including the Kansas Hospital Association and the Kansas Medical Society, are working fast and furious to get it back on the table.
Hospitals, especially, suffer from the lack of expansion. Hospitals are reimbursed by the federal government when they treat Medicare and Medi-caid patients. The more enrolled in the program, the more hospitals will see in reimbursed costs.
Kansas is in the (slight) minority of states that have not expanded the federal program. To date, 27 states have expanded to allow more on the rolls.

ANDERSON is against privatizing Medicare and for the expansion of Medicaid; two very good reasons to cast your vote for the Democrat for Insurance Commissioner.
— Susan Lynn