In a Feb. 9 exchange with The Topeka Capital-Journal, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly of Kansas appeared to acknowledge her lame-duck status regarding her attempts to achieve Medicaid expansion for the state, a longtime key item of her administration’s platform.
“There’s no way in hell we’re going to get Medicaid expansion this year,” Ms. Kelly reportedly told the Capital-Journal. Her latest budget proposal, as well as her 2026 State of the State address, notably omitted Medicaid expansion.
In 2024, the chairperson of the Kansas House’s Health and Human Services Committee said she would arrange a hearing on Ms. Kelly’s Medicaid expansion proposal, but the bill died in committee.
Kansas is among the 10 states to have not adopted Medicaid expansion. State spending to expand eligibility ranged from $960,000 to about $3.3 billion in 2023. That same year, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation determined Kansas would reduce its uninsured population by 31.3% if it expanded, granting coverage to 90,000 residents.
Becker’s contacted Ms. Kelly’s office and will update this story if more information becomes available.
