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Advocates press Kansas to pair community support waiver with workforce and data fixes to truly shorten IDD waiting list
Summary
Providers and advocates told lawmakers that the state's plan to expand access through a Community Support Waiver (CSW) must be matched with workforce investments, county‑level capacity data and a modern waiting‑list portal or families will face an "invisible" wait even after being offered funding.
Providers, advocates and people with disabilities urged the committee to treat the Community Support Waiver (CSW) as one tool within a package that must also include workforce stabilization, local capacity building and better waiting‑list management.
Multiple witnesses praised recent legislative investments that added IDD waiver slots but said expanding slots without staff and provider capacity creates an "invisible waiting list" — individuals who have been offered funding but cannot find a provider or case manager to deliver services.
Rachel Newman, COO of COF Training Services, described a rural provider's experience: after a large state slot increase the agency re‑opened to intakes but quickly reached new capacity limits and had to close to new referrals. "Eliminating the waiting list is important, but without staff to meet the people's needs, it becomes only a paper fix," she said.
Other providers echoed the need to raise direct support professional (DSP) wages, invest in recruitment and retention, and fund provider startup grants in low‑capacity counties. Testimony included concrete workforce figures: starting TCM wages cited by providers (Cottonwood referenced a TCM starting wage of about $18.50) and direct service pay ranges reported by providers (COF noted average starting DSP wages near $15/hour; local anecdotes contrasted that with retail wages offered elsewhere).
Multiple witnesses urged creation of a modern waiting‑list portal or dashboard to replace once‑a‑year mailed notices. Lynette Gold Eisen, eligibility and referral manager at Cottonwood CDDO, said KDADS currently sends waiting‑list offers by mail and CDDOs call people annually, but the process can miss people who move or do not reply in short windows. She recommended a login portal where applicants could view their wait‑list date, CDDO contact and offer status.
KDADS confirmed the CSW plan is a priority and said the legislature has appropriated funds for phased CSW slots; the department is working with CMS on a compliant waiver submission and with stakeholders on implementation details. KDADS stated the department intends to phase increases and is preparing capacity grants and technical assistance, but acknowledged more data and clearer county‑level capacity metrics are needed.
Witnesses recommended the Legislature continue a multi‑year plan to reduce the wait list (multiple speakers suggested 500 slots per year as a target), support Kansas ACRE or similar workforce training/mentorship programs, and fund targeted grants to build independent case management capacity in areas where provider divestiture could cause gaps.
The committee asked KDADS and stakeholders to share a roadmap and prioritized list of needed data points — including number of TCMs by county, open referrals, provider vacancies, and projected new hires needed per county — and to return with timeframes and cost estimates.
