Area Agency on Aging asks Bourbon County to maintain senior-services funding
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Summary
Southeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging told commissioners that local Meals on Wheels and in‑home supports are facing demand and funding confusion, and asked the county to keep its prior contribution to avoid service cuts and preserve state and federal matching dollars.
Kathy Brennan, executive director of the Southeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging, told Bourbon County commissioners at the county budget workshop that the agency is asking the county to maintain its current level of funding to support nutrition, in‑home care and caregiver services across the county.
Brennan said the agency, which serves nine counties and is headquartered in Chanute, provides Meals on Wheels, congregate meals, limited attendant care, case management and caregiversupport programs paid largely with federal Older Americans Act and state Senior Care Act funds. She told commissioners the agency is asking the county to continue the same county contribution it made previously.
The request matters because federal and state grants are used as seed funds and county contributions are part of the match that draws down additional state and federal dollars. Brennan said the Older Americans Act has no means test and prohibits requiring payment, while the Senior Care Act allows a sliding fee scale. "It's a way to keep people in their home, in their community," she said.
Brennan gave several local details to illustrate demand and strain on services. She said the agency delivered Meals on Wheels to about 110 Bourbon County residents last year and that the county program started a waiting list this year with roughly 20 people waiting for home‑delivered meals. She said the agency provides in‑home attendant care up to a maximum of four hours per week per client and currently has three people receiving in‑home care in the county. The agency reported $4,193.25 in donations this year; Brennan also cited a line in the packet that she identified as $72,825 spent last year (the packet did not specify the exact line item for that number).
Brennan described a prior billing/flow issue in which the county’s budgeted contribution was routed first to the Bourbon County senior center and portions were then passed back to the regional agency; she said the county has since begun paying the agency directly. When asked what specific dollar amount she wanted, Brennan replied the agency was "asking for the same amount," and she urged commissioners not to cut the county match.
Brennan described other programs the agency runs or helps coordinate, including free Medicare counseling via the federal SHIP/SHIP program (she said volunteer counselors assist residents with Part D choices and low‑income subsidy screening), a new congregate meal site at Buck Run that serves about 15 participants, and a small emergency assistance fund that provides up to $500 per qualifying household for items that keep someone in the home. She also described an exercise program and other outreach intended to reduce institutionalization and Medicaid spending.
Commissioners asked clarifying questions about the senior center role, donation levels and how county funds are used. Brennan said the county funds are used as match for state and federal grants and that reducing county support would reduce the agency’s ability to draw down those other funds.
The commission did not vote on the request at the workshop. Commissioners and staff said they will incorporate the request into upcoming budget deliberations.
