KDADS reports waiver work, aging initiatives and new regional behavioral health hospital; community support waiver delayed pending conflict-of-interest fixes

Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services Secretary Laura Howard and KDADS officials told the Bethel committee about aging initiatives, federal grant actions and progress on state behavioral health facilities and waiver work.

Howard said KDADS continues to press for staffing improvements at state facilities and reported that some federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration grants tied to ARPA funding were cancelled, affecting about 45 providers and roughly $7.5 million in awards; KDADS has appealed the federal decision. She also said a large HHS reorganization is producing temporary communications delays with some federal grant offices.

South Central Regional Mental Health Hospital: Howard said the preliminary construction permit for the South Central Regional Mental Health Hospital was issued in January and construction began in February. The project is a 104-bed hospital split between psychiatric and forensic admissions. KDADS expects construction to complete by October 2026. Local partners including Sedgwick County managed the RFP and construction execution, Howard said.

Parsons behavioral stabilization unit: Mike Dixon, State Hospital Commissioner, reported Parsons State Hospital’s new behavioral stabilization unit — three short-term beds providing intensive behavioral assessment and services — is expected to admit patients within about two weeks. Dixon said the unit will offer applied behavior analysis, psychotropic medication evaluations and speech and related services; staff training includes registered behavioral technician certification for direct-care staff.

Community support waiver and IDD waiver work: Deputy Secretary Andy Brown updated the committee on a planned community support waiver intended to serve Kansans with less intensive needs than the full IDD waiver. The proposed community support waiver was described as having an approximate $20,000 annual cap per participant compared with an average IDD waiver cost of about $70,000 per participant. Brown said the state will delay formal federal submission until it resolves a corrective-action-plan issue and conflict-of-interest requirements for targeted case management; KDADS is engaging stakeholders and daily meetings with InterHab to craft acceptable approaches.

Aging services and senior programs: David Anderson, commissioner for aging services, reviewed non-Medicaid aging services funded by the Older Americans Act and Kansas senior-care programs, including home-delivered meals, congregate meals (about 3.3 million meals provided), SHIP Medicare counseling and the Kansas dementia roadmap. KDADS said a state plan on aging draft will be posted for public comment and a governor's advisory council on aging is being reconstituted.

Ending: KDADS said it will report back to the committee on waiver progress, potential waiting-list authority for some waivers if enrollment exceeds capacity, and staffing needs. Committee members asked for continued quarterly reporting on waiver capacity and any need to begin waiting lists.