Opponents tell Committee on Government Efficiency Senate Bill 363 will increase churn, cut coverage and raise costs

More than a dozen opponents told the Committee on Government Efficiency on Feb. 19 that Senate Bill 363, which would move some Medicaid and SNAP eligibility redeterminations from once a year to quarterly checks, risks driving people off benefits and raising state administrative costs.

Kylie Childs, director of government affairs for Leading Age Kansas, asked the committee to adopt an amendment to exclude people 65 and older from the bill’s new provisions, saying seniors applying for long-term care lack presumptive eligibility and would face harmful administrative barriers. "We respectfully ask for the committee support in adopting this amendment to ensure seniors can continue access to care," Childs said.

Several advocacy and provider witnesses testified that the bill would increase "churn" — eligible people temporarily losing coverage because of paperwork. "This bill will result in families losing Medicaid and SNAP," Heather (recorded), senior policy adviser with Kansas Action for Children, said, and "it will cost the state millions of dollars in implementation and ongoing costs." April Holman of the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas told the committee the recent post-pandemic unwinding showed 70% of people who lost coverage were not ineligible but lost coverage to paperwork; she cautioned the figure referred to that unusual period and not to ordinary annual redeterminations.

Medical professionals and family caregivers described concrete harms. Molly Kreger of the Kansas chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics recounted admitting a 4-year-old child with Down syndrome who had lost Medicaid because of a paperwork error; the child was later reenrolled during a week-long hospitalization. "This bill would, without question, lead to an increase in Medicaid churn," Kreger said. Melissa Sabin of Little Lobbyists, testifying as a parent, described repeated, time-consuming redeterminations for her son on a technology-assisted waiver and said additional quarterly checks "do not identify fraud" but increase the risk of missed notices and loss of essential services.

Groups representing food banks, cancer patients and people with disabilities warned of broader consequences. Elizabeth Keever of Harvesters, the Kansas food bank, said destabilizing SNAP would not be mitigated by charitable providers and highlighted recent food-price pressures. Megan Ward of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network listed three bill provisions of concern — quarterly checks, removal of self-attestation and cutting retroactive Medicaid from three months to two — and said parts of the bill may clash with federal requirements for continuous coverage for certain groups.

Disability advocates asked the committee to exempt people receiving SSI or SSDI and many HCBS waiver participants. "Those individuals aren't always on a waiver if they qualify," Mike Burgess of the Disability Rights Center of Kansas said, recommending targeted carve-outs to avoid harming people with cognitive impairments who rely on frequent supports.

Committee members pressed witnesses for alternatives. Several senators asked whether targeted exemptions or improved data-sharing between agencies could achieve the bill’s stated goal of reducing improper payments without broad quarterly checks. Witnesses suggested the Legislature consider an interim study or targeted fixes — improving ex parte automation, better interagency data-sharing, and narrowly tailored exemptions — rather than adopting a broad, quarterly-verification regime. Chair and members signaled they expect carve-outs for populations for whom quarterly verification would be inappropriate.

No formal action or vote occurred at the hearing; the committee adjourned after questions. The record includes written-only opposition testimony from additional groups and individuals. The committee indicated further work and potential amendments are expected if the bill is moved forward.