Governor Sebelius is nationally regarded as a leader and an expert on health care. As Governor, as Insurance Commissioner, and as a State Legislator…for more than 20 years, Kathleen Sebelius has been committed to improving Kansans access to affordable, quality health care. Sebelius has worked to make prescription drugs affordable and has pushed for health care reforms. She has expanded health care access for all Kansans, including children and helped small businesses afford insurance. Sebelius’ leadership has been recognized nationally and Kansas is now ranked as one of the most affordable states for health care.
Sebelius Pushed For Kansas And Received Approval For Health Wave Program To Insure Uninsured Children: In 1998, Kansas became the 33rd state to receive federal approval for its CHIP program after Sebelius pushed for the program. Kansas used its CHIP allocation (as much as $30 million) to start a separate insurance program, Health Wave. State officials estimated that they could insure approximately 30,000 children by the end of the year 2000, just two years after it started. The benefits package for children enrolled in CHIP is the same as that offered to state employees, said HHS. The program insured more than 15,000 children the first year.
Expanded Coverage for Low-Income Children: Under Sebelius, the state launched the Healthy KIDS program to pay 90 percent of health care premiums for children of low-income state employees. The Healthy KIDS plan was expected to cover more than 2,000 children.
Sebelius Worked to Make Health Care More Affordable: Sebelius Reorganized Kansas Health Care Programs to Make Health Care More Affordable: In 2005, at Sebelius’ urging, the legislature consolidated the state’s seven major medical programs. Sebelius signed legislation to create a new independent state agency, the Kansas Health Policy Authority, to control nearly all of the state’s spending on health care, simplify the process of obtaining health care and use the state’s buying power to reduce costs.
Negotiated Better Health Insurance Contract to Reduce Premiums: In November 2005, state officials announced they had negotiated a new health insurance contract to reduce premiums for thousands of state employees. Most state employees were likely to see a decrease of $7 per month in their premiums for individual coverage and $69 per month for family coverage.
Sebelius Rejected Sale Of Blue Cross Blue Shield - Said Premiums Would Have Increased Too Much: In 2002, Sebelius blocked the sale of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas to Anthem. In rejecting the proposed sale, Sebelius said premiums for people insured by Blue Cross would have increased too much if it were purchased by Anthem.
Rejection Was Unprecedented: Sebelius’ move was the first time a state insurance commission had blocked a deal from moving along.
In 2000 – Sebelius Created Patient-Protection Legislation: As Insurance Commissioner, Sebelius made a patient-protection bill the centerpiece of her 2000 legislative proposal. She said the bill focused on health care issues related to women and was an effort to close the gap in the cost of health care coverage for men and women. “It has been traditional in health care that the needs and issues involving women’s health care have been overlooked,” she said.
Sebelius Praised For Consumer Protection Measures As Insurance Commissioner: In 2001, Governing Magazine profiled Sebelius and stated, “Sebelius raised the department’s profile as a source of reliable consumer information on companies and their products, and promoted a raft of consumer-oriented bills in the legislature: a patients’ bill of rights; mandated maternity coverage; a requirement that companies pay their bills promptly; an initiative to protect consumers’ privacy. She has created “market conduct” and anti-fraud units aimed at monitoring companies’ and agents’ behavior.”
Doubled Tax Credit for Small Business Providing Health Coverage: In 2005, Sebelius signed a bill to encourage small businesses to provide health coverage to their employees. The bill doubled the tax credit provided to small businesses that began providing employee health savings accounts or insurance plans. Businesses could receive the credit for three years after starting coverage or contributions.
Sebelius Worked to Make Prescription Drugs More Affordable: Under Sebelius, Kansas Joined Drug Importation Program to Save Kansans Money: In November 2004, Sebelius announced that Kansas would become the fourth state to join the I-Save-Rx prescription drug importation program to allow citizens to purchase lower cost, safe prescription drugs from state-approved pharmacies in Europe and Canada at prices 25 to 50 percent cheaper than U.S. pharmacies. (Sebelius Press Release, 11/30/04; Healthy Kansas, I-Save-Rx Program)
Sebelius Helped Seniors Navigate Confusing Federal Prescription Drug Benefit: Sebelius set up programs to help seniors figure out the complicated federal Medicare prescription drug benefit plan. The state allotted $500,000 to expand community resources to help individuals choose and enroll in Medicare.
Sebelius’ SHICK Program Has Saved Seniors Nine Million Dollars in Drug and Insurance Costs: Sebelius spearheaded the implementation of SHICK (Senior Health Insurance Counseling for Kansas) to educate seniors on how to save money on prescription drugs and health insurance. Through the program, “Seniors also receive help in dealing with Medicare billing, in finding the Medicare supplement insurance policy that's right for them, and in sorting through their health care options," Sebelius said.
Under Sebelius, Kansas Recognized For Health Care Success: Kansas Ranked 1st For Health Care Affordability For Employers: In 2005, Expansion Management magazine ranked Kansas 1st in its Health Care Cost Quotient, meaning health care costs are more manageable for businesses in Kansas than in any other state.
Sebelius A Nationally Recognized Leader On Health Care: In an August 2002 issue of Modern Healthcare Magazine, Kathleen Sebelius was named one of America’s “100 Most Powerful People in Health Care.