Report: Medicaid cuts could lead to rural hospital closures in Kansas

KANSAS (KSNT) - The American Hospital Association (AHA) is warning that cuts to Medicaid could result in thousands of Kansans losing coverage over the next decade.

The U.S. Senate passed the largest Medicaid cuts since the 1960s with nearly $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid, according to the AHA. More than 5,300 Kansans stand to lose rural Medicaid coverage over the next 10 years from the cuts.

The AHA said the Medicaid cuts could result in a $50.4 billion reduction in federal Medicaid funding to rural hospitals. In Kansas, those hospitals stand to lose $306 million through 2034, according to the AHA.

Both U.S. Senators for Kansas, Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall, praised the passage of the bill in separate press releases on Tuesday. Moran said the bill will help protect rural hospitals by creating a $50 billion fund to give emergency help for those at risk of closure due to financial troubles. 27 News spoke to Marshall who said he doesn't expect Kansans to be impacted at all by the Medicaid changes.

"So states that are abusing the system, whether it's through a provider tax or through Medicaid expansion, those are the one that may lose some people here," Marshall told 27 News. "But in Kansas, the only ones that's going to lose Medicaid or SNAP are people that are unwilling to work or volunteer for 20 hours a week, for the most part. If you have a disability, you're a senior, we're not going to touch you."

Medicaid is currently used by more than 71.4 million low-income Americans, according to preliminary Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data. The Congressional Budget Office reports that almost 12 million lower-income Americans would lose their health insurance by 2034.

“We’re cutting $1.7 trillion in this bill, and you’re not going to feel any of it,” President Donald Trump said at the White House last week.

“I’m telling the president, you have been misinformed. You supporting the Senate mark will hurt people who are eligible and qualified for Medicaid,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) on the Senate floor on Sunday, June 29 saying Trump was breaking his promise not to cut Medicaid. 

The AHA reports rural hospitals are already struggling. It reports that 48% of rural hospitals ran a financial loss in 2023. The AHA reported that 47% of births in the U.S. and 65% of nursing home residents in rural communities are covered by Medicaid.

"The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) would result in 1.8 million individuals in rural communities losing their Medicaid coverage by 2034," the AHA wrote in its Rural Hospitals at Risk report. "In addition, select Medicaid provisions in H.R. 1 would result in a $50.4 billion reduction in federal Medicaid spending on rural hospitals over 10 years."

Senate Republicans increased the size of a rural hospital relief fund in the bill from $15 billion to $25 billion to be distributed over five years on June 28. The bill still needs to pass the House again, where some moderate Republicans have raised concerns.

The Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform (CHQPR) keeps track of rural hospitals that are at risk of closing. Last year, the organization found 600 rural hospitals were at risk of closing. This year, CHQPR is reporting 703 hospitals at risk across the nation. Kansas makes up 8% of the nation’s at-risk rural hospitals and 8% of those at immediate risk.

Kansas has had eight rural hospital closures since 2015 and currently has 98 rural hospitals, down from 104 in 2023.

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