The Kansas legislature partially restored prior cuts to the state's two psychiatric hospitals and mental health centers by approving a $1.2 billion tax increase, according to Hays Post.
The approved bill allocates $4.7 million to Osawatomie (Kan.) State Hospital, or another mental health facility though a state contract, to reopen 20 beds. Additionally, the increased fee on insurance plans will restore the 4 percent cut to Medicaid providers, helping community mental health centers, according to the report.
Previous drafts of the bill cut nearly $20 million from the two state mental health facilities; Osawatomie State Hospital and Larned (Kan.) State Hospital, by refusing to pay back lost federal funding.
Osawatomie Hospital has run 60 beds below capacity since federal officials revoked the hospital's certification in 2015 due to unsafe conditions such as staff shortages, causing a steep loss in federal funding.
Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services officials are wary of opening 20 beds at Osawatomie State Hospital without adding more staff, according to the report.