By Quinn O’Hara

A new rule proposed by the U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra regarding the addition of a staffing requirement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services at long-term care facilities has been dismissed by Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, who says the new rule would greatly harm rural long-term care facilities. The Governor states that the new rule’s staffing ratio standards are unachievable, would greatly exacerbate the staffing shortages already faced by long-term care facilities, lead to more facility closures, and further reduce access for seniors. 

According to LeadingAge Kansas, an association of nonprofit aging services providers, nearly 85,000 Kansans live in areas with only one nursing and residential care provider within a 30-minute drive. 23,000 Kansans currently live outside of that 30-minute drive range and are in a long-term care facility desert.