For Immediate Release
December 17, 2003
Contact: Rusty Cheuvront, Governor’s Office (502) 564-2611
Gil
Lawson, Health Services Cabinet, (502) 564-6786
Mike Jennings, Cabinet for
Families and Children, (502) 564- 6180
For
more information log on to: http://gov.state.ky.us/budget2002/index.htm
Frankfort,
KY, December
17, 2002 - Vital health care and social services could be cut within the Cabinet
for Health Services and Cabinet for Families and Children if potential budget
cuts become a reality. Flanked by Marcia Morgan, Secretary of the Cabinet for
Health Services and Viola Miller, Secretary for the Cabinet of Families and
Children, and health care and social service professionals from across the
state, the Governor listed a number of services that could be reduced or
eliminated due to the budget shortfall.
“The
great progress we have made in health and social services and to assist families
and children could be dealt a serious blow in the coming months,” said Patton
during a press conference held today in the Capitol.
“Further Medicaid reductions would be likely and cuts would also be
made to rape crisis centers, area agencies on aging, comprehensive health care
centers, local health departments and regional mental health and mental
retardation agencies”, said Patton.
“ When the economy suffers, our most
vulnerable citizens bear the brunt of that suffering. The consequences
will be seen in education and in the criminal justice system.”
Medicaid
already faces budget reductions for FY ’04 due to the $450 million deficit
faced by that program. Medicaid
enrollment has increased from 512,556 in 1999 to an estimated 615,000 projected
in this fiscal year due to the poor economy.
For the past two years the Medicaid program has frozen rates to
providers. The Medicaid Steering
Committee has initiated 35 cost containment initiatives while managing to not
reduce services. That scenario will result in more dramatic cuts should further
budget reductions become a reality. Programs
to promote the mental and physical health of Kentuckians, including Medicaid,
Children with Special Health Care Needs, Aging Services and Mental Health and
Retardation Services among others, are administered by The Cabinet for Health
Services. The cabinet could face
cutbacks of $27.8 million in state funds in FY ’03 and $54.9 million in state
funds in FY ’04 on top of the current Medicaid deficit.
When combined with the resulting loss in Federal matching funds, the
total exceeds $267 million for the current biennium.
In FY
2001 Comprehensive Care Centers in the Commonwealth provided mental health
services for 101,380 persons, and substance abuse services for 21,300 persons.
During that same period, Rape Crisis Centers served 8,549 rape victims
and another 2648 family members and friends.
Local health departments provided maternity services for 54,492 people,
immunized 46,214 kindergarten entrants, and provided 424,500 medical home health
units/visits to 9,900 patients.
“If
the budget reduction plan goes into effect,” said Secretary Morgan, “our
cabinet will have lost a total of $347 million over a four year period. This includes $221 million in federal matching funds for the
Medicaid program,
which would result in a major restructuring of the benefit package, eligibles
covered and rates paid to providers.
With the budget reduction plan currently on the table, we will be forced
to reduce services to the most
vulnerable citizens
of the Commonwealth.”
The Cabinet for Families and Children provides human services for the
citizens of Kentucky. The Cabinet investigates reports of child abuse and in
other ways protects vulnerable children and adults. It places nearly 10,000
children a year in foster homes and private child care, and last year 565
children were adopted from state care. Cabinet services also include child
support collections, cash assistance, food stamps, disability determinations,
and more. Much of the funding for
these programs comes in the form of matching federal dollars, which could be
drastically reduced if cuts were made in state funding.
Possible budget cutbacks could include less funding for Child Advocacy
Centers, which assist children who are the victims of sexual abuse, and
reductions in the State Supplementation Program, which would seriously affect
the lives of over 4700 aged, blind and disabled individuals. Domestic violence
centers serve approximately 24,000 clients and child advocacy centers provide
services for more than 4000 children. “The Cabinet
for Families and Children could experience state budget cutbacks of $8,016,500 in FY ‘03 and $16,038,200 in FY
’04,”
said Secretary Miller. "Total
reductions in funding would be double this amount as a result of the loss of
federal funding." Miller
said her cabinet has run out of options for cutting its budget in ways that
avoid direct harm to services. "We
do not have any 'bad' or frivolous programs. All of our work is focused on
improving lives."
In the current biennium, Kentucky faces a potential $144 million General Fund budget cut, or 2.6% for the remainder of the current fiscal year and a 5.2% cut, or $365 million for FY ’03 based the revenue shortfalls projected by the Consensus Forecasting Group in November. On November 25th Governor Patton directed all Cabinets and Executive Branch Agencies of state government to submit an analysis of the effects of a potential reduction in their budgets of 2.6% for FY 03 and 5.2% for FY 04. The Government absorbed $872 million revenue shortfall in the last biennium (01-02) and managed the reduction with minimal impact on service delivery.
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