By Dave Ranney, KHI News Service, May 12, 2008
TOPEKA, May 12 — After July 1, more autistic children will be eligible for Medicaid-funded services.
Instead of 25 children, there may be 45.
The Kansas Autism Task Force says that’s not enough. Its members had asked for at least 100.
“This is sad, absolutely sad,” said Yeyette Houfek, a member of the task force from Hays.
Houfek’s grown daughter has autism.
Autism is a brain disorder that hinders a person’s ability to communicate, form relationships and adjust to their surroundings. Children with autism often display anti-social behaviors that make group settings — classrooms, for example — difficult.
Already, 133 families have applied for Medicaid-funded services for their preschool-age autistic children. As many as 1,200 Kansas children are thought to be eligible.
Late last year, the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services proposed expanding the state’s Medicaid waiver program that offers autism assistance regardless of a family’s income. The plan was to cover 100 children — the initial 25 slots plus 75 more.
Waiver beneficiaries are not means-tested because early intervention services often are not covered by health insurance and because autistic children show the most improvement when services are received before they’re school-age.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius did not include the waiver expansion in her proposed budget for fiscal year 2009, which begins July 1.
Task force members, in turn, asked legislators to come up with the $2.5 million — $1.1 million from the State General Fund the remainder in federal matching funds — needed to cover 100 children.
Legislators late Wednesday agreed to an additional $200,000 in state funds, which increases $500,000 when the federal matching funds are added.
“It helps a little bit — not enough, but a little bit,” acknowledged Rep. Bob Bethell, R-Alden, chairman of the House Social Services Budget Committee.
The decision, he said, was driven by revenue shortfalls, not a lack of compassion for children.
Bethell said he was surprised to learn that $500,000 would only underwrite an additional 25 slots.
“There’s been some confusion, apparently,” he said. “Early on, we were told that for an additional million dollars there would be an additional 100 spots. Half of a million dollars is $500,000, so I assumed — as did some others on the conference committee — that we’d be adding half-of-a-hundred slots, or 50 slots.”
Bethell said he was under the impression that a child could be served for about $10,000 a year.
State budget officials, however, told KHI News Service that services for the initial 25 children are costing about $700,000 — or roughly $29,000 per child.
An additional $500,000, they said, should cover an additional 18 children. Efficiencies within the program could push the total to 20.
“The funding we’ve been allocated for the autism waiver should serve an additional 20 children,” said Michelle Ponce, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.
SRS administers the waiver.
“I’m sure there’s a sentiment out there that we should be grateful for the 20 additional slots — we could have come away with nothing,” said Bill Craig, the autism task force chairman. “But for the 20 to 30 kids caught in the gap between thinking there were 50 rather than 20 additional slots, this is a huge deal. It’s tragic.”
Dave Ranney is a staff writer for KHI News Service, which specializes in coverage of health issues facing Kansans. He can be reached at dranney@khi.org or at 785-233-5443, ext. 128.