A task force formed to address rural health care problems recently determined that keys to Kansas’ future in that arena include expanding telemedicine and addressing workforce shortages.
According to the Kansas Health Institute News Service, the Rural Health Working Group, chaired by Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer concluded a year of meetings Tuesday and is now in the process of compiling recommendations that will be shared with the Legislature prior to the session that begins Jan. 9.
Expanding telemedicine isn't without obstacles, including a lack of commercial insurance coverage and reliable rural Internet service, but Rep. Dan Hawkins, who chairs the House Health and Human Services Committee, said treating patients remotely with tools like videoconferencing will become the norm in medical and psychiatric specialties in the future.
Another priority the group agreed upon, which will grow increasingly more important as the population ages, is the importance of increasing the number of qualified health care workers in rural areas, by offering scholarship programs for students interested in becoming licensed nurses or long-term care workers in rural areas or by licensing mid-level providers, such as Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) or physician’s assistants.
Expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, something rural hospital officials have said would help their bottom lines, did not make the cut because Colyer said the group is looking for a more comprehensive, long-term plan for securing health care access in rural areas.