© 2024 KMUW
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Kansas Dentists Say KanCare Reimbursement Rates Are Too Low

Some Kansas dentists say low reimbursement rates and slow KanCare claims processing are keeping them from accepting new patients covered by the state's managed care program.

Manhattan dentist E. Hamrick Swan Jr. says the reimbursement rate for KanCare patients is about 40 percent of his fee.

While he still takes KanCare patients, he said he has to limit the number of new ones he can accept.

A spokeswoman for Kansas Department of Health and Environment's health programs says last year's switch to KanCare included a requirement that rates couldn't fall below 2012 levels.

But the executive director of the Kansas Dental Association says those rates haven't gone up very quickly, either; the cost to provide services to KanCare patients continues to rise.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.