Valuing women’s and children’s health in Kansas is a cause we can all support

Following the clear outcome of the Value Them Both Constitutional amendment vote, there’s never been a more important time to take stock of women’s and children’s health in Kansas.

The lead up to the vote was polarizing, but if we want to truly live our values and support mothers and children it is critical that we come together to ensure moms and babies have the healthiest start in life.

This year in Kansas, we have made substantial progress on maternal and child health, provided critical support to make child care affordable and saved Kansas families money by lowering the grocery sales tax.

Last month, Gov. Laura Kelly announced that her plan to provide Kansas mothers with health care coverage under Kansas Medicaid up to 12 months post-delivery received final approval by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The previous coverage period of two months was inadequate to address mothers’ needs following childbirth.

Nearly one-quarter of pregnancy-related deaths in Kansas occur between 43 days and one year postpartum. This policy change will improve postpartum services for an estimated 7,000 Kansas mothers each year. It will save lives, improve the health of moms and kids, and save Kansas money. Extended postpartum coverage will also help close the racial disparities in maternal mortality.

The measure received bipartisan support and was endorsed by 29 organizations in the state. It is a win for Kansas families.

Combine this with the state’s bipartisan budget investment in expanding universal maternal and child home-visiting statewide, providing parents with the skills they need to support their children’s development, and Kansas is making progress in securing a healthy start for all moms and babies.

Investing in early learning and development can have significant returns. According to the Heckman equation, investment in and access to high-quality early learning and child care will improve student success and career achievement. It will also save the state money in the long run.

Leaders in Kansas invested in early learning by passing a budget that expands tax credits for businesses that provide child care to their employees. This means that parents of the nearly 90,000 Kansas children under six without licensed child care will have a much better chance of finding caretakers for their children — and helping them continue a healthy, happy start to life.

Another important win in providing economic supports to Kansas families was “Axe the Food Tax,” which will gradually reduce the food sales tax before eliminating it in 2025. On average, this will save Kansas families hundreds of dollars annually, helping their household funds go further.

Much has been accomplished on behalf of Kansas families, but more work is ahead.

To value all Kansans, we need to expand KanCare, which will improve health for 150,000 Kansans and lower the cost of health care for everyone, saving Kansas families money.

We also need to invest further in the early childhood system to ensure quality, affordable child care is available to all Kansans and that the system works for providers.

To ensure we have safe and stable families, we need to remove harmful barriers to benefits that help low-income families afford groceries and access critical work support programs.

Valuing all Kansans requires hard work and bipartisan compromise. Over the past year, leaders in Kansas worked together in a bipartisan way to make significant investments in the first years of life.

We must continue to make progress by investing early so that all moms and babies have a healthy start, the economic support they need, and access to quality early learning to ensure Kansas is the best place to live and raise a family.

David Jordan is a consumer health and early childhood advocate who lives in Lawrence.