Importance of Investing in Health Care as
Trego County-Lemke Memorial Hospital Expands
KEY QUOTE: “‘I have often said my goal as your governor is to make Kansas the best place to live, to work and to raise a family,’ [Governor Kelly] said. ‘Quality health care and access to medical treatment are fundamental to that vision.’”
Trego County-Lemke Hospital expands; Gov. Kelly speaks on health care investments
Christina Janney, Hays Post
Feb. 28, 2025
- Trego County-Lemke Memorial Hospital dedicated an expansion on Wednesday with special guest Gov. Laura Kelly. The hospital has added 11 private patient rooms, a new emergency room and expanded physical therapy to include a pool for aqua therapy and private treatment rooms, Jeremy Rabe, hospital CEO, said.
- “Without these hospitals, families are forced to travel long distances for emergency care; businesses struggle to recruit and retain workers, and local economies suffer,” [Governor] Kelly said. “That is why my administration has prioritized investments in health care infrastructure across Kansas and in economic development in general.”
- The state has dedicated $2 million to rural emergency hospitals, $30 million to increasing reimbursement rates for providers who accept Medicaid patients and $10 million to hospitals treating behavioral health patients.
- Of the 97 rural hospitals in Kansas, 62 are in threat of closure, the highest rate of at-risk hospitals in the country, [Governor] Kelly said. “If we do nothing, more hospitals will close, leaving communities without emergency services,” she said. Hospitals are the largest employers in many rural communities.
- [Governor Kelly] said expanding Medicaid would be one of the most effective means of protecting rural hospitals. The expansion would result in 150,000 Kansans gaining health care coverage, many of them in rural Kansas… $1.2 billion per year would be injected into the Kansas economy. In the last 10 years, Kansas has left $7.6 billion of Kansas taxpayer money in Washington, D.C. “It’s time to bring our dollars home,” Kelly said.
- [Governor Kelly] also urged the expansion of telehealth and mental health services in Kansas. “We are making progress. The expansion of this hospital is proof that what we invest in health care, we invest in the future of Kansas,” Kelly said.
