All Roll Calls
Yes: 650 • No: 2
KansasHB 22492025–2026 Regular SessionHouseWALLET
Requiring the secretary for aging and disability services to grant physical environment waivers for certain rural emergency hospitals to provide skilled nursing facility care and establishing the south central regional mental health hospital.
Sponsored By: Committee on Health and Human Services
Signed by Governor
senate committee on public health and welfarehouse committee on health and human services
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
13 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 1 costs, 8 mixed.
New hospital service areas for residents
Sedgwick, Butler, Cowley, Harvey, and Sumner counties form the South Central hospital service area. Butler, Cowley, and Sedgwick leave Osawatomie’s area, while Cloud joins it. Harvey and Sumner leave Larned’s area, while Ottawa joins it. The secretary can redraw areas without requiring connected counties or limiting each county and designated community center to one area. Residents can enter another area’s hospital when their assigned hospital lacks enough capacity or resources.
New state mental hospital for Wichita
The law establishes South Central Regional Mental Health Hospital in Wichita to serve Sedgwick County and the surrounding region. It replaces Rainbow Mental Health Facility in the state psychiatric hospital definition used for mental illness care. State agencies need specific legislative approval to privatize operations or transfer the hospital’s rated bed capacity. Hospital charges and operating receipts go into a dedicated state fund, with spending subject to appropriations and approved warrants. The law gives no bed count, funding amount, or specific opening date.
More state detox sites allow detention
Detox units at any Kansas state hospital now count as covered care and treatment facilities, not just Osawatomie and Larned. These units may admit and detain someone for emergency observation and treatment after an officer submits the required written application. The officer must already have lawful custody under the substance-use emergency custody law. Emergency custody petitions naming these detox units no longer need a statement that the facility agrees to accept the person. Other facilities still require that statement, and the change does not guarantee admission.
Rural hospitals get nursing bed waivers
The secretary must grant eligible rural emergency hospitals a physical-environment waiver to convert up to 10 swing beds into skilled nursing beds. Hospitals must apply, hold a rural emergency hospital license, and have held a hospital license immediately before that. They must have provided skilled nursing or critical access hospital swing-bed services for at least 12 months without an immediate-jeopardy finding. The waiver does not guarantee a conversion or provide a funding amount.
State staff training facility list changes
The law updates which state institutions qualify for instructional agreements between state agencies and schools. The revised list includes South Central hospital, Parsons State Hospital, and the Kansas Neurological Institute. For entry-level direct-care staff courses at listed institutions, the special payment basis remains four credit hours. No dollar payment amount is stated.
New hospital barred from community grants
South Central hospital’s state alcohol treatment program cannot receive money from the named community alcoholism and intoxication treatment assistance program. Rainbow Mental Health Facility is no longer named in this funding restriction. The law states no excluded dollar amount, replacement funding source, or required patient charge.
Patient safeguards cover new mental hospital
South Central hospital residents are covered by state protective-services rules, with the hospital classified as psychiatric rather than medical care. Separately, the hospital joins medical-care incident-reporting rules for events or provider conduct that meet the law’s reporting definition. Confidentiality rules cover treatment communications not intended for disclosure to others. Rainbow leaves the related facility lists; Topeka and Winfield also leave the relevant confidentiality definitions. These changes update where the listed patient safeguards apply.
Guardians gain new hospital treatment option
Guardians and temporary guardians can ask a court to authorize admission and treatment at South Central Regional Mental Health Hospital. The court process applies to people under guardianship or proposed for guardianship. Rainbow Mental Health Facility is removed from the covered treatment facility list. Court approval remains required under this process; the listing alone does not give guardians admission authority.
Patient charge rules cover new hospital
South Central hospital and its security hospital extension join the state’s basic maximum patient charge system. The secretary sets and publishes rates at least annually for patients and relatives legally responsible for their bills. Each maximum cannot exceed the institution’s projected average daily treatment operating cost, including allocated costs from other state agencies. Rainbow Mental Health Facility and the Parsons training center leave this rate-setting definition. The law sets no new dollar rate or clear increase or decrease in bills.
Nursing scholarship hospital options change
South Central hospital joins the facilities recognized under the nursing-service scholarship program, while Rainbow Mental Health Facility leaves the list. Scholarship sponsors must still be located in a rural opportunity zone. The change does not guarantee that South Central can sponsor a scholarship or that any student qualifies. No scholarship amount is stated.
Battery protections shift for hospital workers
South Central hospital employees and qualifying contractors join the workers covered by Kansas’s special mental health employee battery offense. The person committing battery must be in the aging and disability services secretary’s custody, and the worker must be performing duties. The offense remains a severity level 7 person felony. The definition removes the Parsons Training Center.
New secure hospital treatment extension required
The secretary must establish, equip, and maintain a state security hospital extension connected with South Central hospital. It provides custody, examination, treatment, and care for people sent by criminal courts or transferred from correctional institutions. It also accepts transfers from institutions overseen by the aging and disability services secretary, but those patients cannot be minors. The secretary supervises the extension, and Larned’s superintendent leads it. No specific appropriation is stated.
Care facilities join provider insurance framework
Kansas-licensed nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, and residential healthcare facilities join the state’s healthcare provider insurance availability framework. Winfield State Hospital and Training Center leaves that law’s definition of state institutions for people with intellectual disabilities. Parsons State Hospital and the Kansas Neurological Institute remain included. These changes concern provider insurance rules, not a stated change to residents’ health insurance, premiums, or care bills.
Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsor
Committee on Health and Human Services
Affiliation unavailable
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
House vote • 4/23/2026
Yea: 122 Nay: 0
Yes: 122 • No: 0
House vote • 4/23/2026
Yea: 123 Nay: 1
Yes: 123 • No: 1
House vote • 4/23/2026
Yea: 40 Nay: 0
Yes: 40 • No: 0
House vote • 4/23/2026
Yea: 40 Nay: 0
Yes: 40 • No: 0
House vote • 3/27/2025
Conference Committee Report was adopted
Yes: 123 • No: 1
Senate vote • 3/26/2025
Conference Committee Report was adopted
Yes: 40 • No: 0
Senate vote • 3/19/2025
Emergency Final Action - Passed as amended
Yes: 40 • No: 0
House vote • 2/20/2025
Final Action - Passed
Yes: 122 • No: 0
Actions Timeline
Engrossed on Monday, March 31, 2025
4/10/2025HouseEnrolled and presented to Governor on Friday, April 4, 2025
4/10/2025HouseApproved by Governor on Tuesday, April 8, 2025
4/8/2025HouseConference Committee Report was adopted; Yea 123, Nay 1, Absent 1
3/27/2025HouseConference committee report now available
3/26/2025SenateConference Committee Report was adopted; Yea 40, Nay 0
3/26/2025SenateNonconcurred with amendments; Conference Committee requested; appointed Rep. Will Carpenter, Rep. Ron Bryce and Rep. Susan Ruiz
3/20/2025HouseMotion to accede adopted; Sen. Beverly Gossage, Sen. William Clifford and Sen. Cindy Holscher appointed as conferees
3/20/2025SenateCommittee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted
3/19/2025SenateCommittee of the Whole - Be passed as amended
3/19/2025SenateEmergency Final Action - Passed as amended; Yea 40, Nay 0
3/19/2025SenateCommittee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare
3/17/2025SenateHearing: Tuesday, March 11, 2025, 8:30 AM — Room 142-S
3/11/2025SenateReferred to Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare
2/26/2025SenateReceived and Introduced
2/25/2025SenateFinal Action - Passed; Yea 122, Nay 0, Absent 3
2/20/2025HouseCommittee of the Whole - Be passed
2/19/2025HouseCommittee Report recommending bill be passed by House Committee on Health and Human Services
2/14/2025HouseHearing: Thursday, February 13, 2025, 1:30 PM — Room 112-N
2/13/2025HouseHearing: Wednesday, February 12, 2025, 1:30 PM — Room 112-N — CANCELED
2/12/2025HouseIntroduced
2/4/2025HouseReferred to House Committee on Health and Human Services
2/4/2025House
Bill Text
As Amended by Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare
As Introduced
Enrolled
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