President's Perspective – The Kansas Health Service Corporation Celebrating 40 Years

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Sunflower Health Network Board Meeting - Jan. 9

The Sunflower Health Network is a not-for-profit organization that consists of 26 counties located primarily in North Central and North West Kansas. Sunflower Health Network's (SHN) specific purpose is to improve the population's health status. The 26 member hospitals, in conjunction with their medical staff, have developed a network that fosters cooperation and coordination. The priority has been to enhance the integration of health-related services among the SHN member communities.

Quality Corner Call - Jan. 10

Quality Corner Calls are offered by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and Healthworks and focus on quality improvement activities consistent with the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Grant Program.

KHA Board Meeting - Jan. 22

KHA has a 21-member board of directors. They meet at least five times a year. Each board member holds three-year terms, with a two-term limit. The board has a composition of members from all geographic areas of Kansas all sizes and types of member hospitals are represented. The board also includes two hospital trustees and two physician members. Other participants include American Hospital Association delegate.

KHA's Advocacy Day - Jan. 23

Advocacy is at the heart of every service KHA provides for our members. Whether we are educating, advocating or relationship-building, we look for ways to assist policymakers at the federal, state and local levels in understanding the implications of the policies being discussed.

KHSC Board Meeting - Jan. 28

KHSC is a wholly owned subsidiary of KHA. Therefore, a secondary objective of KHSC is to support KHA in meeting its mission of serving hospitals. Its mission is to provide enhanced value to KHA members by evaluating and endorsing selected vendors of services needed by the KHA membership. KHSC will be a valuable resource to Kansas healthcare facilities and the Kansas Hospital Association as they serve their constituents.

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President's Perspective – The Kansas Health Service Corporation Celebrating 40 Years

KHSC Newsletter (Oct. 11, 2024) – The Kansas Hospital Association was founded in 1910 to serve Kansas hospitals. It accomplishes this through its efforts and subsidiary organizations under the larger KHA entity, including the Kansas Health Service Corporation. This year marks the 40th anniversary of KHSC being a valuable resource to Kansas hospitals.

KHSC was formed on Nov. 8, 1984, as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Kansas Hospital Association. Its purposes then and today are twofold: to be a valuable resource for Kansas hospitals and to support the association's efforts. Initially, KHSC was primarily focused on providing insurance options for hospitals. As such, it was a licensed insurance agency focusing on medical malpractice, property, and directors and officers insurance. It accomplished much of this work through a relationship with the Double Eagle Insurance agency.

Larry Shaffer served as the first CEO of KHSC and was instrumental in launching it. Through Larry's vision, KHSC formed the KHA Workers' Compensation Fund in 1991 to help meet the need for workers' compensation coverage for hospitals in Kansas. Following Larry's retirement in 2002 and an interim leadership period by Tom Bell, Steve Poage took over as CEO in 2004.

The following 20 years of KHSC included many changes. An opportunity arose for KHSC and KHA to more closely align with KAMMCO and the Kansas Medical Society. As such, the insurance agency business was sold to Double Eagle in 2009, and KHSC focused on finding unique insurance partnerships that would enhance the value to KHA members. This included KAMMCO for medical malpractice, Chubb (property), and Cincinnati (D&O), with the latter two being offered through a relationship with the Conrade Insurance Group.

Meanwhile, KHSC expanded its service lines in other areas. It added endorsed vendors in areas such as language translation services, credit card processing, equipment service contracts and employee benefits. In each of these areas, the KHSC staff and board carefully reviewed new vendor opportunities to ensure that the value of the services provided assisted Kansas hospitals and enhanced KHA's ability to meet member needs.

Regarding supporting KHA, it is estimated that KHSC has provided more than $10,000,000 to KHA in direct and indirect support since its inception. These resources have allowed KHA to bring in high-quality conference speakers, support advocacy efforts and reduce the association's administrative overhead. This has kept KHA member dues lower than they would otherwise have been to support the association's work.

Thank you to all our members who support KHSC, and happy 40th anniversary to our subsidiary KHSC.
--Chad Austin

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