Top 5 Kansas news stories
December 5 2025
Federal Health Care Cuts Force Kansas to Absorb $150 Million Loss as Rural Hospitals Face Closure
Kansas Climbs From Last to 18th in Mental Health Access Rankings as $72 Million Grant Fuels Expansion
Kansas Accountant Sentenced to Four Years for Stealing $400,000 From Family Through Fake ‘Middle Finger Ranch’
Turner Elementary ESL Teacher Receives Surprise $25,000 Milken Award
Former Heisman Finalist Collin Klein Returns to Kansas State as Head Football Coach
1. Federal Health Care Cuts Force Kansas to Absorb $150 Million Loss as Rural Hospitals Face Closure
Gov. Laura Kelly warned that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will drain at least $150 million from Kansas coffers as federal funding for health care programs vanishes over the next three years. State agencies continue analyzing the law's full impact, but early assessments show more than half of Kansas rural hospitals now risk closure, with rural facilities expected to lose 15% of their Medicaid reimbursements while 5,000 rural Kansans lose coverage entirely. The cuts threaten to push struggling hospitals "over the edge," Kelly said, noting Freeman Health System already canceled plans to open a facility in southeast Kansas citing the law's "unpredictable impact." Kansas Hospital Association data reveals the state's hospitals already operate at a median -12.7% margin—the worst among neighboring states—and new federal changes to state-directed payments starting in 2028 will further slash Medicaid reimbursements even as costs continue rising. Retirement homes dependent on Medicaid face similar financial strain, with more than half of Kansas nursing home residents receiving Medicaid payments that will be reduced under federal changes, according to LeadingAge data.
Kansas Reflector
2. Kansas Climbs From Last to 18th in Mental Health Access Rankings as $72 Million Grant Fuels Expansion
Kansas vaulted from dead last to 18th nationally in mental illness treatment and behavioral health access over two years, a dramatic improvement state officials credit to strategic investment in quality care. The progress will accelerate with Kansas receiving a share of a $72.5 million grant alongside Illinois and Michigan to expand Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics offering 24/7 crisis care, counseling, case management and psychiatric rehabilitation. The three-year grant from the Ballmer Group, administered by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, represents "a pivotal opportunity for Kansas to lead in behavioral health innovation," said Laura Howard, secretary of the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services.
Kansas Reflector
3. Kansas Accountant Sentenced to Four Years for Stealing $400,000 From Family Through Fake ‘Middle Finger Ranch’
Colby accountant Quintin Flanagin received a four-year federal prison sentence for swindling more than $400,000 from family members who were clients at his CPA firm, funneling the stolen funds through six checks and wire transfers over eight months to a fictitious entity he called Middle Finger Ranch before using the money to build his new home. When family members discovered the discrepancies in their accounts, the 45-year-old created fabricated flow charts and blamed others for the fraudulent transactions before a grand jury indicted him in June 2024 following investigations by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and FBI, with federal prosecutor Ryan Kriegshauser noting Flanagin "stabbed his family in the back" then "lied to their faces."
Kansas Reflector
4. Turner Elementary ESL Teacher Receives Surprise $25,000 Milken Award
Lexcee Oddo, an English-as-a-second-language teacher at Turner Elementary School in Kansas City, Kansas, received a surprise $25,000 Milken Educator Award during a Thursday schoolwide assembly recognizing her compassion-driven approach to helping language learners achieve excellence through confidence-building and determination. The Kansas State University graduate who earned her master's degree in education administration from Emporia State two years ago is praised as a valued teacher leader, mentor and trainer who brings curriculum knowledge and classroom experience to helping students develop a passion for learning, said Jennifer Fuller, vice president of the Milken Educator Awards program.
Kansas Reflector
5. Former Heisman Finalist Collin Klein Returns to Kansas State as Head Football Coach
Kansas State confirmed former Wildcat quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist Collin Klein will return to Manhattan as head football coach after spending one season as offensive coordinator at Texas A&M, which ranked in the nation's top five for much of 2025, with Klein agreeing to a five-year contract averaging $4.3 million annually to lead the program where he previously served as quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator.
KWCH
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