Advocacy in Action (May 2025): Statewide Senior Resource Directory Secured in FY 2026 Budget!
Lenette Hamm • May 1, 2025
Thanks to the dedicated advocacy of KABC and our coalition partners, Kansas has taken a major step forward in improving access to long-term care information. We’re thrilled to share that the Fiscal Year 2026 state budget includes $190,000 in dedicated funding
for the creation of a comprehensive statewide senior resource directory, a direct result of our persistent efforts to ensure older adults and their families can navigate care options with confidence and clarity.
Language in the approved budget bill reads:
“That expenditures in an amount of not less than $190,000 shall be made by the above agency from such account during fiscal year 2026 to create a comprehensive statewide resource directory to provide essential information on long-term care options: And provided further, That such directory shall be accessible in an up-to-date online version as well as in a printable version.”
This is a huge win for older Kansans, caregivers, and care professionals, and it builds directly on the success of local efforts like the Douglas County Senior Resource Directory. We know that when people have access to clear, trustworthy information, they are better equipped to make decisions that support dignity, independence, and well-being in aging.
We are proud that our voice, and YOURS, was heard. From providing testimony, to meeting with legislators, to amplifying the call for this essential resource, this achievement belongs to all of us
who believe that quality care begins with access to information.
Next Steps:
We’ll be working closely with the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services to support the development of this directory and ensure it meets the needs of Kansans statewide, both in print and online.
Thank you for standing with us. This is advocacy in action and together, we’re making a difference.
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Inside Kansas Nursing Homes: A Special Series Returns in Honor of KABC’s 50th Anniversary In celebration of Kansas Advocates for Better Care’s 50th anniversary, we are proud to reintroduce a powerful special series from our early days as Kansans for Improvement of Nursing Homes. Originally launched in the mid-1980s, Inside Kansas Nursing Homes: Through the Eyes of the Experts offered an unflinching look at nursing home care across Kansas, as observed by those who know it best: the relatives, friends, residents, and caregivers of residents. Now, nearly four decades later, we are bringing this vital series back, with the same grassroots spirit and commitment to truth. This first issue of Volume One marks the beginning of our updated report on the current state of nursing home care in Kansas, informed by the honest voices of frequent visitors who witness daily life inside these facilities. Since April 2025, we have been gathering recorded and transcribed conversations with individuals who care deeply about their loved ones in long-term care. These candid reflections are edited to preserve confidentiality—identifying details are removed, names are changed, and nursing homes are referred to by assigned numbers and regions. Mentions of facilities in passing are designated with alphabetical letters (e.g., Nursing Home A). Over the next year, we aim to gather insights on at least 40 to 50 percent of Kansas’s 305 nursing homes. Volume One of this series, covering roughly 40 homes, will be released in serial form over the coming weeks. Through these voices, we invite readers to reflect, question, and advocate, just as we did in the 1980s. Because meaningful change begins when we listen.