Legislative Update - January 2021
Hi Legislator ,
Thank you for your service to the state of Kansas. Please let us know if we can help you in any way in the upcoming session or answer any of your questions.
KVC Health Systems is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Olathe, KS. We provide in-home family support, foster care, adoption, outpatient behavioral health treatment, and children’s psychiatric hospitals and residential treatment centers. |
KVC Health Systems continues to partner with State of Kansas throughout 2020 and into 2021 |
- Only Kansas organization that provided a broad continuum of care, from prevention and education, to community-based services like foster care, to outpatient behavioral health, residential psychiatric treatment, and acute children's psychiatric hospitals.
- Expanded use of telehealth to provide mental health and family support services to children and adults during COVID-19 related closures. Additionally, improved families connectivity through use of iPads and internet services.
- Increased foster care homes by 78% from 500 to 900 and have hosted a free foster family conference for 20 years, which brings together 1,000+ people for training. At the same time, we continued to focus on safely reducing the 6,822 children who are currently in foster care in Kansas.
- Provided services to meet the complex mental and behavioral health needs for children that are often neglected throughout the state, in both eastern and western Kansas.
- Continued in-person visits with children and families throughout the pandemic while following all safety protocols including face masks, social distancing and other measures.
- Expanded kinship support and continued focus on family finding, placement stability and timely access to mental health services.
- Started a new prevention service program in northeast Kansas called Project Rise focused on moving families out of poverty and strengthening adult-to-adult and parent-child relationships.
- Expanded Safe with Me program which is a Batterer’s Intervention Program (BIP).
- Intensified focus on diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Launched a new tagline to mirror the importance of connection in our society, "We all need connection."
- Earned the GuideStar's Gold Star of Transparency in 2020.
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This month’s legislative spotlight will shine a light on the work of Representative Susan Concannon (R-Beloit), who represents District 107 in the Kansas House of Representatives. Rep. Concannon is in her fifth term and serves as Chair of the Children and Seniors Committee. She has also served as the Chair of the Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight. Additionally, she is a member of the Joint Committee on Home and Community Based Services, Taxation Committee and the Appropriations Committee. She has focused her efforts in the Kansas House on important children and families issues, local / small businesses, rural revitalization, education and health care. Rep. Concannon is a lifelong Kansas resident who has lived in Beloit for over 25 years. She is the former executive director of a medical foundation in Mitchell County and has worked in philanthropy. Rep. Concannon has served on numerous boards, community advisory committees and is a Bethany College graduate. She has three children, multiple grandchildren and has been married for over 30 years to Dr. Craig Concannon. Thank you to Rep. Concannon for her hard work on behalf of her constituents, children and families and the state of Kansas. For more information on Rep. Susan Concannon click here, or check out her legislative updates by going here. |
Constituent Resources - How Long Does it Take to Become a Foster or Adoptive Parent? |
KVC Holiday Heroes Provide Gifts for Youth in Foster Care and at KVC's Children's Psychiatric Hospitals |
Thanks to kindness and generosity from the Kansas community, KVC was able to brighten the holidays for 2,500+ youth! Our hearts are full of gratitude for all who support our mission and donated to make the holidays brighter for hundreds of children and families throughout the state of Kansas. |
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