Kansas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Cindy Holscher criticized Republican opponent Ty Masterson over Medicaid expansion and federal health care cuts after Children’s Mercy said ACA Marketplace plans serving the Kansas City area will not include the hospital in their networks starting Jan. 1.
“Families across the Kansas City area got news that no parent should ever have to hear,” Holscher said during a news conference Thursday. “Starting Jan. 1, Children’s Mercy will no longer be in network for the ACA marketplace plans serving our region.”
More than 55,000 children across Kansas and Missouri get coverage through the ACA marketplace, Holscher said.
Ty Masterson and Cindy Holscher, candidates for Kansas governor 2026
“These are kids of small business owners, farmers, ranchers, and shift workers whose jobs don’t come with employer insurance,” Holscher said. “These are folks who did everything right, and now they’re being told their child’s hospital won’t be covered.”
For many Kansas families, Children’s Mercy is the only place close to home with the specialists their children need for cancer, heart conditions, and rare diseases, Holscher said.
“What’s happening at Mercy is the result of disastrous policies championed by Ty Masterson, who voted against Medicaid expansion five times and cheered on the deepest health care cuts in our country’s history,” Holscher said in a news release.
Holscher supports expanding Medicaid
Medicaid expansion is the single biggest thing Kansas could do to strengthen health care in the state, Holscher said.
Expansion would cover roughly 150,000 Kansans, most of whom work in fields such as child care, construction, retail, and agriculture, where insurance often isn’t offered.
Children whose parents have coverage are more likely to be covered and receive the care they need, she said.
Holscher said her Republican opponent, Ty Masterson, has blocked its expansion and that his votes have cost Kansas nearly $8 billion in federal funding.
Kansas Sen. Ty Masterson speaks at the Trump rally at the Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, Kansas, on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. Masterson, a Republican, is a candidate for Kansas governor. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
“Kansas has paid that money,” Holscher said. “It went to Missouri, Oklahoma, and the other 40 states that have expanded instead of coming back here to Kansas hospitals and families.”
Eight Kansas hospitals have closed in the past decade, and more are at risk. Every closure left a community with fewer choices, longer drives for care, and lost jobs, Holscher said.
“Expansion would have helped keep those doors open,” she said. “Every dollar we leave on the table, it weakens the whole system, and that leaves us with less room to absorb a crisis like the one families are facing this week.”
Holscher also criticized the nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed in July 2025, saying the law made the deepest cuts to Medicaid in the country’s history.
Holscher said Masterson championed the cuts and cheered them on, putting his loyalty to Washington politicians ahead of the families he was elected to serve. She accused him of choosing tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires over health care for Kansas families.
The Star reached out to Masterson’s campaign Thursday but did not receive an immediate response.
Kansas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Cindy Holscher pledged to expand Medicaid after Children’s Mercy said ACA Marketplace plans serving the region will not include the hospital in their networks starting Jan. 1. This Google Maps Street View image from April shows the hospital. Google Maps
“As governor, I will expand Medicaid and bring our taxpayer dollars home because Kansans have already paid for it and deserve to get it back,” Holscher said. “And I will fight the cuts coming out of Washington and stand up for the Kansas hospitals, Kansas families, and Kansas kids, no matter who is in charge.”
Holscher also said she would push for “real standards” for insurers and put Kansas families ahead of insurance companies, their profits and billionaire tax breaks.
Children’s Mercy, insurers urged to return to negotiations
Mel Sabin, the mother of a child with disabilities and state outreach manager for Little Lobbyists, also described the challenges of transferring care for children with complex medical needs. Finding new specialists and transferring care to a new clinic can take months, she said.
“Our children don’t have months, or sometimes even days, to wait,” Sabin said.
Sabin said some families specifically chose ACA Marketplace plans because Children’s Mercy was in network. She urged insurers and Children’s Mercy to return to the negotiating table.
Little Lobbyists Action Network, Little Lobbyists’ advocacy and lobbying arm, has endorsed Holscher for Kansas governor.
Related Stories from Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star
Robert A. Cronkleton is a breaking news reporter for The Kansas City Star, covering crime, courts, transportation, weather and climate. He’s been at The Star for 36 years. His skills include multimedia and data reporting and video and audio editing.
Support my work with a digital subscription