November 19, 2009

When Kansas State Treasurer Dennis McKinney was visiting the KU Medical Center campus last week, he was asked about the budget crisis in Kansas. McKinney said he was optimistic that the state’s economy would start turning around by next summer. But he added that the state was in for a rough patch in the meantime.

I certainly hope Treasurer McKinney is right about the former, but I think we all know he is correct about the latter. Despite some signs that the national economy is emerging from the recession, we are still experiencing tough times here in Kansas. The latest projections from the state budget office show a $722 million shortfall for FY 2010 and FY 2011.

What does this mean for KU Medical Center?  Governor Mark Parkinson may make additional cuts to the FY 2010 budget, but how those cuts could impact higher education is unknown. If we are ordered to make additional cuts, staff furloughs are a possibility. While furloughs are a last resort, a committee has been studying the most equitable method of implementing furloughs, should that become necessary.

Other unknowns are whether federal stimulus dollars will be available in FY 2011 and whether NIH will have additional grant dollars to award in the next few years.

What we do know is that the administration here will continue to be transparent as we navigate through this crisis, and we will keep our employees informed every step of the way. We have made tremendous progress as an academic medical center over the past several years. This budget crisis may have slowed down that progress somewhat, but it will not stop us. I am confident we will get through this together and continue advancing toward our goals.