WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Local healthcare providers cannot access the money promised to test people for cancer pollution in the 29th and Grove pollution areas.
State representatives tell KSN this is because Sedgwick County and the City of Wichita leaders have not come to the table with the required million-dollar match they assured would be ready.
KSN spoke with a state leader from the contaminated area, who said this is a disservice to people who need a life-saving diagnosis.
The funding for cancer screenings was supposed to be tapped into July 1, yet Kansas State Representative, District 84, Ford Carr, said they sat down with city and county officials just weeks ago, and neither could come up with the matched money to unlock the funds.
The 29th and Grove area is a known pollution zone. Carr said the city and county leaders’ failure to come up with the cash is another injustice.
“I am quite disappointed that we are now closer to November than we are July, and those funds still are not available,” said Carr.
$2.5 million from the state, approved in March, requires a $1 million match from Sedgwick County or the city of Wichita. Carr believes it’s a commitment local leaders have not kept.
“They assured me that they had those funds. We had a meeting just several weeks ago, and during that meeting, we found out at that time, we found out, that they have yet to acquire those funds,” said Carr.
Both Wichita City Council Member Brandon Johnson and Sedgwick County Commissioner Ryan Baty, who represent the impacted area, declined to go on camera but issued the following statements.
“The Governor and State Legislature approved funding this year, and the details regarding local support are still in discussion,” said Baty.
“We are currently in discussions about this… and look forward to continuing to work alongside the state and county health departments in our shared goal of keeping Kansas residents safe,” said Johnson.
A KDHE study suggests people in that area are twice as likely to die from cancer as the rest of the state.
President of Northeast Millair Neighborhood Association, Aujanae Bennett, said her community is continuously disappointed.
“I have been a part of this community for 56 years. I still live in this community, and when I found out what was going on, it was appalling, and this is how we got here today,” said Bennett.
Representative Carr said GraceMed is still providing cancer screenings for people who come in, but that may change. He spoke to the president of the Kansas Health Foundation, who said they would assist Sedgwick County and the City of Wichita with a portion needed to move forward.
