This November, Wyandotte County voters have an opportunity to make an important investment in the health of our community. The ballot will include a new Wyandotte County healthcare sales tax, a quarter-cent tax that could generate an estimated $12 million each year for health-related services. I am asking you to support this measure.
What could $12 million do annually for the health of our community? Those dollars could make a real difference.
The Wyandotte County healthcare sales tax could support behavioral health and substance use treatment, preventive health care, and services for people who cannot afford care, along with the county health department. It could also help our community strengthen its response to homelessness.
People experiencing homelessness often face far more challenges than just a lack of housing. Many also need mental health or substance use treatment, medical care and help navigating systems that can be challenging, even under the best circumstances.
If we want to help people move from homelessness into housing, we have to address those needs together.
The Wyandotte County healthcare sales tax could help provide the resources to do that. It could support wraparound services that connect people with housing, health care and behavioral health treatment. It could also potentially make larger investments possible, such as a year-round shelter or an inpatient substance use treatment facility.
After more than 30 years in behavioral health, I have seen what happens when people cannot get the right care when they need it. Problems grow into crises. People end up in emergency rooms, jail or out on the streets. The human cost is significant, and so is the cost to our community.
This measure will not solve every health or homelessness challenge in Wyandotte County. But it would give our community more tools to address them.
That is why I’m supporting the Wyandotte County healthcare sales tax, and why I encourage Wyandotte County voters to vote yes this November.
