Senior benefits in Barton County, Kansas

The Southwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging (SWKAAA) serves older Kansans and people with disabilities in Barton County and 27 other counties in southwest Kansas. Its services include case management, help paying for in-home care (such as personal care, homemaker, respite and chore services), information and assistance, free Medicare counseling (SHICK), caregiver support, and Friendship Meals at meal sites or delivered to people who are homebound. Friendship Meals are for people 60 and older and their spouses. SWKAAA also does the CARE assessment that everyone must have before entering a nursing home. SWKAAA's resource list for Barton County names local senior centers such as Great Bend Senior Center and Heritage Senior Citizen Association, Inc. in Hoisington. Call the main office in Dodge City at 620-225-8230 (toll free 1-800-742-9531), Monday to Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Estimated service value: $200–$2,000 a year

Barton County is in the Southwest Region of the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF). DCF has a service center in Great Bend, in Barton County. Through DCF you can apply for SNAP Food Assistance, TANF Cash Assistance and LIEAP Energy Assistance. Applying online through the DCF Self-Service Portal is recommended. For a paper application, visit your local DCF office or call 1-888-369-4777. LIEAP helps pay winter heating costs and is open only during its yearly application period. KanCare health coverage is not handled by DCF; apply for it through the KanCare Self-Service Portal.

Estimated bill savings: about $0 a year

The University of Kansas Health System Great Bend Campus is covered by the health system's financial assistance program. The program can help patients, insured or uninsured, whose gross family income is from 0% to 300% of the federal poverty guidelines, and patients whose medical bills to the health system equal 50% or more of their gross family income. Assets are also considered, and you must not qualify for other government help. Apply by mailing the application with supporting documents, through your MyChart account (under Billing, choose Financial Assistance), or by calling the financial counseling team at 913-588-7850 to request an application. You will get a written answer within 30 days after the application and documents are received.

Estimated bill savings: about $0 a year

Sunflower Diversified Services runs general public transportation for anyone in Barton County. Weekday routes serve the county, and rides in Great Bend and within 10 miles of the city also run in the evenings and on weekends. A one-way trip costs $3, or you can buy 20 trips for $60. Rides are first come, first served, so book the day before if you can. Call 620-792-7797, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The Southwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging also lists rides within the Great Bend city limits from the Great Bend Commission on Aging (620-792-3859) and from the Hoisington Commission on Aging (620-653-2555).

Estimated service value: $150–$1,500 a year