KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -
The failure of Congress and President Barack Obama to reach a budget deal means significant cuts to federally funded programs.
Hospitals, schools, the Kansas City International Airport and the Stowers Institute agree nothing is clear about the impact of sequestration.
How many and what cuts will be made is uncertain. Some believe the cuts won't occur for several months, but they will be significant once they do.
"That 2 percent they want to cut is really going to impact us the last half of the year," said Ken Bacon, chief executive officer for Shawnee Mission Medical Center.
He said Medicare reimbursement cuts will cost his hospital about $3 million.
"We realize that we need to do our share and (we know) the challenges financially from the government perspective but we're also concerned about how those cuts are going to impact our ability to take care of folks who need it most," Bacon said.
He said rural hospitals will feel the cuts even more.
"If we keep going through this, we could end up with a death by a thousand cuts where you are challenged to be able to provide the kind of services our patients deserve," he said.
Area school districts will see millions in cuts.
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