BALTIMORE – As Maryland’s budget season approaches, Senate President Bill Ferguson said it is imperative that the state continues to make capital investments in economic drivers such as hospitals and higher education.
“We need to invest in the things where Maryland has a competitive advantage, and those are our education systems and our health care systems,” Ferguson, a Democrat, said Monday in East Baltimore after announcing the state would allocate $2 million to Kennedy Krieger. Institute.
The funding announced Monday will go toward expanding facility space to increase access to health care services for children and adolescents in need of treatment.
More than half of the money is intended to convert approximately 16,000 square meters of administrative office space into care spaces for patients with nervous system disorders.
The remaining $750,000 will be used to design and build a new healthcare center on the Kennedy Krieger campus in East Baltimore.
According to Dr. Bradley Schlaggar, president and CEO of the Kennedy Krieger Institute, the hospital serves more than 27,000 patients and students annually. Schlaggar said Monday that the $2 million is very welcome because Kennedy Krieger’s hospital is too small and technologically outdated.
“We would like to use the money the state has made available to renovate this building to create more clinic space so we can see more patients faster,” he said.
The money comes from the state’s capital budget, which has allocated more than $3 billion for capital projects like those announced Monday. It will benefit patients like Chris Mason-Hale, who turned to Kennedy Krieger for inpatient care in 2009 after his spinal cord was severed during a high school football game.
“I am grateful that our state is committed to helping us build our hospital for the future,” said Mason-Hale, who now serves as a community advocate at Kennedy Krieger.
‘Tight budget season’
While Ferguson is adamant about continuing to invest in Maryland’s economic drivers such as health care and education, he and other members of the state’s leadership are preparing to navigate choppy budget waters when the General Assembly convenes on Jan. 8.
“We’re in the middle of a tight budget season here because I want to make it very clear that we will continue to invest in the things that matter most, and things like Kennedy Krieger and the institutions that protect people’s well-being. the people of Maryland will be the priority – no matter how difficult the budget may be,” Ferguson said.
In November, budget analysts warned of a $2.7 billion deficit that lawmakers will have to solve for the fiscal year 2026 budget, either through spending cuts or a tax increase.
At several points during his first term, Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, said he is “setting the bar high for raising the tax burden on Maryland families,” but he is aware of the mounting budget battles and robust debate ahead is.
“In that moment of tension when we have to make difficult choices about what future investments look like and what revenues are available, we must focus on the things that matter most for our long-term future, and that is the kind of care that is provided in this place that must be central as we make the decisions about the trade-offs that will be necessary in the future,” said Ferguson.
The Senate president also emphasized Monday that Maryland must live within its means and that despite high budget demands, tough choices will be made about what it can afford. He noted that most of the overspending comes from entitlement programs such as Medicaid, child subsidies and higher salaries for state workers to attract people to fill agency employment gaps.
Ferguson said these investments are strategic and there will be “real consequences” if they are rolled back – “but we have to live within our means.”
“Everything is on the table,” he said. “I think we have to be realistic about the resources we have and what we can achieve.”
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