WASHINGTON, June 4 (Reuters) - Kansas City Fed president Jeffrey Schmid said Thursday that the U.S. central bank's choice now is between being patient and holding interest rates steady or rate hikes to tamp down inflation that has been years above target.

"The big question now is do we stay patient?" Schmid said on Thursday at an economic forum in Oklahoma. "Our inflation numbers have probably crept up into the three and a half percent range, which nobody likes. Is it temporary...or do we act? Do we say, okay, now it's time to raise rates a quarter or two and see if we can't tamp this thing down."