Proposed Cuts Would Hit Disabled Too Hard

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Proposed Cuts Would Hit Disabled Too Hard

By Weintraub for the Sacramento Bee.

http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/1418775.html

As California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state legislators

begin to grapple with a massive shortfall in the state budget, they

will be inundated with desperate pleas from people who do not want

their taxes raised or their services cut. Protesters have already

begun their chants on the steps of the Capitol.

I don't know what the best mix of cuts and taxes might be, if

there is such a thing. All the choices seem bad to me.

But after spending parts of two days last week with more than a

dozen disabled people who depend on state aid to live on their own,

outside of nursing homes, I do know this: They are the last ones whose

services and support should be cut.

Almost every other part of state government serves people who,

to one degree or another, can survive a budget cut. But those cuts

should not fall on people like Dena . , 47, suffered brain

damage in an automobile accident as a young woman. For a time after

that, she lived with her parents, but when they could no longer care

for her, she was moved to a nursing home. Now she lives independently

with the help of her caretaker, Tony Vreeland.

While in nursing homes, says, she " only existed " and felt

as if she were among people who " were just waiting to die. "

Now, she says, she feels alive.

" I finally have my freedom and independence, " she told me in a

written message.

When and the other disabled people with whom I met speak

of independence, they mean it in the sense of personal freedom, and

especially a kind of psychological and emotional liberty. As

notes, life in an institution, for many, is really no life at all,

only an existence. But the irony is that many people who are disabled

are still utterly dependent on the rest of us for the independence

they cherish. Without the support we give them through government,

they would have to be institutionalized again.

If the proposals put forward by Schwarzenegger become law, we

might not see the effects overnight. Few people would have the

foundations of their support so utterly destroyed that they would

immediately be forced to return to a nursing home. But I think it is

safe to say that, over time, many of them would be. And in addition to

the loss of human dignity, the slow erosion of independent living

could cost all of us more money in the long run.

The governor's proposals would hit many of these people from

several different directions. Almost all of them rely on SSI-SSP, the

program that provides cash aid to the indigent aged, blind and

disabled to pay for rent, food, clothing and transportation. A typical

grant right now is $870 a month for a single person. That is scheduled

to increase in January to help people keep up with the rise in the

cost of living. Under the governor's plan, though, the grants would

instead drop to $830 a month, the minimum allowed by federal law.

At the same time, the governor's proposal would cut Medi-Cal,

the program that almost all severely disabled people rely upon for

their health care. It would eliminate dental care for adults, as well

as vision care, psychological counseling, speech therapy and even

incontinence creams and washes. Schwarzenegger's proposal would also

charge higher fees to disabled people who are able to earn some income

on the side but still use Medi-Cal for their health care.

The governor's plan also includes a 3 percent reduction in the

services coordinated by the regional centers that help people live

independently.

But the proposed cuts that most alarm the disabled people with

whom I spoke involve the In-Home Supportive Services program, which

provides caregivers in the home that many credit for keeping them

independent and out of an institution.

Schwarzenegger's plan would eliminate cleaning and cooking

services for all but the most disabled recipients and charge others a

fee even for basic care. He also proposes to limit the state's share

of the cost of the program to the minimum wage, a change that could

have profound effects.

Currently, most counties pay these workers more than the minimum

wage. In Sacramento County, the pay is $10.40 an hour. If the state

pulls back, the counties would either have to make up the difference

themselves at a time when their own budgets also face deep cuts, or

pass on the reduction to the workers. Recipients fear the cut would

mean fewer and less- experienced people applying for those jobs, which

would mean gaps in coverage.

Beyond the human toll, it is questionable whether the cuts

proposed will really save money in the long run or actually cost us

more. In-home care for a woman such as Ellen might cost taxpayers

$15,000 a year. Round-the-clock care for the most severely disabled

person (more typical of clinical autism) would be closer to $35,000.

But the cost of a nursing home can run to $55,000 or $60,000 a year.