AHCA Living in Fantasy Land

[Guest guest]

I know we live in Florida, the home to Disney World, but didn't realize Fantasy land moved to Tallahassee.  The Secretary for AHCA, Liz Dudek actually stated that Florida will improve upon its already excellent Medicaid service-delivery system. Where is this excellent system that she talking about? The state has systematically denied services to children and adults on Medicaid and the Medicaid Waiver. One example I know of is taking away Personal Care Assistant's (PCA's) from children with Autism, because their doctors state it is only " baby sitting " . I am aware of several cases where the state has denied services until they are called on the carpet by advocates, the courts or Disability Rights Florida, etc. Kudos to the Justice Department. To state that Florida is providing " excellent care " is the furthest thing from the truth. Furthermore, if the child is funded under the Home and Community based Medicaid Waiver, they limit funds for children living at home to $14,900.00 annually. I know of several families that have been told that they must agree to place the child outside the home (place their child in a group home or ICFDD (Intermediate Care Faciliy for Developmentally Disabled), give up their rights or make their child a ward of the state to get the appropriate services. Florida is willing to pay upwards of $189,000.00 to place them in nursing homes, but refuse to give adequate funding to those families that want to keep their children home with appropriate services. 

In the letter Friday, state officials said they would be willing to work with the Department of Justice to develop a written plan detailing how Florida will " improve upon its already excellent Medicaid service-delivery system. Such a plan would necessarily include objective measures by which the department could assess the state's successful accomplishment of our mutual goals and objectives. " What mutual goals is the state speaking of? I seriously doubt that their goals are even in the same galaxy as what the Justice department or families are expecting. 

But in a statement emailed to reporters late Friday, Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Liz Dudek also stood firmly behind the state's position that it is complying with all laws and that children already can receive services in their homes. 

" We continue our outreach to parents and advocates regarding concern about the availability of medical services,'' Dudek said in the statement. " All medically necessary services are available to children enrolled in the Medicaid program. The state believes strongly that individuals, especially Florida's most medically fragile children, deserve to be cared for in the least restrictive setting that can best serve their medical needs. "

I am sorry, but I don't live in Fantasy Land. I live in the real state of Florida, where cutting funding is the norm and telling parents they are sorry, but we cannot provide that service in your home, you will have to give them up to the state or place them in a group home to get those services. Please do not insult our intelligence with this political rhetoric. The only thing the state of Florida cares about it appearances, they could care less about the quality of services provided to our children and adults with disabilities. If they did, they would fully fund appropriate services once and for all (yes, I am talking to the Legislature and the Governor). 

The only way the Governor, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House, the 118 other legislators, AHCA, APD and DCF will get it, is if one day they wake up with a loved one that has a disability, living in their home and they have no way to personally pay for services and they have to contact the state for assistance. Now that is Fantasy Land.  

-- Regards,Ven Sequenzia, Jr. 

PresidentAutism Society of AmericaState of Florida Chapter

Phone: Toll Free:

P.O. Box 677055Orlando, FL 32867

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