Family Voices Indiana

from The Arc of the US:
Congress is moving fast to deeply cut and cap Medicaid. The proposed cuts are putting Medicaid’s “optional” and “waiver” benefits at risk.
Medicaid law requires that all states provide services such as doctor visits, hospitalization, nursing home care, and others. Other critical services for people with disabilities are not required by law (i.e. optional benefits) but are allowed if the state chooses to provide them and follows federal requirements.
What are Optional Benefits?
The federal/state Medicaid program allows states to provide a wide variety of optional services in addition to the mandatory services. Once a state includes an optional service as part of its state plan, benefits must be about the same, available throughout the state, and people get to choose their providers and plans. States provide many different services and supports as optional benefits, such as:

·Prescription Drugs ·Clinic services ·Physical therapy ·Occupational therapy ·Speech, hearing an…

from National Family Voices:


Health Care Legislation - Update
Features of Senate Bill. On Thursday, June 22, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) released the long-awaited Senate version of legislation to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Senate bill, titled the "Better Care Reconciliation Act" (BCRA), follows the same basic structure as the House bill (called the "American Health Care Act" or AHCA), but it would provide somewhat more generous subsidies for the purchase of insurance and more slowly phase out enhanced federal payments for the ACA's Medicaid expansion (for childless adults). The Senate bill, like the House bill, would cap federal Medicaid funding to states, and would make deeper cuts that the House bill in Medicaid spending beginning in 2025. For an explanation of the bill see The Better Care Reconciliation Act: the Senate bill to repeal and replace Obamacare, explained, Vox. For an interactive tool to compa…

Senate leaders are working now to revive their effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act and decimate the funding structure of Medicaid. The CBO score of the Senate's "Better Care Reconciliation Act" (BCRA), revealed that 22 million individuals would lose health care coverage in large part due to the severe cuts to Medicaid, amounting to $772 billion. 
The next few weeks are critical to defeat the Senate's attempt to repeal the ACA and destroy Medicaid. We have a "Top 4" list of things we need you to do. You can watch fireworks and enjoy a barbecue on July 4 but only if you also do these activities each day next week! Here goes:  Call your senators today (and all week)! Sample script: "Hi, my name is _____ (full name) from ____ (from city or town). I am calling to urge Senator/Representative _____ (name) to oppose the bill that would repeal the Affordable Care Act and cap or cut Medicaid funding. Thank you for your time." 
Thanks to SEIU for providin…

This special issue of National Disability Institute's Washington Insider gives an update on the fight to save Medicaid and offers information to help readers find and contact their Senators so that they can share their stories about what Medicaid means to them.Last week, the United States Senate released the “Better Care Reconciliation Act” (BCRA), its proposed legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA/“Obamacare”). Similar to the recently passed House bill – the American Health Care Act (AHCA) – this proposed legislation, if passed and signed into law, would devastate the disability community by fundamentally altering the funding structure of Medicaid. By capping the amount of federal dollars provided to states through the Medicaid program, this legislation would drastically prohibit the ability of states to provide the supports and services that are essential to allowing children and adults with disabilities to live, work and thrive in the community. Accordin…

New Fact Sheet!

An effective primary care medical home results in better health outcomes. (For more information on medical home, see the “Medical Home: What is It?” fact sheet.) An essential part of the medical home model is treating the whole patient, including assessing and addressing whether basic needs are met and accessible, and ensuring safety.

Feel free to contact Family Voices for more resources. 844 F2F INFO info@fvindiana.org


FS BasicNeeds by Family Voices Indiana on Scribd