My daughter Claire loves ice cream sundaes, trips to amusement parks and watching “Gossip Girl” with her little sister while lounging on the sofa. None of this should be remarkable. However, because Claire is disabled and has complex medical needs, including asthma, epilepsy, autism, and cardiac, pulmonary and cognitive issues, her years living happily, and mostly healthily, at home were never promised.
Not all that long ago, children like Claire would have grown up in cold, sterile institutions instead of at home with their families. That’s because most private insurance plans, including Claire’s, don’t cover many of the medical costs and supports disabled people, including children, need to survive, attend school, live at home and be an active part of their communities.
It is only because of access to Medicaid that Claire, and countless other disabled children across the country, have been able to grow up at home with their families, where they are wanted and loved. Medicaid has helped pay for the bed Claire needs to safely sleep at home, the wheelchair she uses for trips to the park and the hearing aid she uses to hear what others are saying.
This story is part of HuffPost’s commitment to fearlessly covering what’s happening in Washington D.C. — and how it affects all of us. You can support our work and protect the free press by contributing to our newsroom.
