Rally protests proposed Medicaid cuts

Martin Chilcott finds a spot to sit as he waits for his mom following the Medicaid Matters rally in Sandpoint on Saturday. The youth was one of about 150 people who attended the event to protest proposed cuts to the state’s Medicaid program. (Photo by CAROLINE LOBSINGER)

SANDPOINT — Noah was 18-months-old when his folks noticed he wasn’t keeping up with other kids his age.

They told themselves he was just slow to develop and hoped it was not anything more. Over the years, those concerns turned to nagging worries that something more serious was going on and, finally, when Noah was 8, the bright-haired, smiling boy was diagnosed with autism.

Noah, said Amy Warren, is the true face of Medicaid.

Without that assistance, their son would not receive much-needed medication. He wouldn’t receive invaluable therapy. They would be forced to pick — one or the other, not both.

“We would have to pick,” she said and would be unable to help their son “be the best Noah he can be.”

Warren and her family were among the 150 people who packed the community room at Panhandle State Bank to protest proposed Medicaid cuts by the Idaho Legislature. The state is mulling cutting $50 million from the Medicaid budget for the fiscal year 2012, according to the group Medicaid Matters in Idaho.

The statewide campaign to raise public awareness of Medicaid programs — and those who rely on its services — held a series of rallies throughout the state Saturday to protest the proposed cuts. Those cuts would likely reduce everything from mental health programs to disability assistance as well as certain therapies and a host of other services, including vision and dental.

Medicaid Matters officials said the cuts would go much deeper than the amount proposed by Idaho officials. For every $30 in state Medicaid fund, the federal government adds $70 — putting the true total of the cuts at $166 million.

Saturday’s events were designed to raise support to fight the proposed cuts to the very real people behind the dry statistics, said Sarah Brown-Hayes of S.L. Start, one of the local agencies which sponsored the Sandpoint rally.

“People in this community depend on these services,” she said.

Paul Graves, founder of Elder Advocates and chairman of the Circles Initiative, which helps those in need work their way out of poverty, urged those attending the Sandpoint rally to make their voices heard.

Write letters, send e-mails, band together, he said. Contact the state’s legislators and demand that another solution be found. Sign the petition covering tables near the entryway calling for an increase in the cigarette tax.

Tell them their story or that of a neighbor, put a face to the figures, Graves said. Remind them that 2,158 children in Bonner County between  0-17 years old rely on food stamps; that the number swells to 110,140 statewide.

The numbers are both staggering and disgraceful, said Graves, adding he has tried to envision himself as a legislator as the children silently file into the Capitol building to show the people behind the numbers.

“I look around just where I’m sitting and there are 2,158 children from Bonner County surrounding me,” he added. “They aren’t saying a word, just standing there. A peaceful, respectful demonstration of children.”

Jan Burt, next to speak, says she is one of the lucky ones. She had a strong support system of family, friends and church who help her with her ongoing battle with bi-polar disease.

Others aren’t as lucky. There are no family members, no friends, no church congregation to rely on. If not for Medicaid and dedicated doctors, they would be cut off, left to try and manage on their own.

Many, she fears, would ultimately fail and could be institutionalized once that support system provided by Medicaid is gone.

“These are the most vulnerable of our residents,” Burt said. “They are worthy of our assistance and support. How can we balance the budget on their backs?”

Arrow Bond-Ellis, who works with autistic children, told of working with children who have gone from unable to communicate and sitting alone, angry and withdrawn to playing, talking and hugging their families.

“It isn’t a miracle,” she said, sniffling then pausing to take a deep breath. “It’s from years of proven therapy that I’m able to witness a life-changing process.”

Instead of sacrificing the most vulnerable, supporters called on the state to instead boost the cigarette tax, using the revenue to fund the programs. Supporters say increasing the cigarette tax by just $1.25 would boost state revenue by $50 million — $53 million if all tobacco products were included.

Government has an obligation to help all its citizens, Sandpoint Mayor Gretchen Hellar.

“Communities are more than an economic unit,” she told the crowd. “We’re talking a moral component that cannot be forgotten.”