Comments Off comments for post: "BAD BUDGET BACKFIRES and GETS DERAILED" | Posted on 07. 04. by
Posted by the Protecting Arizona’s Family Coalition (PAFCO)
www.pafcoalition.org
PAFCO is a historic, diverse, non-partisan alliance of social services, health, community service agencies, advocacy groups, citizen advocacy, and faith-based associations.
- Health Care reform has derailed the bad budget passed by the Republican legislature and signed by Governor Brewer.
- Up to $7 or $8 billion dollars in federal matching funds to fund health care for Arizonans in need could be lost. So – bang – just like that – the Legislative mandated cuts to cut 40,000 children eligible for KidsCare and 310,000 poor people from on AHCCCS must be restored.
- Major provisions of the health care reform legislation include “maintenance of effort” basically requiring states to keep current KidsCare and Medicaid (AHCCCS) programs. http://www.azahcccs.gov/reporting/federal/legislation.aspx#AHCCCS_Update_Regarding_Health_Care_ReforM.
- The Kaiser Family Foundation has published a timeline for implementation of the various elements of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which President Obama signed on March 23. http://www.kff.org/healthreform/8060.cfm
- This necessary change will save health care for these families, but also will save about 10% of the Arizona economy and 42,000 jobs.
- While the Governor is considering a lawsuit, the Legislature needs to act soon and restore KidsCare before the June 15 deadline for the cuts.
- The legislature has time to consider restoring AHCCCS cuts and that may not occur till next fall or until after the May 18 sales tax referral election.
- Urge the Governor and Legislature to restore KidsCare and AHCCCS to save health care reform in Arizona.
HOWEVER — OTHER CRUEL BUDGET CUTS CONTINUE – even as the bad health care cuts are restored before their implementation — other cuts go forward when real options are available.
Behavioral Health cuts going forward:
- 4,200 children to lose behavioral health services leaving children and families with no where to turn.
- 6,600 people losing substance abuse services — leaving families abandon to addictions and children in those families at greater risk, stuck in the child welfare system, or people jailed or deaths or more emergency rooms visits and 911 calls. This is both cost shifting to local governments and other people and business paying health insurance premiums.
- 11,000 people getting general mental health services — except for some very limited medication and medication management services. http://www.ospb.state.az.us/documents/2010/FY2011_BudgetSummaryFINAL.pdf
Human Services cuts going forward:
- 10,000 families (most female-headed) with 17,000 children will lose cash assistance — for families already by definition very poor driving these families into deeper poverty effective April 1, 2010 if passed by the Legislature. This is an attack on some of the poorest of the poor with no where else to turn. Results will be increased homeless, desperation, illness, and family dislocation.
- 20,000 children will be denied child care by the end of the year stopping families from working and putting children at risk.
- No 100% investigations of child protection or adult protection referrals and continued elimination of family support services. The system of in home family services has already been cut severely in the 2009/2010 cuts.
- Cuts in emergency services (eviction prevention, homeless prevention, etc) services for families in crisis effecting meaning 1,100 fewer families will receive emergency services.
- Cuts in domestic violence services reducing service to 1,600 victims of domestic violence will be turned away from shelters.
- Cuts in aging independent living services impacting hundreds of elderly and people with disabilities.
- Eliminate support for grandparents caring for their grandchildren.
- Eliminate state only supported services for children and adults with developmental disabilities throwing 300 children and 400 adults off services.
- Implementation of many new fees and means testing for programs like adoption services for children with disabilities, services for children and adults with disabilities — potentially leaving many children and adults at serious risk and costing more downstream as high cost services are used.
- These cuts are all on top of 2009 cuts which were massive and destructive already in these same categories. We must work to undo these cuts.
- Click here for a list of major budget cuts proposed to children and families from Children’s Action Alliance. http://www.azchildren.org/MyFiles/10%20Legislature/Gov_Budget_FY11.pdf
