Here’s my concern. My brother is 100 percent disabled. He’s not my responsibility — he’s his own man — but I worry for him. Financially, he’s barely making do.
Don’t get me wrong: he’s nobody’s saint. He’s struggled his whole life to find a place that works for him. He’s seen success, jail, money, and addiction. Back when he was out of control, I hated him, on and off. But since then, he’s grown. He got out of jail, worked on rebuilding his life and the people he hurt. And he got out. He’s been clean for decades. These days, he owns his own home, and he’s working to make his community better. I mean, it’s pretty amazing. Yes, I’m still angry with him for what he did in the past, but I’m really proud of him and what he’s made of himself since then.
He lives on disability. It’s not a comfortable life. He’s forced to live at the edge of poverty. Literally: his benefits are tailored to keep him just at the edge of the official poverty income. I suppose the idea is to motivate him to move on.
Except.
His disability is real, and because of that, he racks up some hellacious medical bills. Thankfully, Medicare covers most, and Medicaid covers the rest. While his disability payment allow him to earn his own money, the state structured his Medicaid payments so that if he earns a few bucks on his own, his Medicaid drops faster. There’s a big valley before new income actually doesn’t hurt him, and until then, actually working and earning money could ruin him. With the barriers in place now, he’s not going to move from complete dependence to complete independence in one step. Until things change, he’s stuck where he is.
And now the Republicans voted to cut Medicaid by what, $880 billion? And I’m pretty sure being disabled is a pre-existing condition. I’m also pretty sure that the famously conservative state he lives in will opt out of anything they can, simply on ideological terms.
For all his achievements over the years, my brother is still not far from disaster. He’s surviving at the poverty level, waiting for something to change for the better. But if this monstrosity actually passes, he’s looking at something very much worse. It could crush his life.
How could these idiots do this? I’m not sanguine about the Senate, and we already know the President is unhinged. I’ve suggested this is just a ploy, but I didn’t think we’d have President Trump, either.
I’d argue that the change will cost us more money, but I don’t care. That’s not the real issue.
The real problem is easy: this is fucking wrong. Sorry for cursing, but it’s that simple. We don’t shit on the helpless. We’re goddamn America! What happened to us, that a large swath of us are celebrating — celebrating! — cutting the poor loose so that the rich can get a thinly disguised tax cut?
I just don’t understand what’s become of us.
