Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Bachman takes to the radio to clarify role of Medicaid for families of children with special health care needs
On July 11, CAHPP Director Sara (Sally) Bachman participated in a nationally broadcast radio discussion of the role Medicaid plays for children with disabilities and their families, and the potential impact of cuts in Medicaid funding. She was joined by Jordan Rau, senior correspondent of Kaiser Health News, and Lanhee Chen, research fellow of the Hoover Institution, on WBUR’s On Point program, moderated by Ray Suarez.
“Families will do almost anything it takes to make sure that their child [with special health care needs] is thriving,” Bachman explained. “One of the things that doesn’t get talked about very much is family financial hardship. The data show that families cut back on work or quit work altogether in order to provide services to their child with special health care needs. This really has a negative impact on the economy. Not only are families not able to work and access private health care coverage through their employer, they also then sink into poverty and become dependent on the very program that we’re talking about cutting. So children need supports in all the settings that you find children, and you want children to be at home, at school, with their peers, having a higher quality of life. That also helps families to be participating in the economic engine.” To hear more of the discussion, listen to the recorded program on WBUR’s On Point program page