Beware the plan

Opinion: March 5, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

By MIKE ERVIN

McClatchy-Tribune

As someone with a disability, I should be excited about President Obama’s health plan and motivated to fight for it to become law. But I’m not.

The proposal contains important elements that could improve the lives of many disabled Americans. But the thrust of the overall proposal seems so wrongheaded that passing it as is may do more harm than good in the long run.

Significant initiatives

The president included potentially significant initiatives designed to make it easier for disabled Americans who need daily assistance to remain in their homes and communities and avoid institutionalization. The Community First Choice option in the president’s plan would offer state governments more money from Medicaid to fund in-home support programs for Medicaid beneficiaries with disabilities who need long-term care.

It would be great if these ideas could become law through legislation not tied to the president’s larger health care financing agenda. The centerpiece of that plan is forcing Americans to purchase health insurance through the predatory private market with no public option as an alternative. In addition, Obama’s plan envisions cutting tens of billions of dollars from Medicare home health services.

Mike Ervin is a writer and disability activist in Chicago. He wrote this for The Progressive Media Project.