Frightened

Between threatened cuts to services at both the federal and state levels, to put it bluntly, I’m frightened.

My life as I’m currently living it, that I’ve worked so hard at pulling together, feels as if it could implode. Here are the federal and state programs and services currently under threat that I need to live my life:

• SSI is my income because I’m unable to work in a paid job.
• Medicaid (called in Medical Assistance in Minnesota) is how I receive medical care and direct support staff to help care for me.
• SNAP benefits help me pay for food.
• A housing voucher helps pay my rent.

If any of these benefits are cut or go away, living independently, something I’ve worked so hard to make happen, could fall apart. I understand that things fall apart, but the thought of it is terrifying.

So, for now, I’m watching, staying informed, and advocating when I can. But, it all feels very heavy right now. I’m not feeling hopeful. I’m just feeling like I am in a horror movie and it’s not going to end well for me or my friends with disabilities.

Check out the Star Tribune to learn more about impacts of my governor’s proposed cuts to the growth of disability waiver programs: Minnesotans with disabilities say proposed budget cuts would bring us backward (Star Tribune)