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February 14, 2015 2:00 pm - NewsBehavingBadly.com

[su_right_ad]Walker wants to eliminate the IRIS program, which gives the elderly more control over their medical care.

Beth Swedeen is the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities. She says one of the biggest concerns they are hearing about is the possible elimination of the Include, Respect, I Self Direct, or IRIS Program. IRIS allows qualifying people the ability to make their own choices about many healthcare options instead of being institutionalized, on Family Care, or regular Medicaid. “People with significant disabilities and older [su_thin_right_skyscraper_ad]adults are using long-term care where they are self directing their own support, so they’re hiring their own care workers, and they’re making decisions about the budget that they are allowed to have in ways that make sense for them and their families, so we’re really concerned about that. I’ve gotten a lot of calls from folks who are really concerned about the elimination of that program.”

Swedeen says one of the many benefits of IRIS is the member gets to choose who their caregivers are. “When you have people in your home doing things that are very personal to you, like helping you with a bath or helping you get dressed, you want to make sure that’s a person you are comfortable with, and somebody that is safe and that is somebody you’ve chosen rather than somebody that an agency has chosen.”

… Walker wants to force the frail elderly and disabled adults into a single, expensive program. He then wants to give these contracts – worth more than $3 billion – in a no bid process to large for profit insurance companies, who will have little or no oversight.

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D.B. Hirsch
D.B. Hirsch is a political activist, news junkie, and retired ad copy writer and spin doctor. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

14 responses to Scott Walker Destroying Medical Options For The Elderly

  1. Suzanne McFly February 14th, 2015 at 2:35 pm

    If this isn’t obviously about kick backs, I don’t know what is. All a person needs to do is get a list of his biggest donors and I am willing to bet the people who are the beneficiaries of this contract will be on the top of the list.

    • Larry Schmitt February 14th, 2015 at 2:45 pm

      In other words, politics as usual. Just like the Oregon governor. Don’t these people think first?

      • Suzanne McFly February 14th, 2015 at 2:51 pm

        I am willing to bet this isn’t his first hay ride. These types have been doing these types of dealings for years and no one questioned them because they weren’t on such a big stage. The surround themselves with yes men and are shocked when the rest of the population doesn’t give them the respect they demand.

        • Larry Schmitt February 14th, 2015 at 2:54 pm

          They don’t want respect. Respect is for the littles. They want adoration, worship. Like the other gods get.

          • Suzanne McFly February 14th, 2015 at 2:58 pm

            I seem to give them too much of the benefit of the doubt, you are obviously correct, it is adoration they seek and yet they still won’t receive.

        • mea_mark February 14th, 2015 at 4:52 pm

          One of the advantages of having a big clown car, or bus, for the GOP is, the democrats get to point the spotlight pointed on all sorts of nefarious activities.

          • Suzanne McFly February 14th, 2015 at 6:02 pm

            We all know the gop is good for it.

          • fahvel February 15th, 2015 at 4:30 am

            that’s my ?. Do these subwhatevers even understand that their new found insanity and cruelty since the repub victories is sending the loons a signal. They’re out and the world is watching – how the hell do they end up with any credibility at all – doing and saying and proposing things that seem contrary to the simplest human needs unless, of course, one is a corporation

    • Jake February 14th, 2015 at 2:50 pm

      How does 28 separate donations from Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance grab you….or maybe 3 from Wellpoint(sorry they just changed their name to Anthem – promoting Health policy is their game, according to their website), Centene Healthcare, $26,000 from Pfizer, Eli Lilly Healthcare, Wisconsin Insurance Alliance and oh yeah Wal-Mart – the country’s single biggest user of the Republican “health care by emergency room” policy.

      But the biggest source of Scott Walker’s $77 Million – that’s right $77 million in donations is the $34 Million chunk of that which is listed as “UNKNOWN” – wow – he doesn’t remember who gave him $34 Million??? How could he ever repay them?

      Source:

      http://www.followthemoney.org/entity-details?eid=4656950&default=

      • Suzanne McFly February 14th, 2015 at 2:53 pm

        Awesome research, I am not shocked.

      • Carla Akins February 15th, 2015 at 7:42 am

        Anthem, as in we can’t protect your information, Anthem?

        • allison1050 February 15th, 2015 at 8:23 am

          And to think that I was just about to sign up to have automatic deductions and then Boom: they sent an email to everyone.

  2. cecilia February 14th, 2015 at 5:36 pm

    don’t be poor and old around these bastards

  3. allison1050 February 15th, 2015 at 8:25 am

    I wonder how many of them voted for him twice?