This article is part of“Disabled and Denied,”a series examining cuts to families.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sparked outrage among disability rights advocates with recent comments alleging widespread fraud in Medicaid programs that pay people to care for elderly or disabled family members — a system millions of Americans rely on to survive.
During testimony before the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee last week, Kennedy
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Sue Root, a nurse and single mother of three in Colorado who is paid through Medicaid to care for her 25-year-old daughter, said Kennedy’s words bore little resemblance to her daily life. Her daughter, who suffered a catastrophic brain injury as a child, requires around-the-clock care, including a ventilator, feeding tube and seizure monitoring — which Root largely manages at home.
“The suggestion that family caregivers are simply running errands or performing typical normal tasks that should be done for free is not only inaccurate, it is deeply dismissive of the reality of special needs families like mine,” Root said.
