Letter: Medicaid cuts could impact the disabled

I am a registered nurse who works for a nonprofit that provides services for adults with mental and physical disabilities.

Thirty years ago, they would have lived in institutions. Today, because of Medicaid funded Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), they can live in their own homes, be part of the community, and be employed.

President Donald Trump's budget and the American Health Care Act are proposing significant cuts to Medicaid.

These cuts would force states to make difficult decision about what Medicaid funded programs to cut. Since the states are not required to provide HCBS, these services could be targeted.

The disabled deserve to have the fullest lives their conditions would permit. Cuts to HCBS would push them back into isolation.

Steve Panther

Iowa City