Soft music playing
On-screen text:
Dignity for Florida’s most vulnerable citizens…
Senator Aaron Bean, District 4 begins speaking:
Living with dignity I think is a Floridian right and certainly the legislature has a commitment to take care of this population and hopefully we will continue to do so. We’re the third largest populated state right now with a large state comes large responsibilities and this is one that we’ve got to take care of.
Soft music continues to play with scenes of caregiver getting young woman out of bed and ready for the day.
On-screen text:
Not only this morning…
Every morning.
Every day.
Every night.
Self-advocate, Sarah Goldman begins speaking:
I was born with Cerebral Palsy which makes my muscles stiff. I use a wheelchair and a walker to get around and I also need help with activities of daily living such as getting dressed, getting in and out of bed and showering. I never believed that I could live away independently away from home. I thought that I would be 80 years old still living with my mom and dad.
When I decided to go away to college I was initially denied by Medicaid all of my caregiving hours. They said that going away to college was a convenience and not a necessity.
Valerie Breen, Executive Director of the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council begins speaking:
She literally has essential, critical needs that have to be delivered to her in order for her to do a simple thing that you and I do every day.
On-screen text:
75% of Floridians born with a disability require a family member to be their caregiver.
Self-advocate, Sarah Goldman begins speaking:
They pick me up from work, they’ll pack up my computer whatever I need packed up, I also at that point usually use the restroom because it’s been four or five hours since the last time I’ve gone, since I’ve had that last set of care, and then they come home, they help me make dinner, they give me a shower, put me in my pajamas, help me wash dishes, prepare meals for the next day, and then they put me into bed.
On-screen text:
Personal care services are essential for survival.
Valerie Breen, Executive Director of the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council begins speaking:
The truth of it is it’s not just a job, it’s a relationship that someone’s counting on for their survival.
Self-advocate, Sarah Goldman begins speaking:
Because I need care in such a unique way I’m forced to use certain programs like Medicaid and unfortunately Medicaid is looped into a poverty loophole where if you make too much money or you have assets then you’re disqualified. So how do we view Medicaid and how do we view that system as not being a system of poverty, but that it actually can benefit people.
Valerie Breen, Executive Director of the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council begins speaking:
Think about someone in your life who you have had to help. Whether you help them financially, whether you help them personally, whether you had to take care of them. If you couldn’t do it for that person, who would you find to do it that you would trust and how much would you pay them to do it for you.
On-screen text:
Florida is ranked 49th in the nation in Medicaid spending for persons born with a disability.
Save the iBudget Waiver.
Because it’s the right thing to do.
Music fades
Florida Developmental Disabilities Council logo appears
On-screen text:
fddc.org
Sponsored by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Disabilities and the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Inc
