On Wednesday, July 6th, the O’Brien family from Waycross, Georgia joined The Arc and other families that would be affected by Medicaid cuts in a meeting with key staff at the White House. The purpose of the meeting was for the White House to hear how Medicaid cuts would affect each family’s circumstances as President Obama continues to engage in deficit reduction talks.

Deirdre O’Brien has two children, including her 13-year-old daughter, Clare, who has significant intellectual disabilities. Clare also suffers from abdominal migraines, which are similar to traditional migraines but the pain is in the stomach and causes her to vomit continuously for days. Two years ago, Clare’s migraines became very severe, occurring nearly every two weeks. Her hemoglobin dropped severely, she missed a significant amount of school and her parents missed work to take care of her. During this period, the O’Brien family saw no alternative but for Deirdre to quit her job and stay at home in case her daughter became ill. The state of Georgia recognized Clare’s needs and she was granted a small Medicaid home and community based waiver, which allowed Deirdre to hire staff to help care for her daughter.

“Without Medicaid, our family’s life would revolve around illness, not health and happiness. Clare gets the care she needs from her family and from the staff paid for by Medicaid funds, and I can continue to work. Medicaid is a lifeline for us, and the White House needs to hear our story and the stories of the thousands of families like ours in Georgia,” said Deirdre O’Brien.

Take Action

Find out more on the potential cuts to Medicaid and The Arc’s Don’t Cut Our Lifeline campain. Take action and tell your elected officials “Don’t Cut Our Lifeline!”

About the Video

This video was produced and edited for The Arc by INFOCUS NEWS, a supported employment program for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The primary goal of “INFOCUS NEWS” is to provide employment for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have been trained in various aspects of video news production; from writing news scripts, to anchoring/reporting stories, camera operation, video editing, lighting, sound engineering, and studio management.