[nfbwatlk] SPARED THE AXE

PUBLIC RADIO 113 publicradio113 at gmail.com
Wed Jul 21 20:23:58 UTC 2010


Hi, it's Paul Van Dyck, your guy at Sounds of Awareness @ kboo.  Thought
this would be of interest to some of you.

OREGON NEWS SERVICE

July 21, 2010

Spared the Axe: E-Board to Restore In-Home Services

Salem, OR - The Department of Human Services budget is under the microscope
this week at Thursday's Legislative Emergency Board meeting in Salem. It has
access to a special purpose fund and is expected to use it to restore money
that had been cut from Oregon Project Independence and other in-home care
programs, sparing services for older people and those with disabilities.
Comments from Bobbie Sotin (SO-tin), an in-home care provider in North Bend;
and Aileen Weeks of Chiloquin (CHILL-a-kwin), a client of OR Project
Independence.

Intro: Oregonians who are homebound because of age or disabilities have been
on the state budget roller-coaster this month. First, they were notified
that in-home care services would be cut for about 16-thousand people as part
of the governor's mandatory budget-trimming. Now, members of the Legislative
Emergency Board are saying they won't let that happen. They can use a
special purpose fund to keep such programs as Oregon Project Independence
running... at least, temporarily. For Aileen Weeks in Chiloquin, the cuts
would have meant losing weekly help with cooking, cleaning and personal
grooming.

 Cut 33205 :16  "I was just thinking, I don't know what I'm gonna do. I'm
here by myself. I've fallen down - not recently, but just, my leg gives out,
there I go. It's nice to know that, if I did do that, at least somebody
would come by, someday."



Suggested Tag:  The Emergency Board meets on Thursday morning in Salem.
Advocates for Oregon seniors and people with disabilities say the fix is
temporary... and that what's really needed is Congress to pass a stalled
bill that would extend and increase the amount of federal matching money
sent to states to pay for Medicaid.

Alternate Cut: The cuts also would affect hundreds of home care workers.
Bobbie Sotin of North Bend helps her clients with bathing and medication
management as well as housework and shopping. After almost ten years, she
says she hopes for a little more job security.

 Cut 34205 :16  "It is very unsettling. For me, I do this job because I like
it, but I also have medical needs myself. I'm a diabetic, so I need
medication every month and without me having my hours where they need to be,
I could possibly lose my insurance."



Alternate Tag:  Sotin is a member of S-E-I-U Local 503, which represents
50-thousand workers around the state. The union estimated almost 13-thousand
in-home caregivers would have been affected by the cuts, along with
16-thousand homebound clients.

OPTIONAL REPORTER WRAP: uses first soundbite(s)

LEAD: Oregonians who are homebound because of age or disabilities have been
on the state budget roller-coaster this month...and this week, they're
receiving some good news. Chris Thomas has more.

 Cut 35205 :48 Outcue...morning in Salem


-- 
Paul Van Dyck

www.publicradio113.weebly.com

OR

www.kboo.fm/soundsofawareness



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