Wednesday, April 19, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
15
Of a certain age...
By Ste Stafford
Columnist
Never before have I har-
bored the underlying angst
that resides within me these
days.
For most of my adult life
I basically had faith that our
elected officials would ulti-
mately do right by the citi-
zens. I may not have always
been a fan of the person occu-
pying the White House or the
State House, but I trusted
our elected leaders to know
how to lead this country and
surround themselves with
experienced, knowledgeable
people.
With the current situa-
tion in Washington D.C.,
where any semblance of
statesmanship or leadership
in the White House and the
Congress is blatantly lack-
ing, I don’t trust our elected
officials to do what is best
for their constituents. And
nowhere do I feel that dis-
trust more than in the areas of
healthcare and social services
for seniors.
When I worked for hos-
pice, I saw firsthand how crit-
ical Medicaid and Medicare
are to the actual survival and
quality of life for a senior on
a small fixed income. For
many seniors, Medicaid is
the safety net that pays for
the nursing care they need
at the end of their life, in big
ways and small. Seniors on
Medicaid are able to secure
free transport to medical
appointments. If a senior
qualifies, Medicaid will pay
for nursing home expenses.
They can also receive assis-
tance with their prescrip-
tion drugs. Hospice costs for
seniors are paid by Medicare.
The same is true of the
social services available to
help keep elders in their own
homes. Meals on Wheels was
the only full meal some of my
clients received each day. The
visits by the volunteers who
brought the meals were as
important as the meals them-
selves. Those volunteers were
sometimes the only person
who came by and checked on
a senior.
Homecare workers
secured through the Office
of Seniors and People with
Disabilities provide another
lifeline, able to assist with
household chores and per-
sonal care.
If the suggested cuts
already put forward are
approved by Congress, there
are millions of seniors who
will be in a world of hurt
and will have no place to
turn. Just at a time in the his-
tory of our country when the
ranks of seniors are growing
with 10,000 baby-boomers
a day turning 65, suggested
cuts would curtail rather
than expand crucial services
designed specifically to aid
seniors.
From the year Medicare
began, I have paid my
Medicare taxes and counted
on its coverage for medical
needs in my later years. I
have now enjoyed the ben-
efits of Medicare for seven
years and thought I would be
adequately covered until the
end of my life. Now, I’m not
so sure.
Cuts to Medicare could
result in fewer doctors accept-
ing Medicare patients, creat-
ing a crisis in elder healthcare.
The failed Affordable Care
Act proposed by Republicans
stated that people “would
have access” to insurance –
not that they would be able to
afford it or have it accepted
by their healthcare providers.
Cuts to Medicaid might
impact the types of assistance
available to low-income
seniors, who need it to sur-
vive. The emergency room
would be the only option
many seniors would have for
care — the most expensive
option — forcing hospitals
to provide even more charity
care. Or not.
A situation this week
brought all of these concerns
right into my living room. A
family member in her 70s has
metastatic breast cancer in
her bones. Her daughter lives
out of state and is making
frequent trips to check on her
mother. Her family contacted
me to find out available
resources for her in-home
care. I went immediately
online to all the resources I
am familiar with and, as I
was reviewing the informa-
tion, it hit me that with large
Federal spending cuts, and
subsequent State funding
reductions, many of these
resources will have to shut
their doors or, at best, operate
with fewer staff and limited
services.
The people in Washington
D.C. who are suggesting cuts
to vital programs are out of
touch with the lives of their
constituents. No number of
charities could fill the void
left by reductions to Medicare
and Medicaid. Many seniors
can’t afford the premiums
for long-term care policies
to help meet their care needs
at the end of life. Many had
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their retirement funds wiped
out by the 2008 recession and
are living much more frugally
than they had anticipated.
I am one of those ordi-
nary seniors, living on a fixed
income, with some income
generated by my freelance
writing. I have exhausted my
IRA. Financially, I am on
a tight rope that will snap if
anything happens to impact
my ability to supplement my
Social Security with writing
assignments and teaching.
My health is generally
good although I do have a
chronic autoimmune disease
that exacerbates any illness.
This past summer I spent four
unexpected days in the hospi-
tal, paid for by Medicare and
supplemental insurance. Big
changes to Medicare would
certainly impact my health-
care options.
Medicare and Medicaid
aren’t perfect, but they basi-
cally do what they were
intended to do — level the
playing field for seniors’
healthcare. I hope I don’t
have to witness what will
happen if either of those pro-
grams is cut or reduced.
As the saying goes, “A
country’s greatness is mea-
sured by how it treats its chil-
dren and elders.”