As the mother and caregiver of more than one genetically disabled child, I find it insulting, degrading, and exhausting that we must go through these political machinations to ensure that our children are cared for in their least restrictive environment, their homes and communities, without a constant battle to continue their services that allow them to live as independently as possible as guaranteed under the Olmsted Act.

The constant onslaught of legislation to limit services followed by legislation to remove limitations is tantamount to social whiplash for consumers.  Keeping up with the changes that the legislature wants to make is almost a full time job by itself.  Leave the programs alone and let the consumers and their families manage their own care with their doctors instead of constantly trying to change things for the state's benefit.  We are not stupid.  We see that these machinations are all about the bottom line of reducing care.  Does the state want these consumers in institutional settings again?  Every time I receive these notices all I see is that our state and legislature looks at our family members as less.  Our tax dollars pay for these programs.  Stop burning through them by trying to create more work for the legislature and agencies when in fact the people truly paying for the marginalization of the consumers that you are engaging in are the consumers and families.

We have gone through enough.