We’ve been mentioning our governor’s proposed budget cuts here and there, but it’s time to get specific about people on the losing side. Of course, most organizations receiving government funding could be counted among the losers, but the money needs to be sheared from somewhere. We just don’t like that people who are already struggling may have their helping hands abandon them.
Programs aimed at suicide prevention and helping the homeless could be cut, not to mention the funding stripped from the medically needy and the elderly. In total, $600 million would be siphoned away from our most vulnerable citizens. This is simply unacceptable.
Take, for instance, the cuts to funding for the medically needy. The state would continue helping people who cannot afford medical bills but aren’t poor enough to qualify for Medicaid. It would pay for doctors visits, but would neglect to assist with prescriptions or hospital visits. These cuts may sound good in theory, but many seriously ill people require procedures only performed in hospitals, such as kidney dialysis or cancer treatments. Such procedures are beyond the patients’ abilities to fund, but people won’t stop seeking life-saving remedies. Instead, they will flock to hospitals which admit patients without insurance. They will perform the necessary procedures and not receive a dime from neither the patient, who cannot afford to pay, nor the government that would refuse.
The government’s washing of its hands is not the solution here.
Some may argue that charitable organizations can help ease the burden of out-of-control medical bills for the lower middle class. In many cases, they do ease the pain, but we must draw the Band-Aid over a deadly wound analogy. In fact, we’re even running out of bandages. The recession has hit many charities hard, with people finding it harder to dig into their pockets. These factors combined would make for a cruel change for the patients in question.
We do agree with a few of the cuts. We don’t think the state should be paying for dentures, eyeglasses or hearing aids. These devices improve life immensely, but they don’t support life itself. Overall, however, that missing $600 million is going to hurt those already suffering.
We have to question the logic of politicians focused so intensely on only one factor of our society — in this case, the economy — to the detriment of all the others. Perhaps we are just watching the problem at the heart of the Tea Party agenda becoming reality. Maybe we’ve got bleeding hearts for wanting to help the downtrodden. However, we must ask if, in the face of these types of cuts, putting the economy on the back burner for a moment might be in order.
We should have seen the medical dilemma coming. After all, we’ve been in doubt of Scott’s record from the start because he’s been known to put the bottom line above people’s lives. His choices make us wonder if Floridians would still oppose a small increase in taxes after facing these devastating cuts to the neediest among us.
These are only proposed measures which must be voted upon in the legislature. Floridians still have time to speak up to their leaders. We can do better.
