ASAN condemns the passage of the Senate budget resolution, which would cut $5 trillion dollars over the next decade from Medicaid, Social Security, and other essential services that allow people with disabilities to live healthy and productive lives in our communities.
Less than one month after the disability community defeated the latest attempt to destroy Medicaid, Congress is at it again. Despite fervent promises to the country, the bill bears a striking resemblance to the widely disavowed White House budget proposal, and replicates the same critical flaws. This partisan attack on our community is being rammed through to pay for a massive tax cut on the wealthiest Americans, at the cost of the lives and liberty of people with disabilities. Real tax reform should benefit all citizens, and cannot not be done by cutting basic programs that support people with disabilities in the community.
While the deepest cuts are hidden behind vague instructions that will lead to unspecified sequestration and severe cuts, we aren’t fooled. The disability community cannot afford this budget. ASAN urges Congress to stop this devastating bill before it can cause real harm and start over with a bipartisan bill that protects basic programs and the lives and well-being of disabled Americans. Our lives are worth more than this.
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization run by and for autistic people. ASAN was created to serve as a national grassroots disability rights organization for the autistic community run by and for autistic Americans, advocating for systems change and ensuring that the voices of autistic people are heard in policy debates and the halls of power. Our staff work to educate communities, support self-advocacy in all its forms, and improve public perceptions of autism. ASAN’s members and supporters include autistic adults and youth, cross-disability advocates, and non-autistic family members, professionals, educators, and friends.