Concerns are mounting about the possible repercussions if the doomsday budget put forth this week by Gov. John Bel Edwards becomes a reality, reports The Manship News Service.
The $25.3 billion budget, presented to lawmakers Monday, ends many of the state’s safety-net health care programs, cuts dollars for higher education and slashes 80% of the funding for the popular TOPS tuition scholarship program.
“My son takes care of his father, who currently lives in a nursing home,” Baton Rouge native Eula Franklin says. “If he were to lose his Medicaid benefits, there is no way my son would be able to take care of him.”
Franklin’s concerns reflect those expressed by others. Edwards, himself, said he did not want to make the cuts, which not only eliminates Medicaid’s long-term care program but also slashes funding for programs serving the elderly and low-income residents.
Officials at hospitals and with advocacy groups for the elderly say the cuts would be debilitating.
“If these cuts materialize, they could lead to a drastic reduction of some hospital services and medical education in communities across Louisiana,” says Paul Salles, chief executive of the Louisiana Hospital Association.
