by Jessie Van Berkel, James Walsh, The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS | February 11, 2025
“MINNEAPOLIS — Sumukha Terakanambi’s disability services waiver paid for the lift the Lakeville resident uses to get out of bed and the care that allows him to live in his family’s home.
For Steve Reinardy, whose eye disorder keeps him from driving, his waiver covers the transportation he needs to get to his job and doctor’s appointments.
Tim Gross has seen his son Ben, who has Down syndrome, develop life skills using waiver-funded training that allows him to remain in his own Duluth apartment.
They are among the Minnesotans pushing back against Gov. Tim Walz’s proposed measures to reduce planned increases in state spending on the Medicaid waivers that support tens of thousands of people with disabilities. The governor’s recent proposal, paired with fears over the Trump administration’s next steps on Medicaid, has many of the state’s most vulnerable residents and the people who care for them on edge.”