Medicaid dilemma

My name is Walter Wendell Lee Alley. I have cerebral palsy. I recently moved to North Carolina from Pennsylvania to take advantage of occupational and physical therapy services in North Carolina. I am wheelchair bound, but with the help of these services I hope to regain the ability to walk on a walker around the house.

In the meantime, I need attendant care to help me with showering and dressing. In North Carolina, the only way for me to receive the services I need is through Medicaid. Social Services, which oversees Medicaid in North Carolina, informed me that I must meet a deductible of $672 a month on “medical bills” in order to qualify for Medicaid. I only receive $934 a month on retirement. So, this is simply not possible.

I have other medical expenses as well, such as trips to the emergency room, ambulance costs and dental issues that I cannot afford.

I have written letters to Sen. Elizabeth Dole, Gov. Mike Easley and Congressman Patrick McHenry to try to call attention to this issue, with no response. There are many people in our state that cannot afford health insurance but cannot qualify for Medicaid.

Please help us call attention to this issue and maybe we can get the requirements for Medicaid changed. I truly thank you for any assistance you can give me, and thousands like me.

— Walter Wendell Lee Alley

Hickory

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