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As thousands are feeling the impact of losing their jobs across the state,  it’s disheartening to see that not all of our leaders in the state of Iowa have committed to addressing the elephant in the room. While redistricting is set to be discussed at the Special Session on October 28th at the State Capitol, very little has been said about solutions to the federal overreach in the state of Iowa. To which the mandate deadline for many hard-working taxpayers are set to lose their jobs is quickly approaching in a few short days. People’s livelihoods, the ability to take care of their families, bodily autonomy, medical freedom, right to privacy, and the freedom to choose what is best for yourself- physically, mentally, spiritually and ethically is on the line. The state is reporting a surplus of money and says the state is sitting better than most across the country. This idea, that the state of Iowa is doing better than most states & government intervention is unnecessary to maintain the freedoms of their citizens has us in this false sense of security. Most believe that everything will work itself out with the Vaccine Mandates without state leaders and the Governor intervening with businesses imposing unconstitutional Vaccine Mandates on their employees.

Our healthcare workers, social workers, nursing homes, State Medicaid Waiver programs are already suffering from serious shortage quantities. Once the ultimatum is forced onto employees, the state of Iowa will have a serious quality of service issue that is not going to be easy or cheap to fix the problem by just throwing more money at companies to hire quickly to compensate for the shortage. You cannot train great, long-term quality employees in an effective way under such current system strain. The system may not break, but how many vulnerable Iowans will have to lose their life because they fall off the radar of an overstrained Medicaid Waiver program? Preventable errors to maintain current, secure new, monitor and set up necessary services to keep Iowans in their homes and out of institutions, hospitals, mental health facilities, nursing homes will happen. How is it acceptable to allow companies like the Managed Care Organizations Amerigroup and Iowa Total Care to request additional compensation from taxpayers and the state of Iowa for a job well done, after it costs the state, federal government and Iowa taxpayers more money after all they are fully committed to terminating their qualified long term staff in just a short few days?

As a taxpayer and an Iowan, I am concerned with what will happen to at least 3,500 vulnerable Iowans not having access to their advocates, quality of services and what are the financial ramifications of ignoring this elephant in the room either in the Special Session on October 28th or after that date by the Governor’s office. It makes me personally angry and very sad. November 1st, when Medicaid Waiver clients attempt to call their social worker for help either to set up transportation to their doctor appointment, help filling out their annual Medicaid Eligibility paperwork, or to ask for help when their support staff didn’t show up for their shift, there will be no one on the other end of that phone. Not because their social worker quit their job or didn’t care anymore but because their advocate, their state leaders failed to see this coming down in time and not stepping in time to solve these unchartered, difficult and complex issues. Eventually, these vulnerable Iowans may get a call back from an overworked coverage social worker or by a customer service representative in a completely different state, but it won’t be in time before services and lives are disrupted. Vulnerable Iowans, their families and providers deserved better than this situation that they had absolutely no control over. If this happens, these vulnerable Iowans will be the ones that once again make the ultimate sacrifice for our lack in courage, strength and our inaction.

  • An employed Iowan, for now

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