Maybe influenced by seeing my grandkids react to having the summer off from school, the idea of a calm summer does not seem to be in the cards this year. We all have learned that trying to deal with things outside our control can be unproductive. Yet, creating contingency plans based upon unknown factors with government funding is an interesting challenge. This year it would seem to be less predictable than in the past.
In one of my most recent articles in Positively Naperville, I spoke to the potential cuts in Medicaid funding and how this could impact our organization and others who rely upon a balance of State and Federal blended resources to help provide services for those individuals with disabilities that we serve. Adult services funding comes primarily from a balance of State and Federal Medicaid funds.
On one side of this matter, statements have been made that indicate that there will not be any negative impact on the individuals we serve related to a cut in funding from a federal perspective. This is promising at face value.
Yet, we also know that the State of Illinois is currently communicating to everyone that there exists a $1 Billion shortfall between planned expenditures and anticipated revenues to fund these costs. I suspect somewhere in the middle will be where all this sorts out and plans today will be modified to deal with the funds at hand. The anxiety that comes with the unknown is as tiring to deal with as it is as tiring to read or hear about!
Despite these challenges, we continue to take steps to grow and improve our services. As we finished celebrating our 60th anniversary in May, we continue to look for ways to improve the services we offer to the children, adults, and families we serve. One of the new initiatives we plan to implement in the coming months involves the implementation of healthier food options leading to a better overall diet and an improved quality of health.
Big picture, as we look at factors affecting “whole person care,” the importance of a healthy diet cannot be overlooked or underestimated. Given this, we are exploring how we can bring better and healthier options to children in our school program, adults in day and residential programs, and even provide employees with better choices should they decide to capitalize on these opportunities.
We know that a fair amount of work exists to put this together. Yet, we believe the rewards will be beneficial for everyone who participates.
