United Spinal Association is keeping a watchful eye on health-care and disability funding policies that could change due to executive orders from President Trump.
“Our policy and advocacy team is gathering all the facts about the orders and resulting policies that impact our community,” said United Spinal President/CEO Vincenzo Piscopo in a Feb. 3 bulletin to stakeholders. “Our primary goal is to help you understand your rights so you can be proactive in your decisions regarding health care, home care, education, workplace protections and many public benefits. We will do all we can to protect your rights and preserve your benefits and the programs you depend on.”
Piscopo urged stakeholders to closely monitor the organization’s Policy Watch website for updates, as health-care programs including Medicaid could be threatened.
“Beginning on its first day, the Trump Administration has released an unprecedented number of executive orders, many of which may change how services are provided to disabled people,” the website said. “We will do our best to analyze how these orders and all subsequent policy communications may impact people with spinal cord injuries and all wheelchair users.”
District judge temporarily blocks funding freeze order
In the website’s “Where Are We Now” section, United Spinal explained that U.S. District Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. of Rhode Island “has temporarily blocked President Trump’s funding freeze, granting requests from 22 states and the District of Columbia for a temporary restraining order” on the afternoon of Jan. 31.
The website’s “How We Got Here” section added that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) “issued a vague and confusing memo directing all federal agencies to temporarily halt disbursements on grants, loans and other financial assistance” on Jan. 27.
“This resulted in many Centers for Independent Living, medical research facilities, and other federally funded service providers being blocked from accessing the Medicaid portals in every state,” United Spinal said. “This meant no Medicaid payments could be processed.”
While the OMB rescinded its memo on Jan. 29, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted to X (formerly Twitter) that same day, “This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze. It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction. The president’s EO’s [executive orders] on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented.”
United Spinal said a long list of programs used by people with disabilities could be impacted by a federal funding freeze, including Medicaid, Medicaid grants, special education, vocational rehab, housing assistance, child care, school meals, adult protective services, and Veterans Affairs grants.
Federally funded state and national organizations could also be impacted by a funding freeze. Those organizations could include protection and advocacy agencies; developmental disability councils; university centers of excellence in developmental disabilities; Centers for Independent Living; resource centers for people living with paralysis, limb loss, or traumatic brain injury; Special Olympics; and funding for university research grants and graduate medical education.
“This is a time of significant change in our nation,” Piscopo said. “Our collective voices must be strong to ensure the protection of our rights and the programs we depend on as wheelchair users.”
