First Victims of Economic Downturn
The Denver Post
April 6, 2003

When political ideology trumps stark reality, those without money or clout lose. In the case of Colorado's budget, the losers are the poor, the elderly and children. This particular political ideology was enacted in 1999 in the form of tax cuts demanded by Governor Bill Owens and the then leaders of the Legislature, who ignored the harsh reality of economic cycles and recession.

Now that harsh reality has us in its grip. The dribble of money taxpayers gained from tax reductions has become a flood of budget cuts that hits kids and poor people hardest. Imagine it was your child's scholarship, his only access to college, that was just eliminated. Or your elderly father or pregnant daughter-in-law now cut out of Medicaid.

Then, there are the massive service cuts to children waiting for adoption, children who are mentally ill, children in abusive families. In Denver, which must shoulder nearly 75% of the child welfare cuts, caseloads are growing rapidly, forcing each caseworker to deal only with the most severe, high-risk cases. At a time when the state's foster care system is already in crisis, this makes it all the harder to assure children's safety and well-being.

Some severely disturbed children in Denver, currently in residential care, will be returned to their families where they will be undertreated and potentially threatening to their families and schoolmates. On the other side, reduced in-home counseling will force caseworkers to remove more children from their homes to ensure their safety. While these measures may save money in the short run, over the long haul, they will cost much more than investing in preventive care.

On the Western Slope, hard-hit counties are also reducing staffs and crucial services. In one county, a program that kept emotionally disturbed children in their homes has been cut completely for lack of funds. I can only imagine how desperate I'd feel if I had nowhere to turn for help with a dangerous child. In another county, commissioners refused to spend $1000 on airfare to send a child needing foster care to live, instead, with his father in another state. This short term saving will cost that child his family.

While counties are working hard to cope with the state budget cuts, their clients, the poor, elderly, and children, are getting hammered. In Denver, Medicaid caseloads are already over 1000 per worker. For adult services, such as nursing home care and food stamps, caseloads have jumped from 600 to 850 per worker. No caseworker can effectively manage 800 to 1000 clients. Employees will have to handle crises and let lesser problems go until those, too, become crises.

One of the saddest parts of all this is that families receiving assistance as they struggle to become self-sufficient are among the hardest hit. Money to pay for transportation to work, job counseling, training, and child care won't be available to many of them anymore. How does a single mom work to support her family if she can't afford to get to her job, can't afford child care and lacks necessary work skills?

If all this doesn't bother you, think of the kids who won't get to live in a safe, loving family, who won't go to college, who won't see a doctor when they're sick. Think of your elderly, sick neighbor who has to move to a nursing home because the home health care and living assistance that kept her at home has been axed. Think of families who are hungry because their caseworker hasn't time to get to their food stamp applications.

If that isn't enough, think about the impact on Colorado's economy of taking nearly $900 million this year and close to $1 billion next year out of circulation. That is a huge economic hit, causing more job losses, lower consumer spending and a continuing downward economic spiral. And, more budget woes.

Now it's time to put aside misguided political ideology and focus on fixing the mess it created. That will require leadership at the top, some tough decisions on the part of voters and, we can only hope, some consideration for those whose lives are hardest hit.