Jason Bennett

Parent of enrolled child with disabilities

“The one thing that is certain in in our lives is uncertainty. By and large, that comes through medical uncertainty. We don’t know what the next day is going to hold, what the next illness is that Ashlyn will have to face.” 

“Medicaid is the only reason that I can work. Medicaid is the only reason that my wife can work. Ashlyn requires 24-hour care, around-the-clock, awake, and because of Medicaid we can hire people to help care for her. Because I can work, I have insurance through my employer, which covers nurses. Without my ability to work and without my insurance, she has no nurses and then we can't work. And then that means we are caring for her 168 hours a week and can't work our full-time jobs.”

“My impression is that in general there is sort of a characterization of people that receive Medical Assistance as unfortunately only takers of funds and I'm here to say that like that's not the case … Jackie and I want to work. I've been serving this community for 25 years in public service, and the same for Jackie. We want to continue doing that.” 

“I'm not a nurse, I'm not a doctor, and I don't want to be Ashlyn's nurse or Ashlyn's doctor. I want to be her dad, and the only way right now that we can ensure that is through the assistance we get from Medicaid and the waivers that allow us to keep her living at home where she wants to be and where we want her to be.”