Disability Rights Wisconsin (DRW) applauds Governor Evers’ recent vetoes of bills that would have had negative impacts for individuals with disabilities in the areas of Medicaid and publicly-funded education.
Regarding Medicaid, DRW appreciates Gov. Evers’ vetoes of both AB934 and AB936. AB934 would have added significantly to the burden already imposed on people who rely on Medicaid as the sole source for their health insurance. It would have required people to reapply twice as often as they do now, would have increased the likelihood that peoples’ applications would be denied because of minor errors on forms, and would have imposed an ineligibility period if someone inadvertently fails to report something that might affect eligibility. AB936 would have imposed a punitive and totally unmanageable system of work requirements on single people receiving Medicaid. Many of the people who would have been harmed by both AB934 and AB936 are people with disabilities, particularly people with mental illness. Neither bill served a legitimate public interest.
In addition, DRW applauds Gov. Evers for vetoing both AB966 and AB970 relating to publicly-funded education. AB966 would have caused disproportionate disruption for Milwaukee students with disabilities, unnecessarily and expensively splitting the district into four-to-eight smaller districts. AB970 would have created a massive expansion of Wisconsin’s voucher programs, in which students forfeit their rights and protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), to the detriment of the schools that are required to educate any-and-all students with disabilities under the IDEA: Wisconsin’s public schools. Both bills would have been harmful for Wisconsin students, and the vetoes are well-deserved.
This press release is also available as a downloadable file (accessible pdf).