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I have known folks who, due to hereditary medical conditions within an entire family, sought assistance.

The financial requirements were strict. Under $2000 in cash assets. No universal or variable life insurance policies against which they could borrow. Both parents worked limited hours at low paying jobs. They had three kids, two of whom had the medical condition that required infusions running into the thousands every few months. Still, if they took food stamps, they lost the Earned Income Refund, or whatever it is called. Heat assistance required a series of applications and then, because it was a pool and limited, at that, they were only able to get a half tank of propane after over a month of trying. They had a woodstove, but the damper broke and since it was a severe winter with a lot of snow, it wasn’t possible to fix it right away and the landlord was disinclined to do so, anyway. This woman had a series of thick file folders that contained all the applications, all the correspondence and all the rules. If the parents made over there *allotted* earned income in any month, their medical assistance billed them for the overage if they had used services that same month. (They always used services. Physician appointments and medical supplies could run them over $3k a month even when their condition was controlled).

The kids all turned out well: an RN, a pharmacist and one in the NG who will likely use her tuition grant for some medical technician education.

I knew these people because I hired the kids to do chores whenever I could. They were all hard workers, always showed up and were thrilled to earn something, even starting at age 12.

I read yesterday that AZ is now going to limit services to legal American citizens. Or at least, the Governor is proposing that.