I am the Lori being referred to. We ended up in Tucson because of my
husband's job. Only for them (Raytheon) to move us all the way across the
country and then laying off 400 software engineers after only 8 months of
being here! Good thing we did not buy a house! Since then, Tucson has left
a very bad taste in my husband's mouth and he hates it. He hates the triple
digit hot weather too (while I love it), the snowbirds doubling the
population in the winter months etc. but we are stuck here for the time
being and have been years since June of 2001. My story is too long to even
begin.
I can't add much more than Tod did (and even though we live in the same town
we have not met each other yet!) Except that I have had one helluva time
finding either home health care or a person for extra domestic help in the
afternoons. I have had to hire (in one way or another-via Medicaid or
private) someone in the afternoons for the last 25 1/2 years and this is the
first time in all that time that I have not been able to find anyone since
May! I have tried every church, organization, agency, etc. in the area to
no avail. The last time I called the local Independent living Center who
carries a list of individuals looking for home health work -there were only
two people on the list in a city of now about a million people! This (lack
of help) has been most difficult on my husband.
In my 44 years I have lived in upper New York state (35 years), Northern
Virginia D. C. metro area (18 months -it was awful!) And then we moved
here. I have found that there is no Nirvana for so many of us with
different needs. *We* are also in a Catch-22 because I do not qualify for
the 2 programs that Tod speaks of but we do not have enough money to pay for
further "home health care" for me let alone find someone for light
housekeeping!
I could be wrong but I think that Tod's primary caregiver is his wife and
mine is my husband. All because of circumstance. And nobody is getting
younger as far as the caregivers go (or the spinal cord injured spouse or
relative).
I have also found that one has to actually lives somewhere for at least a
year or two to *know* whether they like it or not. It took a year in
Northern Virginia (DC metro area) to know that that was not the place for
us. It is now considered the Los Angeles of the East and people are very
cold there. If a neighbor of yours had to say hello to you they might fall
over dead. LOL
I know that is not much help but that sums it up! About a year ago or more,
someone else was asking the same question you were about moving here and my
answer was the same.
Merry Christmas wherever you are!
Lori
On Fri, Dec 12, 2008 at 9:00 AM, Tod E. Santee <sant...@cox.net> wrote:
> Hi Donald
>
> I'm in Tucson, as is the Lori that Wheelchair mentioned and a guy, AZ Dave,
> who I believe is in Phoenix. I moved here in 1990 after being in bed with
> pnemonia in PA for a few stints. I methodically tracked weather data for
> several places for 2 years and decided Tucson fit my needs. (Phoenix, and
> Bullhead I suppose, just showed us a too hot in the summertime).
>
> Re: benefits, if you mean public assitance health benefits, AZ doesn't have
> Medicaid. It was a recipient of an "experimental" program in the '80 to let
> states rather than Feds regulate their health money for the "poor" or
> otherwise uninsured. It called AHCCCS (Pronounced "Access" = AZ Health Care
> Cost Containment System) and it has its benefits but I can't think of them
> at the moment! You enroll in an HMO-like system and make sure all the
> doctors you want to see and all the meds you need are covered. Each is
> slightly different.
>
> There's a program called ALTCS ("Altecs" = AZ Long Term Care System) for
> those with no home health aides who can show a financial need. Sometimes
> you can choose an aide from an ad you place --or a friend or family member,
> just NOT a spouse-- and have them take the ALTCS classes. Then they can be
> paid by the state to provide your daily care.
>
> If you pay private, there's a pretty good network of PWDs near universities
> that can lead you to some personal care attendants as well as Independent
> Living Centers. Being near ASU (in Tempe) or the UofA (Tucson) means
> there's plenty of students looking for work as well as students with
> disabilities who can be references for PCAs you might consider hiring.
>
> Of course, hiring college students means realizing their schedules change
> each semester, they do like to sleep in at times, and students can be a bit
> "flaky" sometimes. As long as you're open to trying things and being
> flexible, it can work well.
>
> Hope all that helps!
>
> Best wishes,
> --Tod
>
> ---- wheelch...@aol.com wrote:
> > Expect a reply from our veteran Lori. She knows and will tell you like
> it
> > is.
> > Best Wishes
> >
> >
> > In a message dated 12/11/2008 11:06:15 P.M. Central Standard Time,
> > rollingl...@yahoo.com writes:
> >
> > hi fellow quads,
> >
> > i'm thinking about moving to az., maybe bullhead or pheonix. i need to
> know
> > how your state works as far as health benefits, caregiving, and housing.
> if
> > anyone is in az. i'd love to chat.
> >
> > thanks, donald c-5/18 post
>
>
--
Lori
C4/5 complete quad, 27 years post
Tucson, AZ
