Author: Carl Sigmond

Cuts Proposed to Medicare, Medicaid, and Disability Services

An update on the proposed cuts to healthcare and disability services at the State and Federal level

Last month, the US House of Representatives passed a budget reconciliation bill that proposes cutting over a trillion dollars in Federal health care spending. The program that would see the largest cuts is Medicaid, which provides health insurance to people with low income and people with disabilities. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill, if passed into law, would cut over 800 billion dollars from Medicaid alone, resulting in nearly 11 million Americans losing Medicaid coverage. The bill also proposes cuts to the Affordable Care Act, SNAP, and to Medicare, which provides coverage to more than 61 million adults age 65 or older and almost 7 million people with disabilities under the age of 65.

Meanwhile, here in California, disability rights advocates have been flocking to Sacramento in recent weeks to push back on Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposed state budget, which includes massive cuts to the In-Home Supportive Services, or IHSS, program, as well as cuts to services for people with developmental disabilities. IHSS provides in-home care for people with disabilities and older adults in California.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Read More “Disability Rap – June 11, 2025”

Trauma-Informed Disability Acceptance & Workplace Accessibility

Trauma researcher and author Dr. Xenia Barnes on loving herself through a disability diagnosis

Today, we’re joined by Dr. Xenia Barnes. After a 20 year career in education, Xenia turned her attention to social justice work and trauma research, with a particular focus on how gun violence impacts individuals and communities. Then, in 2021, she was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease that makes it difficult for the body to absorb oxygen from the air. Her essay “The Invisible Battle: Navigating the Minefield of Workplace Accommodation” was included in the recently published book, “Triumph in the Trenches: Navigating Success for Black Professionals.”

Xenia Barnes is a researcher, a public speaker, and a life coach. She is the author of two books on navigating trauma: “Grieving to Heal: The Shadow Boarding Experience” and “The Recondition: A Guide to Loving Yourself Through the Trauma.” She has completed one PhD degree in Theology and is finishing up a second PhD degree in Advanced Human Behavior.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Exploring Late-diagnosed Autism

A discussion with Kristen Hovet, the host of The Other Autism podcast, about autism in adulthood

April is Autism Acceptance Month, and today we’re honoring that by spending the show talking about autism and specifically late-diagnosed autism. Autism is a broad umbrella for describing how some people think, feel, and act differently from what is considered typical or normal. We did a show in January on neurodivergence. Autism is a form of neurodivergence, and autism is a disability.

Autism manifests in each person differently, but common experiences of autistic people are finding socializing challenging and/or tiring, getting overwhelmed in loud or busy spaces, having intense interests that you keep coming back to, and preferring order and routine. Some people use repeated motions or actions to calm down their nervous system and/or express joy and happiness. Some autistic people hide – or mask – their emotions in order to fit in socially. This can sometimes lead to mental illness.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Read More “Disability Rap – April 9, 2025”

Biden Administration Official Responds to Medicaid Threats

Emily Voorde on flying while disabled and the current proposed cuts to Medicaid funding in Congress

Today, we are joined by Emily Voorde, a former Biden Administration official and a top staffer in the Pete Buttigieg Presidential campaign. We talk with Emily about the current threats to Medicaid funding that are working their way through Congress. We also hear first-hand about the challenges people with mobility disabilities and assistive devices face when flying commercially, and we get Emily’s response to a recent lawsuit challenging rules set by the Biden Administration that aimed to make air travel safer and easier for people with disabilities.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Read More “Disability Rap – March 12, 2025”

No One Is an Island: Disability and Polyamory

Reflections on the intersection of disability and polyamory, both personally and community-wide.

It’s February, and Valentine’s Day is around the corner. We have a tradition here on Disability Rap of doing a show focused on love and relationships at this time of year. We’re continuing that tradition on this show with a roundtable of guests to talk about disability and polyamory.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Why do a show about polyamory on Disability Rap? Well, there is actually more overlap than you might think, unless of course you are disabled and polyamorous! Last month, we did a show on neurodivergence, and there’s actually quite a bit of overlap between the neurodivergent and polyamorous communities. We’ll get into that in the show. And then in polyamory, there’s this acknowledgement that no one partner should be expected to meet all of someone’s romantic and/or sexual needs, and as people with disabilities, many of us are used to getting our needs met by multiple people. So the extension to the romantic arena isn’t that hard for some people with disabilities.

Read More “Disability Rap – February 12, 2025”

Discovering Neurodivergence in Adulthood

Two Xennials share how they recognized their neurodivergence in post-pandemic life and the positive impact of finding community through that diagnosis.

Neurodivergence is the recognition that not all brains work the same way. It’s a broad spectrum of brain behavior that’s outside of what’s considered standard or “normal.” Today on the show, we explore neurodivergence with two guests who recognized their neurodivergence as adults. They share how this revelation has changed their understanding of their upbringing, their relationships, their work, and their daily lives.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Amanda Kennon is an American Sign Language Interpreter who lives in the Philadelphia suburbs. She, who has a neurodivergent child, was inspired to embark on her own journey of self-discovery about how neurodivergence has impacted her personally and in her professional life. She is currently working on research on neurodiversity in the interpreting profession along with her friend and colleague Dr. Laura Polhemus. Their ongoing research includes the experiences of neurodivergent interpreters and consumers. Amanda and her colleague Laura presented at the 2023 Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf Conference, April 2024 Registry for the Deaf Neurodiversity Webinar Series, and 2024 Conference for Interpreters Trainers.

John Leimgruber grew up in the mid-west in the 1980’s. He turned his developing interest in computers into a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering. He now lives in Philadelphia where he enjoys exploring his interests including computer gaming, mysticisms, polyamory, and psychology. While not professionally diagnosed, John identifies with late diagnosed Autism.

Addiction Recovery Is a Disability

On this episode, comedian Mean Dave shares how comedy led him to discover his addiction recovery is protected by the ADA, and how he’s bringing disability awareness to 12-step programs, helping people understand meetings as the “ramp” that gets recovering addicts up to the “curb” of a manageable life.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Mean Dave, who is a fixture in comedy clubs around the San Francisco Bay Area. He is in his tenth year of addiction recovery. In October, Mean Dave Mc’d the Comedians with Disabilities Act when FREED brought that comedy troupe to Grass Valley for a fundraiser at The Center for the Arts. Mean Dave has also opened for Josh Blue, Jay Mohr, Judy Tenuta, and Big Jay Oakerson, and has toured many universities across the United States.

A Comic Draws (on) his Disability Experience

Today, we are joined by Jared Wikofsky. He is an independent artist and a comic creator. Jared has self-published and produced over 200 pages of comic work. Recently, Jared received a grant from Upstate Creative Corps. This led to his comic book, FALLING. The book delves into a life altering diagnosis and the long-lasting effects of that diagnosis. Jared also runs and edits a podcast entitled PLAYING WITH MADNESS PODCAST. It is a comedy/horror show airing on all the major podcast platforms.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

Disability in the Workforce

October is National Disability Employment Month, and we’re celebrating with two guests who have cerebral palsy and found fulfilling careers (and even a second career) while overcoming barriers both before and after the Americans with Disabilities Act. We talk with David Clark and Whittier Mikkelsen about their experiences in the workforce, challenges and misconceptions they had to confront and overcome about their disabilities, and how their disabilities have helped to shape their lives and careers.

David Clark is a computer programmer and systems engineer based in the Boston area. Growing up in Connecticut in the ‘70s and ‘80s, David was quickly identified as a candidate for inclusive education at a time when this wasn’t the norm. He excelled in school and went on to The University of California, Berkeley, receiving a BA in Cognitive Science & Rhetoric. Through his career, he has built vast experience with online application development and server administration. David currently works as a Systems Designer in the Digital Research Applications team at Mass General Brigham.

Whittier Mikkelsen was an emergency room clinical psychologist. When chronic pain forced her to move away from this career and slow down, she took the opportunity to look deeply within herself and at the natural world. Through this, she reconnected with her passion for photography and artmaking. Whittier’s art has been shown at the Stirling Art Gallery in Dunedin, Florida, The Dunedin Fine Arts Center, The Art Lofts in St Petersburg, Florida, and at local cafes. You can see some of Whittier’s photographs on her website.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.

The Comedians with Disabilities Act

Next month, FREED will be bringing The Comedians with Disabilities Act to downtown Grass Valley for a night of laughter, entertainment, and reflections on being disabled in our ablest society. The Comedians with Disabilities Act is a collection of comedians who have disabilities, both seen and unseen, who bring forth the humor they find in their lived experiences as disabled people.

The Comedians with Disabilities Act will be performing on October 16 at 7 p.m. at The Center for the Arts in downtown Grass Valley as a fundraiser for FREED. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets to the show!

Today on Disability Rap, we speak with Nina G, a comedian who performs with The Comedians with Disabilities Act and one of the comedians who will be in the Grass Valley show. Nina is an author who has written three books, including Once Upon an Accommodation: A Book About Learning Disabilities, and she just recently debuted at #1 on two major streaming sites with her solo comedy album, Stutterer Interrupted. Nina has been an advocate for people with disabilities for over 20 years. She has been on many talk shows, radio broadcasts and podcasts.

Click here to listen to and read the transcript of the show.