Dear CARE Act supporters,
We now have 665 supporters and 740 signatures standing with Colorado's family caregivers. Thank you!!
This week's update is the most vulnerable and urgent yet.
A Personal Story That Breaks Open
"My heart breaks a little more every day."
Not just from my wife's accelerating job loss (20+ years, now spring/summer shutdown instead of end of 2026). Not just from h myorced return-to-office after two years of successful remote accommodation. Not just from losing employer healthcare or facing new parking fees.
But from watching what's happening across the country. The recent reports from Minneapolis involving ICE enforcement actions. Communities shaken. Families terrified. Rising tension.
For caregivers, this kind of national volatility adds another layer of weight onto people already stretched thin.
When Government Floods With Crisis
There's another hard truth I name this week: Congress cannot keep up.
The modern executive branch can generate actions faster than Congress can process them. Congress is a deliberative body-slow by design. But the result of this speed mismatch is governance flooding: caregivers navigating shifting rules, unpredictable enforcement climates, and a political environment that changes by the hour.
Caregivers need stability. But when the federal system is overwhelmed, that stability evaporates.
Colorado's Missing Budget Line
Meanwhile, Colorado lawmakers face an $850M-$1.1B deficit, asking: what to cut, what to delay, what costs nothing.
But they're ignoring the 600,000 family caregivers who provide $9-12 billion in unpaid labor annually-the hidden subsidy keeping Colorado's long-term care system from collapsing.
Caregivers don't show up in the budget. Don't require appropriations. But cannot be cut without catastrophic consequences.
Federal Medicaid Trap
Federal Medicaid rules technically "exempt" caregivers from work requirements-but require proof of exempt status every six months.
"If lawmakers had to file caregiver exemption paperwork every six months, the rule would disappear overnight."
Why the CARE Act Cannot Wait
The CARE Act is a state-level, non-punitive, stability-focused fiscal stabilization tool that:
Costs the state nothing
Reduces Medicaid churn
Prevents forced institutionalization
Keeps mid-career workers employed
Works regardless of federal chaos
Caregivers hold the line when systems fail. But we cannot carry the emotional weight of a country in turmoil AND the bureaucratic weight of policies designed without us.
What You Can Do
Read this week's full story: [https://open.substack.com/pub/therevenueneutralcaregiver/p/our-lives-on-hold-when-the-system?r=6a52ih&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true]
Share this petition: https://chng.it/DLWncS9wtT
Join us at CASI: https://casiadvocacy.org/
Join us at Professionals Who Care: https://www.professionalswhocare.org/
Subscribe to the Revenue Neutral Caregiver: https://substack.com/@therevenueneutralcaregiver
Contact Colorado legislators: Tell them caregivers need state-level protection NOW
When federal systems flood with crisis, state protections become essential. Caregivers cannot wait.
Kindly and Gratefully,
Mark Fukae
Director of Advocacy - Professionals Who Care, CASI Founder- Caregiver Advocacy Support Initiative