In Switzerland, people with disabilities have an easier path
July 31st, 2008
For parents of kids with disabilities, here’s a tantalizing fantasy: move to Switzerland.
National Public Radio reporter Julie Rovner says the universal health care system in Switzerland does a better job of taking care of people with disabilities than the U.S., yet Switzerland pays less per person.
Rovner visits with the family of Tara, a 16-year-old girl with autism. The Swiss government pays for Tara’s education, health care, behavioral therapy and help with household chores, and will continue to educate and care for Tara after her parents die. Tara’s mother Ellen Wallace, originally from Iowa, says her family is “way past lucky” to live in Switzerland.
In Massachusetts, a comparable family struggles to cobble together their own solution for their teenage autistic daughters, and says they endured a lengthy waiting list to get services that will end when the girls turn 22. They’re trying to start their own group home.
The story is part of Health Care For All, a continuing series comparing American health care with systems in European countries.
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