Medicaid Impact: Rhode Islanders share how their funding empowers them
Brian Marcantonio, 46, of North Kingstown leads a life defined by choice and independence, thanks in large part to the funding that supports his Whole Life Shared Living Arrangement (WLSLA). For Brian, this funding doesn’t only cover his basic needs; it enables him to have a rich, fulfilling life.
“My funding helps to maintain my home, staff to support me, funding for necessities and anything else I need,” Brian said. “It allows me to participate in activities I enjoy like bowling with friends, getting my daily tea from Dunkin’ and spending time with my family.”
The WLSLA model is central to Brian’s sense of autonomy. “It allows me to choose more of who I spend my time with and what I do, based on my choices, not everybody else’s,” he said. “It gives me the support I need to live the life I want to live, not just the life my state services allow.”
Brian said he would tell lawmakers that his funding “is vital to my life as an independent man who wants to make choices and decisions for myself … Without my funding, I wouldn’t be able to live my life like everyone else gets to live their lives – by doing what I want to do and being with who I want to be with.”