United Cerebral Palsy Releases Annual State Medicaid Rankings

United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), one of the nation's largest health charities, has reported that people with disabilities are not getting the community-based support they need in every state. This problem is highlighted by the fact that many people with disabilities find it extremely hard to find a job or a place within their community.

The UCP report allows people to compare how their state is performing in relation to the rest of the country. Arizona was ranked number 1 on the list, while Texas, Virginia and Illinois were ranked at the bottom. According to the report's findings, inclusion is just not happening for all Americans with disabilities.

Nationwide, Medicaid serves 577,000 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and spent $30.9 billion in 2006 (about $53,000 per person). The full United Cerebral Palsy report and state-by-state data are available online at http://medicaid.ucp.org/.