Missouri House budget proposal would eliminate aid for blind - John Hancock, Kansas City Star

But in the $24 billion budget passed Thursday by the Missouri House, the $28 million health care program for the blind was eliminated. The money instead was used to avoid another year of cuts to higher education. “To them it’s all dollars and cents,” Arnold said. “But this is about people and their lives. It’s really scary.” The decision by House Republicans to eliminate the program has proved to be the most controversial of the budget drafting process this legislative session and has turned into a political tug of war between the House and Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat. Its fate in the Senate, where the budget heads next, is still uncertain. Nixon has come out strongly against using money from the blind health care program for higher education. “Not one college or university president has asked for more funding at the expense of needy, blind Missourians,” Nixon said at an event earlier this month at a Columbia facility that promotes independent living for people with disabilities.