Blind Sided By Medicaid Fraud

I recently saw the the movie the blind side about this woman who takes in this young man, gives him a family and turns him out to his fullest potential to become a professional football player.

After the movie, I had a talk with some young boys to get their reactions and feedback. The main point of the movie these boys focused on was the fact that no matter what happened after child protective services took him away from his mother, he was a "runner" who always found his way back to his mother. These kids were not inspired by the professional football portion of the story, per say, they were inspired about remembering where you came from.

The boys started discussing ways they would keep in touch with their families if they were ever taken by child protective services. It was amazing the brilliance they all possessed as the boys spoke of emails, Youtube videos, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Twitter, Facebook, and many other social networking avenues.

It seems current removal policies of foster care and adoption have been blind sided with technology.



Now, this is my reaction to the movie. I saw a mother and kids, screaming and crying in a child protection removal in the movie yet I did not see anyone even flinch at the scene.

Witnessing the scene where Sandra Bullock goes into the child welfare office and no one is really working, she sees the case worker who has incomplete files and has no idea of the whereabouts of the young man. I saw, in a major motion picture Medicaid fraud. How can a child protection agency collect funding to manage a case when the child is homeless?

I saw a child welfare case where services nor resources were ever given to the mother, yet they were claimed to have been rendered.

I saw a child who was under the care of the state make a statement that he never had a bed before.

I saw the results of separate sibling placements when the young man met his brother in the restaurant scene after many, many years, not knowing his whereabouts.

I saw how it was perceived as such an oddity for a person who wanted to assume the legal role of parent ask to meet the birth parent before an adoption.

I saw the public attitudes of indifference to altruism and human compassion to youth aging out of foster care during the NCAA investigation.

I realized there was a secondary story line, and it "blind sided" the public by exposing the child welfare system for what it is!

Bravissimo, to Michael Lewis and all the cast, crew and directors for bringing Medicaid Fraud in Child Welfare to the big screen.

Standing ovation to Sandra Bullock in one of her best performances, and for taking on such a controversial, underlying storyline. Reminds me of Natalie Wood's roles.