From Dragonfly: Just Three More Hoops, I Hope

My plan to obtain insurance was accepted by social work and she sent the plan, along with her "verification" message to all the appropriate parties. I tried to talk with the woman responsible for finishing my exit paperwork, but she was not in her office, so that is hoop #1 tomorrow - to get her to officially complete the exit summary and upload it to my computerized file.

Tomorrow's hoop #2, will be to see my case worker, for the forth time this week, at 2pm tomorrow. If the exit paperwork is in the system, she will complete the paperwork necessary to send to my region for processing. Once that is mailed, it's a waiting period of up to 60 days to hear back.

That's hoop #3, region "accepting" the plan and approving me to go to home confinement in May. They could still decline me due to my health condition or if they don't believe my resources will allow me to be taken care of financially/medically. I pray that the research we did in the last 24 hours will help them feel okay about the plan. Even someone I know, recently went to the ACA website for health care and were qualified for a $400/month policy for only $65/month based on family income. Even if that were my monthly fee, that's affordable - exactly what the affordable healthcare act was meant to happen - help those who are unable to afford health care coverage, to receive it at an affordable rate.

So, if this paperwork is sent off this week, there is a chance that I will be able to go home on my home confinement date of May 28th. There's no possibility of it being sooner, as there is simply not enough time and there are procedures on how much home confinement someone can receive. If I'm okayed, but it takes too long for the process, I could be going home in June. Of course, there's the absolute end date of July 2nd if all else fails. I have a lot of hope for the 28th, though. That's just over 2 months and something for me to really look forward to - an out date that will put me home just after my parents' anniversaries (both sets of parents have the same anniversary - long story) and I will be able to start my process of getting back on my feet that much earlier. I can't wait to start my future - one day at a time.

So, there are LOTS of us facing this same number of hoops in order to be released from here as a care level 3. I have had soooo many people come up to me and ask about my process so that they know the next step for themselves. Due to my experience, I watched one woman jump about three of the initial hoops just today - she went to social work, she talked with the person responsible for the paperwork and she went to team to get the official paperwork request. All these things could take weeks/months if you don't know the process.

Therefore, I decided to sit down and write the full process of trying to be eligible for community programs (halfway house/home confinement) for people who are a Care Level 3 at Carswell. I wrote, and wrote, and wrote - 6 pages worth of steps and information for everyone to consider. They can now look at it and start their process 17-19 months out, or if they are here shorter, the day they arrive. It's a guide to all of this and it took me only an hour to write it all out. I showed it to Appeal, because she, too, receives a lot of questions from folks. She read through it, loved it, and offered to type it up for me so we can make copies. That's awesome. I'll share what I wrote here, once I get it back from her. It lays out everything, including all the ways we can have to max out, if we are not approved at each hurdle. I hope that the information I am providing to folks will get more women out of here earlier, and closer to their spouses, children, grandchildren, and their life after incarceration. Perhaps, long after I am gone, that document will still exist and women for a long time will not have to learn the process as they go, like I did, but will be given the tools to advocate for themselves from day 1.