About: Julie Beckett

Julianne Ethel Beckett (née O'Connell; November 9, 1949 – May 13, 2022) was an American teacher and disability rights activist. She lobbied for changes to Medicaid that allowed hundreds of thousands of disabled children to be cared for by their families at home. Her efforts, and those of other activists, led to the legislation and establishment of the Katie Beckett Medicaid waiver, named for her daughter Mary Katherine Beckett (1978–2012), who used a ventilator after surviving viral encephalitis in infancy. The waiver was included as a provision of the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982.