Taxpayers may have to cover octuplet mom's costs.

A big share of the financial burden of raising Nadya Suleman's 14 children could fall on the shoulders of California's taxpayers, compounding the public furor in a state already billions of dollars in the red.

Even before the 33-year-old single, unemployed mother gave birth to octuplets last month, she had been caring for her six other children with the help of $490 a month in food stamps, plus Social Security disability payments for three of the youngsters. The public aid will almost certainly be increased with the new additions to her family.

Also, the hospital where the octuplets are expected to spend seven to 12 weeks has requested reimbursement from Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program, for care of the premature babies, according to the Los Angeles Times. The cost has not been disclosed.

Word of the public assistance has stoked the furor over Suleman's decision to have so many children by having embryos implanted in her womb.

"It appears that, in the case of the Suleman family, raising 14 children takes not simply a village but the combined resources of the county, state and federal governments," Los Angeles Times columnist Tim Rutten wrote in Wednesday's paper. He called Suleman's story "grotesque."

On the Internet, bloggers rained insults on Suleman, calling her an "idiot," criticizing her decision to have more children when she couldn't afford the ones she had and suggesting she be sterilized.

"It's my opinion that a woman's right to reproduce should be limited to a number which the parents can pay for," Charles Murray wrote in a letter to the Los Angeles Daily News. "Why should my wife and I, as taxpayers, pay child support for 14 Suleman kids?"

She was also berated on talk radio, where listeners accused her of manipulating the system and being an irresponsible mother.

"From the outside you can tell that this woman was playing the system," host Bryan Suits said on the "Kennedy and Suits" show on KFI-AM. "You're damn right the state should step in and seize the kids and adopt them out."

Suleman's spokesman, Mike Furtney, urged understanding.

"I would just ask people to consider her situation and she has been under a tremendous amount of pressure that no one could be prepared for," Furtney said.

Furtney said he, Suleman and her family had received death threats and had been getting messages that were "disgusting things that would never be proper to put in any story." Read more at the AP website...

What a cute baby named Maliyah up there! Please absolutely refrain from death threats as that is against the law!

Associated Press TV: Octuplet Mom Says She's Done Having Children.

MEMORIES THAT LAST FOREVER..............

Texas Children's Hospital gave each of the 50 premature infants now in their neonatal intensive care unit two beanie baby dolls to celebrate Christmas.The Chukwu octuplets each received the green Beanie Baby bear called Erin. Ebuka and Odera (R.I.P) also received the Beanie Baby named Doby. Chidi and Chima were also given the Beanie Baby called Wrinkles.

Echerem also received the Beanie Baby named Bruno and Ikem's second Beanie Baby is the one named Spunky. Jioke was also given the Beanie Baby called Tuffy and Gorom's second Beanie Baby is the one called Fleece. All the toys are placed strategically in the babies' beds.

YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION OR SEND ITEMS TO THE SULEMAN CHILDREN AT FAMILY WEBSITE.

Nadya Suleman's Publicists have set up a website with the Octuplets' photos and also a portal where you can donate to the family. There is also an address you can send items to all the children too including the older siblings. Ann Curry did an in-depth profile of the family on last night's Dateline NBC where we met the other siblings. One child, Aiden has Autism. Click here now to visit the site.

UPDATE: Despite the controversy surrounding the California mother who gave birth to octuplets last month, donations have been flowing in to the Web site created for the massive family, FOXNews.com has learned.

God is great! They remain in our prayers....

OUR HEALTHY FAMILY TIP: WHAT IS THE AUTISM?

Autism is a brain development disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. The autism spectrum disorders (ASD) also include related conditions with milder signs and symptoms.

Autism affects many parts of the brain; how this occurs is not understood. Parents usually notice signs in the first two years of their child's life. Although early behavioral or cognitive intervention can help children gain self-care, social, and communication skills, there is no known cure. Few children with autism live independently after reaching adulthood, but some become successful, and an autistic culture has developed, with some seeking a cure and others believing that autism is a condition rather than a disorder. Read more.....

OUR INTERVIEW WITH COMEDIENNE AND RADIO HOST MO'NIQUE.

If you missed the Mo'Nique radio show yesterday, below are the audio clips. Thanks to everyone at Radio One.

MoNique show Chukwu Octuplets final edit.mp3 - MoNique, Radio Host and Comedienne

Octuplet Mom Impregnated by Beverly Hills Fertility Doctor.

Suleman Octuplets courtesy of NBC

The mother of octuplets was implanted with those embryos at a Beverly Hills fertility clinic run by a well-known — and controversial — specialist who pioneered a method of implantation.

Dr. Michael Kamrava's name emerged Monday as a result of an interview aired Monday on NBC with Nadya Suleman, who gave birth to eight babies Jan. 26.

Kamrava, 57, would not comment on the issue, but told reporters outside his clinic on Rodeo Drive that he had granted an interview to one of the television networks. When asked to provide more detail, he said, "Watch the news."

Without identifying the doctor, the Medical Board of California said last week it was looking into the Suleman case to see if there was a "violation of the standard of care." The medical board said Monday it has not taken any disciplinary action against Kamrava in the past.

Suleman told NBC that she does not intend to go on welfare, though her publicist confirmed Monday that Suleman already receives food stamps and child disability payments to help feed and care for her six other children.

Suleman's publicist Mike Furtney said she receives $490 a month in food stamps. Three of Suleman's previous children are disabled, Furtney said, but Suleman did not want to disclose the nature of the disabilities, or the type or sum of the payments.

"In her view these are just payments made for people with legitimate needs and are not, in her view, welfare," Furtney said. "She just believes that there are programs for people with needs and she and her children qualify for some of them."

We will continue to keep Nadya and her children in our prayers.

Source: FOX News

OUR HEALTHY FAMILY TIP: WHAT IS THE FOOD STAMP PROGRAM?

I heard that many people often confuse food stamps as "welfare" per say. After my research, I discovered that sometimes someone may not be on welfare and actually receive food stamps as part of the SSI disability program. Those individuals are automatically eligible for food stamps. If you receive Food Stamps, I encourage you to use them wisely and purchase foods in the above food groups especially towards the bottom. Below is an explanation of what food stamps are. I shall be educating you about our Health Families Tour periodically.

The US Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, historically and commonly known as the Food Stamp Program, is a federal assistance program that provides food to low and no income people living in the United States. Benefits are distributed by the individual states, but the program is administered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Most food stamp benefits are now distributed using cards but for most of its history the program had actually used paper denominational stamps/coupons worth $1, $5, and $10. These stamps could be used to purchase any prepackaged edible foods regardless of nutritional value (for example soft drinks and confectionery could be purchased on food stamps).

In the late 1990s, the food stamp program was revamped and actual stamps were phased out in favor of a specialized debit card system known as Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) provided by private contractors. Many states merged the use of the EBT card for public assistance welfare programs as well.

The purpose of the Food Stamp Program as laid out in its implementation was to assist low-income households in obtaining adequate and nutritious diets. According to Rossi, “the program rests on the assumption that households with restricted incomes may skimp on food purchases and live on diets that are inadequate in quantity and quality, or, alternatively skimp on other necessities to maintain an adequate diet”.

Food stamps, as many like Rossi, MacDonald and Eisinger contend, are used not only for increasing food but also as income maintenance. Income Maintenance basically is the money that household would have spent on food that they no longer have to; since households no longer have to spend this money on food, they can spend it on other things. The FSP is meant solely to increase food purchases, not to act as a tool of income maintenance.

According to various studies shown by Rossi, because of income maintenance only about $0.17-$0.47 more is being spent on food for every food stamp dollar than was spent prior to individuals receiving food stamps
Nutritional improvement

Another benefit sometimes attributed to the Food Stamp Program is that it makes nutritious food more readily available.

According to the National Food Consumption Survey individuals in food stamp households do not differ significantly from those living in non-recipient households in the nutritional quality of the food eaten. As a result, Rossi argues that this objective is not being met.

Source: Excerpts from Wikipedia

SULEMAN OCTUPLETS MAKE THEIR WORLD TELEVISION DEBUT.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Maliah, Noah, Jonah, Isaiah, Nariah, Jeremiah, McCai and Josiah made their TV debut today.

The octuplets, born two weeks ago, were introduced to an expectant world by their mother, 33-year-old Nadya Suleman.

Guiding the TV cameras through the hospital wards where the babies are likely to remain for several weeks, Suleman placed a hand on each tiny head and said a few words in a sing-song voice. "Hi, Maliah, your eyes are open," she said to the first.

"Hi, Josiah," she continued. "I wish I could stay all day long, but I can't. Your brothers and sisters at home want to see you ... I can't wait until they're all together. We are not a whole family."

The size of her whole family has become an issue in recent days, replacing the celebratory tone that was struck when the births were announced.

Suleman, who is a single and living with her parents, already has six children. All 14 have been conceived using in vitro fertilization, all with sperm from the same donor.

As medical ethicists have questioned the role of the clinic that implanted the embryos, others have pointed to the cost of the births and the troubles, both financial and medical, that may lie ahead for the family.

Suleman denied that taxpayers were footing the bill for her children. "I'm not receiving help from the government," she told NBC. "I'm not trying to expect anything from anybody. I just wanted to do it on my own. Any resources that someone would really, really want to help us, I will accept, I would embrace.

"I will feed them. I will do the best I possibly can," Suleman continued. "And in my own way, in my own faith, I do believe wholeheartedly that God will provide in his own way."

She also denied that she had the octuplets to make money. "That's funny how untrue that is," Suleman said. "Money? Money is necessary to raise children. But it's - it's paper. It is paper. To me, it is superfluous in contrast to the importance of my kids."

During the interview, Suleman identified the clinic that had treated her as the West Coast IVF Clinic in Beverly Hills, California. The same clinic helped her conceive her previous children.

The sperm donor remains anonymous, although Suleman said that he was shocked by the birth of the octuplets.

Source: Guardian U.K

NADYA SULEMAN'S MOTHER SPEAKS OUT ABOUT HER DAUGHTER.

QUOTE OF THE DAY.......RODNEY PERRY...CO-HOST OF THE MO'NIQUE SHOW.

"I like Iyke! He can single handedly bring back the black race".....Rodney Perry, Co-host of the world famous Mo'Nique radio show on one benefit of having eight babies at once.

Listen daily to this show!! M'o real, M'o laughs, M'o love. This is Iyke's fave show during drive time.

THE CHUKWU PARENTS: LISTEN TO THE MO'NIQUE SHOW THIS AFTERNOON IN THE 4PM CENTRAL/5PM EASTERN HOUR.

We are on LIVE radio next hour! Sorry I posted this so late but we are going to be on Comedian/Radio Show host Mo'Nique's talk show during the 4pm Central/5pm Eastern and 2pm Pacific hour. The show is actually on right now. If it is not available in your market, pls go online NOW to Mo'Nique's website and click the LISTEN LIVE bar. I am listening very clear online now. Here are the stations that carry them.
Iyke and I will be talking about everything......our phenomenal family!

California Medical Board Probes Octuplet Birth.

The fertility doctor who helped a California woman have 14 children, including octuplets born last month, is facing a state investigation and harsh criticism from medical ethicists.

The Medical Board of California did not identify the doctor who helped Nadya Suleman, 33, of Whittier become pregnant with the six boys and two girls born on Jan. 26., despite already having six other children.

"We're looking into the matter to see if we can substantiate if there was a violation of the standard of care," said board spokeswoman Candis Cohen.

Suleman, a divorced single mother, told NBC's "Today" show that the same fertility specialist provided in-vitro fertilization for all 14 of her children. Read more on FOX News.com

NADYA SULEMAN SPEAKS OUT ON NBC'S TODAY SHOW.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

After managing to avoid reporters as she left the hospital Thursday morning, Nadya Suleman headed for her first interview, with Ann Curry of NBC's "Today" show. One of the octuplets mother's hastily hired publicists said she is staying at "an undisclosed location" while she considers offers including possible book and TV deals.

NBC News spokeswoman Megan Kopf said Suleman was not paid for the interview. An air-date announcement was expected later Thursday.

Not even a photo of Suleman has emerged and public records shed little light on her. The 33-year-old single mother, who now has 14 children under the age of 8, has used different names over the years and has been married and divorced once. She stated in the interview...

"I just longed for certain connections and attachments with another person that I really lacked, I believe, growing up," she says.

Asked what she felt she lacked, she says, "Feeling of self and identity. I didn't feel as though, when I was a child, I had much control of my environment. I felt powerless. And that gave me a sense of predictability. Reflecting back on my childhood, I know it wasn't functional. It was pretty, pretty dysfunctional, and whose isn't?"

Source: Excerpts from the AP

Congrats to the Octuplets mom. You get to see them on the interview in it's entirety on Monday 9th February 2009 on the TODAY show plus her kids speak on Dateline on Tuesday 10th February 2009

QUOTE OF THE DAY.......CNN TALK SHOW HOST LARRY KING.

"Look at that, see this, they're born 8 one died, look how they've grown up. There's hope for everybody including the kids here in L.A"....Larry King after interviewing the parents of the Chukwu Octuplets on 2/2/09 on his iconic Larry King Live show.