Advocacy needed to push initiatives for people with disabilities

by William Daroff from JTA:
In the coming weeks and months, Congress will enact sweeping reductions in federal spending, finalize the 2013 federal budget and raise the debt ceiling. The cuts that will come with these decisions are not merely numbers on a ledger; they will decimate programs that directly impact the lives of the most vulnerable among us and the ability of social service agencies to serve them.
For individuals with disabilities who are aspiring for healthy, independent lives, this is a particularly critical time. The unemployment rates we associate with the slow recovery from the Great Recession pale in comparison to the persistent lack of employment opportunities that have ever been available to the disability community. The disincentive to work inherent in our social safety net, and the inability for those relying on it to build assets, makes upward mobility even more difficult.
The growing challenge for non-profit agencies to provide home- and community-based care makes independent living for many individuals with disabilities an impossibility.
This is why dozens of advocates representing a broad range of Jewish communities, religious streams, social service providers and public policy organizations traveled to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to promote the Community First Choice (CFC) option in Medicaid and the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act, both of which further the goals of ensuring individuals with disabilities can lead healthy, independent lives.
During the month of February, Jewish communities across North America observe Jewish Disability Awareness Month. It is an opportunity to raise awareness of the needs, strengths, opportunities and challenges of individuals with disabilities in our communities and to ensure we are building more inclusive communities that celebrate everyone among us. It is also an opportunity for us to engage with lawmakers and express support for public policy initiatives that lead to better outcomes for the disability community.

Harkin: Leave Medicare, Medicaid out of fiscal-cliff talks

By Elise Viebeck from the Hill:

Senate Health Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said Thursday that Medicare and Medicaid should be off the table during talks on the fiscal cliff.

Harkin spoke alongside other liberal lawmakers at an event to highlight opposition to cutting social programs for deficit reduction.

He touted the results of the Nov. 6 election as evidence that Americans support raising taxes instead of cutting spending. 

When it comes to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the American people told us to protect and strengthen these programs, not cut them," Harkin said.

"The American people want a change in the structure of who pays and making sure that we keep the programs that protect the poor, the disabled and the elderly," he told The Hill.

President Obama will meet Friday with lawmakers to open negotiations on how to avoid the "fiscal cliff," a combination of tax increases and automatic spending cuts that will hurt the U.S. economy unless lawmakers act.

In earlier talks, Obama backed roughly $100 billion in cuts to Medicaid, including a streamlined system for federal payments that would result in state governments shouldering more of the funding burden.

At Thursday's event, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he wanted to "send a very loud and very clear message to the leadership … in the White House" not to cut Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.

Sanders added, "There are fair ways to reduce the $1 trillion federal deficit and $16 trillion national debt, but balancing the budget on the backs of the elderly, the sick, the children and the poor is not among them."
 Republicans have said they won't accept new tax revenues unless Democrats agree to reform entitlements.

Fiscal Cliff: What Is At Stake For Medicare And Medicaid?

from Kaiser Health News:
Jackie Judd talks to KHN's Mary Agnes Carey about the budget negotiation scenarios for Medicare, where the "doc fix" fits into the budget picture, and whether Medicaid cuts are possible.
>>Listen to the audio or read a transcript below:
JACKIE JUDD:  Good day, this is Health on the Hill. I’m Jackie Judd. A year ago this month, negotiations on Capitol Hill to reduce the federal deficit collapsed. A year later, have the political dynamics shifted enough so that there is an opportunity for a deal? And if so, how might that affect Medicare and Medicaid? Here to sort through that question is Mary Agnes Carey, senior correspondent for Kaiser Health News.
Mary Agnes, you’ve spent a lot of time this week listening to what people were saying on Capitol Hill. Are you hearing anything different?  Is the tone different? Could there be a deal?
MARY AGNES CAREY: Everyone seems to be talking about a “balanced approach.” We hear this from the president. We hear it from Democrats. We hear it from Republicans. The president and Democrats are saying to Republicans, “If you move on taxes, if you ask some high-income individuals to pay more on taxes, we’ll move on entitlements, on Medicare and Medicaid.”  People seem very, very open to this idea of avoiding the fiscal cliff, of avoiding these automatic spending cuts that are set to kick in in January.  But the thing we have to remember from watching Capitol Hill for a long time is that this is where folks always are at the beginning of a negotiation.

People with disabilities in Minnesota facing cuts in services

Minnesota is staring at a government shutdown.  The closure will no doubt effect thousands who depend on government aid, but some say the current budget proposed by the legislature is unacceptable.  Leaders and family members of people with disabilities say they have already seen service cuts of 5-8% since 2005. They do not want any more services taken away.

The program coordinator of the Arc West Central says her son, Aaron, who has Down syndrome, is like 2000 others unable to get a Developmental Disorder waiver under the cuts. Because of this he does not have staff to help him learn basic life traits and continue on with his independence.  She fears one day he will end up in a group home.

"He wouldn't get to make choices necessarily and it's just a shame that we don't give people these opportunities." Donna Atherton, Are West Central Coordinator, said.

Senator Keith Langseth says a big reason the governor has reject the current budget is because of deep cuts to programs that help people. Dayton has proposed 1.8 billion - of the 3.6 billion in debt - be taken care of with cuts. He would like the other 1.8 billion to be taken care of in the form of revenue. Though, Langseth says it would be an impossibility to for the state to come to an agreement like that before June 30th.

Tell your Congress member to keep Medcaid funding intact

From the NDSS:

Action Needed

Contact your Senators and Representatives in their home offices over the Congressional break, April 18-31st.  They will be in their home districts so you will have access to them.  Visit or write and tell them how important it is for your child to be able to access HCBS.  If they hold town hall meetings, make sure you attend and tell your story.  Personal stories are important.  Talking points can include the following:

• Individuals with disabilities will be forced into costly institutional programs if HCBS are lost.  This is unimaginable in the 21^st century.
• Individuals with disabilities can live in the community, work and become taxpayers at much less expense than costly institutional care.  They need supports to do so.
• Medicaid reform is needed and we are willing to work with them to make it happen.

Developing a final budget will be a long process and the dialogue with your legislators should begin now!

If you have questions, please contact Susan Goodman at susan@ndsccenter.org

Background

On April 15, 2011, the House of Representatives passed a budget resolution by a vote of 235 – 193.  A budget resolution is not a law but a blueprint for the budget that is eventually developed by both houses of Congress.

The drastic Medicaid cuts and restructuring proposals within the recently passed House Budget Resolution, called The Path to Prosperity would  likely, if they became law, deny individuals with disabilities the medical and long-term support services they need to live and work in the community by capping the amount spent on the program.  This would lead to “block grants” or “global waivers.” 

A block grant is an unrestricted federal grant and would mean that a significantly lower amount of funding would come from the federal government each year.  The states would have the discretion to decide who to enroll, what services to provide and who is eligible. 

The likely result of capping the amount of funding would be that individuals with disabilities would be forced into institutions as the only option for care.  This is unimaginable in this day and age given what we know about the great potential of individuals to live and work in the community and at much less expense to the taxpayers than institutions.

Some of the services, referred to as optional services, funded by Medicaid and the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Medicaid waiver programs which could be lost include:

• health insurance coverage
• supports to live in one’s own home including:  assistance making decisions, paying bills or other tasks involved in managing a home
• job supports
• speech or language services
• transportation
• communication aids

Call Congress about the Budget Resolution

Received from the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities

The House will vote on the Budget Resolution Thursday or Friday – Please call!

1. Dial the Capitol Switchboard 1-888-245-0215 [toll-free] or 202-224-3121 and ask for the office of your Representative
2. Ask to speak to the staff person working on budget issues
3. Identify yourself as a constituent

Message to Representatives:

Please vote NO on the House Budget Committee's Budget Resolution.

It would slash Medicaid, Medicare, food stamps, education... in fact, all the investments that help Americans to be economically secure. People with disabilities disproportionately rely on government services to live, learn and work in their communities. These services assist many people with disabilities to live independently in the community avoiding costly institutional care and increasing the opportunities to work and pay taxes.

Click here to Take Action to find out the name of your Representative but please make a phone call for maximum impact!

The Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities is a coalition of approximately 100 national disability organizations working together to advocate for national public policy that ensures the self-determination, independence, empowerment, integration and inclusion of children and adults with disabilities in all aspects of society.