1) What’s Happening in the Nation’s Capital?
Congress Returns to D.C. from August Recess
Obama To Address Nation on Employment Tomorrow
Super Committee Picks Staff and Sets Meeting Dates!
2) National News
Family Seeks Millions from Obstetrician, Ultrasound Clinics after Son Born with Disabilities
Medicare Steps Up Enforcement of Equal Visitation and Representation Rights in Hospitals
Tenth Anniversary of September 11 Commemorated Throughout Nation
3) State News
Agreement Reached in Disability Lawsuit against Maine DHHS
IL and NJ Caregivers Reeling After Medicaid Changes
4) Announcements and Additional Resources
Registration Open! Conference on Responding to Crime Victims with Disabilities
Congress Returns to D.C. from August Recess
This week Congress returns to Washington, D.C. after the annual August recess. House members returned today and members of the Senate are expected to return on Tuesday. Both Houses return to a full calendar to end the year. There are many legislative issues and concerns that congressional committees will take on before the end of the first half of the 112th Congress.
This week has already proven to be a busy one. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights, scheduled a hearing on Voting Rights for Thursday, September 8th. The hearing will assess the impact of voting laws recently passed by several states. Among other things, these new laws will significantly reduce the number of early voting days, require voters to show photo identification before voting, and make it harder for volunteer organizations to register new voters. The hearing will scrutinize the claims of the proponents, who say that these new laws will reduce voter fraud. It will also review the evidence demonstrating that these laws will make it harder for tens of thousands of [Americans with disabilities], elderly, minority, young, and low income Americans to exercise their right to vote. NCIL will submit a statement to the Subcommittee that discusses the issues and concerns that affect people with disabilities and staff will be in attendance.
Many advocacy coalitions have been meeting in D.C. to create strategies and discuss opportunities to advance the disability agenda. There are many bills, both old and new, that we would like to see progress from committees to the floors of the House and Senate.
These bills cover many areas of concern for each of NCIL’s consumer-driven advocacy committees. We remain hopeful for speedy Reauthorization of the Rehabilitation Act and the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and several other important bills. NCIL staff is working with congressional staff and representatives to see that these bills become reality soon. Stay tuned for further updates!
Obama To Address Nation on Employment Tomorrow
On Thursday, September 8, 2011 President Obama will address a joint session of the US Congress, the nation, and the world. The President will lay out his jobs plan, which we hope will create better economic outcomes for the nation.
On September 2, 2011 the US Labor report stated there was “a net job change of zero” with an unemployment rate of 9.1 percent. As reported in August 2011 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the number of unemployed persons with disabilities is much higher. The numbers show that 970,000 people with disabilities were unemployed in July 2011 compared to 919,000 in the same month last year. By comparison, unemployment for persons without disabilities took a dip in July 2011. (BLS – August 2011)
NCIL remains at the forefront of the fight for employment rights for persons with disabilities. We continue to hold meetings with the Administration and members of Congress to ensure that persons with disabilities are a part of job strategies and the conversations currently happening in our nation’s capitol. Employment is one of the most important components for an independent life.
We must make sure that the NCIL community remains at the forefront of the conversations through data analysis and active policy change. In the next few months many important decisions will be made about employment and where our nation is headed economically. NCIL will remain diligent in our efforts and continue to keep you updated on these most important developments.
Super Committee Picks Staff and Sets Meeting Dates
The Joint Select Committee or “Super Committee of 12”, which is comprised of six Democrats and six Republicans from both the House and Senate, has chosen two staffers. Last week the Super Committee named Mark Prater as staff director and yesterday it announced that Sarah Kuehl will serve as deputy staff director. Prater is the Senate Finance Committee deputy staff director and minority chief tax counsel. Kuehl is a senior budget analyst for the Senate Budget Committee.
Senator Pat Murray (D-WA) and Representative Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), the Committee’s Co-Chairs announced that the first meeting of the Committee will be on Thursday, September 8 in the Rayburn Building and will be open to the public. There will be opening statements by members and a consideration of rules for the process. The first hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday, September 13. The transparency of the upcoming hearings is still not clear. There has been no confirmation that these hearings will be open to the public or televised. NCIL staff will attend those meetings that are open to the public.
The party leadership appointed the twelve members of the Committee, who will be responsible for producing a bill to reduce the deficit by at least $1.2 trillion by November 23. The House and Senate must vote on this bill, with no amendments, by December 23. If the Committee does not achieve a goal of at least $1.2 trillion in cuts or their work is not enacted by January 15, 2012, then the “triggers” would be implemented and spending would automatically be reduced by $1.2 trillion over nine years. The Senate leadership vows that part of this Committee’s work must be to discuss revenues and ensure that tax increases be part of the solutions. Many believe that this Committee will propose cuts and / or policy changes to the entire “Entitlement Program,” consisting of Social Security – Medicare and Medicaid.
Family Seeks Millions from Obstetrician, Ultrasound Clinics after Son Born with Disabilities
Source: Palm Beach Post, by Jane Musgrave (Excerpted)
Mejia's emotional testimony came on the second day of trial in her multi-million-dollar lawsuit, accusing Palm Beach Gardens obstetrician Dr. Marie Morel and two ultrasound clinics of negligence for not warning her and her husband of their unborn son's disabilities.
Had she known, she said, she would have terminated the pregnancy rather than subject Bryan to what she believes will be a life of physical and psychological pain and untold hardship. "Definitely, I would have had an abortion," she said.
..."We were so happy that day," she said in her native Spanish, with an interpreter turning her words into English for the eight-member jury. That joy quickly turned into confusion, then anguish.
First, she said, she couldn't understand why they whisked Bryan away shortly after he was born. When he was brought to her, he was swaddled tightly in a blanket. "We were so happy when we saw him," she said. Then, she was she told why the baby was secreted away. "I wanted to die," she said. "I couldn't believe it was happening. My son. My son."
…A rehabilitation consultant hired by her lawyers told jurors it will take $9 million to cover the equipment, medical care and services Bryan he will need to live a normal life. The couple is also seeking an unspecified amount for pain and suffering.
…At the urging of Mejia's attorney, Jason Weisser, Circuit Judge Lucy Brown prohibited Rosen from asking Mejia how she could say she would have aborted the son she now loves. The question is not what she would do today, but what she would have done three years ago had she been told of her son's disabilities, Brown said.
Instead, Rosen showed Mejia a photo of a smiling Bryan at Disney World. "Does he enjoy life?" Rose asked. "I think so," Mejia said.
"Do you want him to go to college, get married and have kids?" he asked. "I want the best for him," she answered.
"Does his life have value?" he concluded. "Yes, a lot of value. Great value," she said.
The trial is expected to wrap up late next week. Read More.
Medicare Steps Up Enforcement of Equal Visitation and Representation Rights in Hospitals
Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced new guidance to support enforcement of rules that protect hospital patients’ right to choose their own visitors during a hospital stay, including a visitor who is a same-sex domestic partner. These rules, finalized by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in November, apply to all hospitals that participate in Medicare and Medicaid. The guidance also supports enforcement of the right of patients to designate the person of their choice, including a same-sex partner, to make medical decisions on their behalf should they become incapacitated.
"Couples take a vow to be with each other in sickness and in health and it is unacceptable that, in the past, some same-sex partners were denied the right to visit their loved ones in times of need," said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "We are releasing guidance for enforcing new rules that give all patients, including those with same-sex partners, the right to choose who can visit them in the hospital as well as enhancing existing guidance regarding the right to choose who will help make medical decisions on their behalf.” Read More.
Tenth Anniversary of September 11 Commemorated Throughout Nation
Ten years ago this week our country survived the horrific attacks of 9/11. Many lost their lives as the rest of the nation watched the events unfold on live television. We watched as people appeared from the ashes in New York City; as the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers collapsed to the ground; as people ran in terror from the Pentagon in Arlington, VA; and as all of the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93 were killed in Shanksville, PA.
Two major US cities, New York and Washington, D.C. went into survival mode and used their trained personnel to save lives. Many survived, and emergency management systems around the country were enhanced and fortified.
NCIL continues to fight for inclusion of persons with disabilities as a crucial part of emergency plans for local, state and federal entities. The need to evacuate persons with disabilities from homes, office buildings, transportation systems and large events continues to be a concern and an intricate part of our survival in our communities. NCIL is continuously working with government entities to create inclusive and safe evacuation plans for persons with disabilities.
As the country prepares to remember the events of September 11, 2001, many people will reflect on the stories of the day, the lives of those lost, and the future of our country as we continue to move forward. The NCIL staff would like to extend our condolences to the families of those who were lost on that fateful day.
Agreement Reached in Disability Lawsuit against Maine DHHS
Source: Bangor Daily News, by Meg Haskell
Under the terms of a legal agreement announced Tuesday, the state Department of Health and Human Services will close a loophole that a group of disabled Maine residents says has prevented them from receiving services they need to live productive and independent lives.
The lawsuit, originally brought by three men with physical disabilities but normal mental function, alleged that DHHS, in the Medicaid program known as MaineCare, violated federal law in refusing to pay for support services that would allow the plaintiffs to live in a community setting instead of in nursing homes. The case, filed in U.S. District Court in Bangor in 2009, was granted class-action status earlier this year and grew to include more than 40 members.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs announced the agreement Tuesday.
“Because of the way Maine funds services, the members of the class have had no other choice but to live in nursing homes,” Staci Converse, an attorney with the Disability Rights Center, said in a statement issued Tuesday. “If this agreement is approved by the court, the state will reform the MaineCare program to allow class members to have the choice to live in the community.”
The agreement awaits approval from the court.
The lawsuit alleges that DHHS, in the operation of the MaineCare program, violated the Americans With Disabilities Act and the Nursing Home Reform Act. In addition, plaintiffs claimed that for those who do live in nursing homes, DHHS has not provided federally mandated services that promote independence and community involvement. Read More.
IL and NJ Caregivers Reeling After Medicaid Changes
Source: DisabilityScoop, by Michelle Diament
As more and more states hand over the administration of Medicaid benefits to private companies through so-called “managed care,” people with disabilities are encountering problems.
Managed care is designed to save states money through contracts with private insurers to administer HMO-style health plans for Medicaid recipients.
But as Illinois and New Jersey switch to the new approach, beneficiaries with developmental disabilities are finding that going to the doctor now involves additional hurdles.
Caregivers indicate that many doctors they’ve had relationships with for years are no longer willing to accept the new Medicaid programs. What’s more, some say that the physicians they can get an appointment with are often inexperienced with treating people with disabilities.
Disability advocates say they understand the cost concerns that are driving the switch to managed care, but worry that quality could be at stake, reports the Chicago Tribune and the (Cherry Hill, N.J.) Courier-Post.
Registration Open! Conference on Responding to Crime Victims with Disabilities
NCIL is excited to announce that registration is now open for the National Conference on Responding to Crime Victims with Disabilities. Several members of the NCIL Taskforce on Violence & Abuse are on the steering committee and NCIL is on the planning team. We strongly encourage people with disabilities to attend!
The event will be held December 13-15, 2011 at the JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes, Orlando, Florida.
This unique training opportunity will enhance your knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively serve people with disabilities who are victims of crime, abuse, and neglect. The conference will facilitate partnerships among victim service providers, disability advocates, and allied professionals (i.e., adult and child protective service workers, faith-based practitioners, medical practitioners/forensic examiners, mental health practitioners, and educators).
Register today! Learn more about this conference at www.ncvc.org/rcvd.
Funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, the Responding to Crime Victims with Disabilities National Training Conference is being organized by the National Center for Victims of Crime in partnership with the Joint Center on Violence and Victim Studies, the National Council on Independent Living, the National Sheriffs' Association, the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, Davis Innovations, Inc., and Sharon D'Eusanio.
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September 7, 2011