JFActivist

Voters with Disabilities Still Confront Access Problems

From McKnight's Long-Term Care News & Assisted Living (10/29/09):

GAO: Elderly, Disabled Voters Still Confront Access Problems

The Department of Justice should do more to ensure that elderly and disabled individuals have voting access, a recently released report found.

The Government Accountability Office, at the request of a number of U.S. senators, conducted a nationwide survey on Election Day last year to determine whether states had met the goals for voter access laid out in the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002. Released Tuesday, the report shows that strides have been made over the last few years, but in some areas of the country, barriers still remain for elderly and disabled individuals. For example, 46% of polling places surveyed in the report had voting systems technically considered “accessible,” but that could still pose problems for people in wheelchairs. Sens. Herb Kohl (D-WI) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the report.

The new report is the latest in a series examining the Department of Justice's efforts to ensure elderly and disabled voter accessibility. The next report, scheduled for release in November, will examine voting practices in long-term care facilities.

>>> For the GAO Summary and Report

More Post-Secondary Students than Ever have Disabilities

From the GAO (10/28/09):

Higher Education and Disability: Education Needs a Coordinated Approach to Improve Its Assistance to Schools in Supporting Students

Research suggests that more students with disabilities are pursuing higher education than in years past, and recent legislative changes, such as those in the Higher Education Opportunity Act and Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, have the potential to increase the number and diversity of this population. GAO was asked to examine (1) what is known about the population of postsecondary students with disabilities; (2) how postsecondary schools are supporting students with disabilities; (3) what challenges, if any, schools face in supporting these students; and (4) how the Department of Education is assisting schools in supporting these students. To conduct this work, GAO analyzed federal survey and some state data; conducted site visits; interviewed agency officials, disability experts, school officials, and students; and reviewed laws, regulations, and literature.

Students with disabilities represented nearly 11 percent of all postsecondary students in 2008, according to a federal survey. Moreover, this population appears to have grown, based on selected federal and state data...School officials told GAO they need more guidance and information about serving students with disabilities.

GAO Recommendation:
To improve access to quality higher education for students with disabilities, the Secretary of Education should develop and implement a coordinated approach to optimize agency resources and knowledge in providing technical assistance to institutions of higher education in supporting students with disabilities. For example, Education could develop a plan for routinely and systematically sharing information related to supporting postsecondary students with disabilities.

>>> For the Full Report

Insurers Wrongfully Deny Disabled Workers Claims

From the LA Daily Journal (10/12/09):

Ill Workers Denied Benefits Face Fight Alone

By Evan George

... An investigation by the Daily Journal, which included a review of 576 lawsuits filed in federal court in California against the seven largest disability insurers, found:

Insurance companies regularly deny, or terminate, benefits to people even after they are found disabled by the federal government and approved for Social Security checks. The companies hire contract doctors who routinely reject the opinion of treating physicians without ever having seen the patients.

Some insurers provide incentives to employees to deny and terminate claims, tying performance evaluations to meeting money-saving goals.

No regulatory agency has taken responsibility for these cases. Consumers who complain to the Department of Insurance are ignored or told to contact the federal Department of Labor because workplace benefits are controlled by federal laws. But the Department of Labor does not investigate, or track, the complaints either. Officials say the only thing the law provides is the chance to sue in federal court.

Those who choose to fight the insurance companies wait years. Plaintiffs waited two years and eight months on average from the time they became disabled before their cases resolved, the Daily Journal found. One man has been waiting 10 years for benefits.

In nearly half the cases reviewed by the Daily Journal that reached court, judges find that the insurance companies had no basis to deny benefits. Judges who consider the companies' patterns of practice side with workers even more often, one survey found, nearly 70 percent of cases.

Because federal law does not allow for any damages, there is no peril for the insurance companies to repeatedly deny legitimate claims. Judges often find that the insurers wantonly denied or arbitrarily stopped paying benefits to disabled workers. Yet the most the companies will have to pay is the original amount, plus, in some cases, legal fees.

"There is really no downside for an insurance company to cut these people off," said Alice Wolfson, an attorney who chairs the board of the nonprofit United Policyholders. That group advises consumers who have trouble getting any kind of benefit from insurance companies.
Wolfson said the insurance companies bank on many people giving up after a claim is denied the first or second time.

"Some people will get lawyers and some will fight," she went on, "but then the company still has a choice to settle the case for pennies on the dollar."... 

>>> For the Full Article

Sidewalks become battlegrounds

From USA Today (10/25/09):

Sidewalks become battlegrounds
By Chris Joyner, USA TODAY

JACKSON, Miss. — The nation's crumbling sidewalks have disabled residents taking their wheelchairs to the streets, a potentially dangerous practice that has cash-strapped cities and disability-rights advocates at odds over how to fix the problem.

Cities across the nation are dealing with eroding sidewalks that do not meet standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under the ADA, state and local governments cannot discriminate against the disabled in providing "services, programs or activities," including access to sidewalks.

Although there are no specific statistics on the number of accidents involving wheelchairs in streets, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Fatality Analysis Reporting System, disability was a factor in 617 pedestrian traffic fatalities last year.

Disabled residents here take their lives in their hands getting from point A to point B, says Scott Crawford, a disability-rights advocate...

...In the past 10 years, the Justice Department has inked settlement agreements of ADA complaints with dozens of cities as part of a push called Project Civic Access, an effort to ensure cities eliminate physical and communication barriers for people with disabilities.

Elsewhere:

•In California, state officials are fighting a federal class-action lawsuit filed by disability-rights advocates who want thousands of wheelchair ramps installed along 2,500 miles of sidewalks on state roads across the state. Mary-Lee Kimber, staff attorney at Disability Rights Advocates, a non-profit law firm representing the plaintiffs, said the two sides are working toward a settlement after a judge last month halted the trial to allow more negotiations. If the state loses, it faces potentially billions of dollars in sidewalk-repair costs.

•In Arlington, Texas, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in June that two disabled residents could proceed with a lawsuit against the city over the condition of its sidewalks. John Nevins, attorney for residents Richard Frame and Wendell Decker, said his clients, who are disabled, sued because they could not access the sidewalks in their wheelchairs, keeping them from getting to medical and city services.

•In Columbia, Mo., the City Council last week passed an ordinance making it a misdemeanor for motorists to harass disabled people in the public rights of way. Mayor Darwin Hindman said the language for wheelchairs and walkers was added to an existing law for bicyclists to protect "more vulnerable classes" of pedestrians...

>>> For the Full Article

President Obama Signs Hate Crimes Law Protecting People with Disabilities

From CBS News (10/28/09):

Obama Signs... Hate Crimes Bill

President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed and celebrated hate crime legislation that extends protection to people based on sexual orientation, sealing a long-fought victory to gay advocates...

The new law expands federal hate crimes to include those committed against people because of gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. It also loosens limits on when federal law enforcement can intervene and prosecute crimes, amounting to the biggest expansion of the civil-rights era law in decades.

...Obama said in East Room reception, surrounded by joyous supporters, "No one in America should be forced to look over their shoulder because of who they are, or because they live with a disability."

..."We must stand against crimes that are meant not only to break bones, but to break spirits; not only to inflict harm, but to instill fear," Mr. Obama said...

>>> For the Full Article
>>> For an (uncaptioned) video of President Obama's comments
>>> For the White House transcript of President Obama's full Comments

AAPD Featured in Times Square

AAPD will be featured in Times Square throughout the month of November!

AAPD’s brand new 15-second public service announcement will be featured on the CBS jumbo screen on 42^nd Street in Times Square in New York City the entire month of November, and we want you to see it before its debut in the Big Apple!

We’ve launched a sneak peak of the PSA on our YouTube channel starting Monday, October 26. Check it out, and tell your friends and family to check it out, too!

To see the video, visit http://www.youtube.com/user/AAPDvideo and check out AAPD's Times Square New York City PSA.

Join the Conversation on Transportation Problems and Solutions

From United We Ride (10/26/09):

Spread the Word: United We Ride National Dialogue

NOVEMBER 2-13, 2009

www.UWRdialogue.org

Do you know anyone who might have a suggestion or an idea about how to increase access to affordable and reliable transportation services for people with disabilities, older adults, and people with limited incomes?

Please ask them to sign up now at www.uwrdialogue.org to participate in an upcoming online National Dialogue with representatives of the federal government, as well as state and community leaders!

Stakeholders can provide critical input to the Federal Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM) and help the best ideas 'rise to the top' during the dialogue. Just click the link at the bottom to sign up to participate in this free on-line dialogue! It is important that this dialogue be as inclusive as possible, so please spread the word.

For more information about this exciting new collaborative opportunity, please visit:
www.UWRdialogue.org

Action Alert: Support for CLASS Act Grows, Join in

As versions of the Health Reform Bills are combined in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is more critical than ever to voice our support for the provisions that will increase availability of long-term services and supports for our community.

If your organization is not on the below list (under any of the categories—disability, aging, religious organizations), sign on as a national organization supporting the CLASS Act.  Email Connie Garner (Connie_Garner@help.senate.gov) asap with your organization’s name as you would like it listed along with your name as contact person. 

We must make sure The CLASS Act is in the final merged Senate bill.  It is getting some strong opposition from insurance industry and misinformation picked up in some press and by some Senators.  For more on the CLASS Act, visit http://www.passtheclassact.org/.

For more on the Community First Choice (CFC) Option, go to http://www.passthecommunitychoiceact.org/

From CCD (10/28/09):

KIRK SPEAKS IN SUPPORT OF LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE FOR ELDERLY AND DISABLED

 

WASHINGTON, DC— Senator Paul G. Kirk, Jr. spoke on the floor of the United States Senate this morning in support of the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act.

 

The CLASS Act, was included in the health reform bill approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in July. It will provide much needed insurance support to elderly persons and individuals with disabilities and enable them to continue to live independently in their communities.

 

Senator Kirk’s statement follows:

 

As Delivered

 

I want to address a legislative initiative that will assist our senior or infirm citizens as part of our health care reform initiative. Today in the United States there are approximately 200 million people who are elderly or disabled. These individuals are some of our most vulnerable and often they are forgotten.

 

But they always had a friend and advocate in Senator Ted Kennedy. He was the premier legislative innovator. Senator Kennedy understood the current system is not working, that it cried out for innovation. He knew it was wrong that in order for individuals with disabilities and the elderly to receive the services and support they need, they had to stop working, spend down their savings, abandon their dreams, abandon their homes, and possibly go into a permanent facility. All the wrong incentives for individuals who deserve dignity in those fragile years.

 

All this, he felt, is directly contrary to our idea of living the “American dream.” Senator Kennedy was not one to sit idly by. He acted. He acted to try to help as many of these men and women as possible. The community living assistance services and supports act, known as the CLASS Act, was at the heart of his efforts to help people with functional limitations and their families obtain the services and support they need in order to keep their independence and continue as active members of their communities. I am honored to take up that worthy cause.

 

Here’s how the CLASS Act will help the middle class. Under the act, a worker in Massachusetts or any other state can choose to pay into a voluntary insurance program through affordable payroll deductions. After five years of those deductions, they would be eligible for a daily cash benefit of $50 if they became disabled. That money can make a huge difference in allowing a disabled person to live with independence and with dignity. For example, it can pay for having a ramp installed in their home or pay for needed transportation or purchase a commuter to work from home and remain self-sufficient.

 

Some have said this innovation is unsustainable, that it is just another government benefit that will become unaffordable in the years to come. But the Congressional Budget Office and other independent auditing agencies estimate the CLASS Act will be able to maintain its solvency for 75 years. The plan is self-funded and is a cost saver for Medicaid, since fewer people would need to push themselves into poverty in order to enroll in Medicaid and receive the care they need. The CLASS Act will correct that disincentive.

 

The CLASS Act is a realistic answer to the serious problems of our current system, and it's important to the lives of millions of Americans. Disability could suddenly strike any of us in the years ahead. As we work to provide health insurance to the tens of millions of Americans who do not have it, it is hard to understand why we should not meet the needs of millions of people with disabilities and the elderly who desperately need our help.

 

I hope very much that our colleagues will support the CLASS Act as an innovative and necessary part of the current health reform bill, and I look forward to further opportunities to advance this measure, and ultimately as a part of the needed health reform bill that is coming to the floor and will help and serve the American people to its ultimate enactment.

CLASS Act of 2009 Support List

 

Disability Groups

ADAPT

America Psychological Association

American Association on Health and Disability

American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

American Association of People with Disabilities

American Association on Mental Retardation

American Congress of Community Supports and Employment Services

American Music Therapy Association

American Network of Community Options and Resources

Anxiety Disorders Association of America

Assisted Living Federation of America

Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs

Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living

Association of University Centers of Disabilities

Autism Society

Brain Injury Association of America

Center for Disability Issues and the Health Professions at Western  
University of Health Sciences

Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Long-Term Services and Support Task Force

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance

Disability Policy Collaboration

Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund

Easter Seals

Epilepsy Foundation

Higher Education Consortium for Special Education Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children

Justice for All

Mental Health America

National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys

National Alliance on Mental Illness

National Association for Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Eating Disorders

National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities

National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors

National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services

National Association of State Head Injury Administrators

National Council on Independent Living

National Disability Rights Network

National Down Syndrome

National Down Syndrome Congress

National Multiple Sclerosis Society

National Organization on Disability

National Rehabilitation Association

National Spinal Cord Injury Association

Paralyzed Veterans of America

Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America

Research Institute for Independent Living

Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered

Special Olympics, Inc.

TASH

The Arc of the United States

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Tourette Syndrome Association

United Cerebral Palsy

United Spinal Cord Association

US Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association

Wider Opportunities for Women

 

Aging Groups

AARP

Alliance for Retired Americans

Alliance for Quality Long Term Care

Alzheimer's Association

Alzheimer's Foundation of America

American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry

American Association for Homecare

American Association for Homes and Services for the Aging

American Health Care Association

Association of BellTel Retirees

Burton Blatt Institute

National Alliance for Caregivers

National Association for Homecare and Hospice

National Association of Area Agencies on Aging

National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs

National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers

National Association of State Units on Aging

National Council on Aging

National Family Care Givers Association

National Indian Council on Aging

National Respite Coalition

Notre Dame du Lac Assisted Living

OWL-The Voice of Midlife and Older Women

Prima Council on Aging

ProtectSeniors.org

The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term

The National Voice for Quality Long-Term Care

Therapeutic Communities of America

United Jewish Communities

United Neighborhood Centers of America

Volunteers of America

 

Healthcare Groups

Ambulatory Behavioral Healthcare

American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy

American Congress of Rehabilitative Medicine

American Counseling Association

American Diabetes Association

American Group Psychotherapy Association

American Hospital Association (AHA)

American Mental Health Counselors Association

American Occupational Therapy Association

American Society on Consultant Pharmacists

American Therapeutic Recreation Association

Association for Ambulatory Behavioral Healthcare

Assoc. of the Advancement of Psychology

Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law

Center for Medicare Advocacy

Families USA

Family Voices

Gay Men of African Descent

Medicare Rights Center

Mujeres Unidas Contra el SIDA

National Alliance to End Homelessness

National Partnership for Women and Families

National Association of Children's Behavioral Health

National Association of Mental Health Planning Councils

National Association of School Psychologists

National Coalition of Mental Health Consumer/Survivor Organizations

National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare

National Council for Community Behavioral Health Care

National Foundation for Mental Health

National Health Council

National Minority AIDS Council

The Center for Medical Advocacy

Visiting Nurses Association of America

 

Unions

American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)

American Federation of State, Country, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)

Service Employees International Union (SEIU)

 

Religious Organizations

American Association of Pastoral Counselors

Assoc. of Jewish Aging Services of North America

B'nai B'rith International

Catholic Health Association of the United States

Council of Health and Human Service Ministries of the United Church of Christ

Episcopal Community Services in America

Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society

Lutheran Services in America

Mary Immaculate Health/Care Services

Masonic Communities and Services Association

National Council of Jewish Women

Presbyterian Association of Homes and Services for the Aging

Sisters of Charity

'Meet Sue' Wins 'What Can You Do?' Contest

Press Release from the Campaign for Disability Employment (10/26/09):

Best Buy and The Campaign for Disability Employment Announce National Video Contest Winner
Blake Watson’s "MEET SUE" wins the What Can YOU Do? Video Contest

Flowood MS, October 26, 2009 – Today, Best Buy and the Campaign for Disability Employment, a newly-formed collaborative of leading disability organizations, announced the winner of the What Can YOU Do?  Video Contest.  The national competition, which attracted more than 130 videos promoting the talent and skills that people with disabilities bring to America’s workplaces and economy, was won by Mississippi native Blake Watson.  Mr. Watson’s innovative video, “Meet Sue,” is showcased on the Campaign’s Web site (www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org) and was screened publicly for the first time at the U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN) Annual Conference and Career Fair held in Washington D.C. in September.

The Campaign for Disability Employment sponsored the What Can YOU DO? Video Contest as part of its national effort to increase the employment of people with disabilities.  Their goal is to promote the hiring, retention and advancement of people with disabilities and dispel negative stereotypes about disability and employment.  In that spirit, the video contest invited aspiring filmmakers to produce creative, fun and compelling 60-second videos that illustrate what people with disabilities can do at work when given the opportunity.  An objective of the video contest was to help viewers re-think their assumptions about people with disabilities and employment. 

The success of the What Can YOU Do? Video Contest was also due in large part to Best Buy, the nation’s largest consumer electronics retailer, who will be hosting Mr. Watson during an in-store celebration today at Best Buy Store number 938 in Flowood, Mississippi.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Campaign for Disability Employment in sponsoring the What Can YOU Do video contest,” said John Pershing, executive vice president, human capital, Best Buy. “We believe a diverse environment is critical to the success of our business. We value all of our employees for their individual talents, ideas and innovative approaches used to meet the needs of our customers every day.”

Mr. Watson, who will be awarded a $1,500 Best Buy gift card, is a 24 year old Web designer based in Central Mississippi.  He has an undergraduate degree in information systems and masters in business administration, both from Mississippi State University.  During his college career, Mr. Watson was the co-director of Students with Disabilities Affairs and served as president of United Students, an advocacy group for students with disabilities.  He is also a writer who regularly blogs about disability issues.

In addition to Mr. Watson’s first place honor, the contest recognized several honorable mention entries.   Tiffany Navarro and Ian Cinco were recognized for their animated video entitled, “Working Together,” and Isaac Taleno for his video, “Let’s Come Together.”  All of the winning videos, along with the Campaign’s flagship public service announcement, “I Can,” are featured on the Campaign’s Web site, www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org.  Visitors are encouraged to view and forward the videos to help advance the What Can YOU Do? outreach effort and spread the word that at work, it’s what people can do that matters.

About the Campaign for Disability Employment
The Campaign for Disability Employment seeks to promote positive employment outcomes for people with disabilities by encouraging employers, and others, to recognize the value and talent that people with disabilities bring to the workplace, as well as the dividend to be realized by fully including people with disabilities at work. The Campaign is a collaborative effort between the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD); the National Business and Disability Council (NBDC); Special Olympics (SO); and the U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN). The Campaign for Disability Employment is supported by West Virginia University, receives technical assistance from the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) and is funded by the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP)/U.S. Department of Labor. For more information, visit www.whatcanyoudocampaign.org. 

Glenn Close and Family Tackle Stigma of Mental Illness

From ABC News (10/21/09):

Glenn Close and Family Tackle Stigma of Mental Illness
Actress Inspired by Sister Jessie Close, Nephew, to Raise Awareness
By KATIE ESCHERICH

For more than 25 years, actress Glenn Close has wowed audiences with memorable performances. But her latest role in a public service announcement addressing the stigma of mental illness hits particularly close to home.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about one in four adults in the United States have a diagnosable mental disorder. Close is speaking out for the first time on television about the legacy of mental illness in her own family. Her sister, Jessie Close, has bipolar disorder, and Jessie's son Calen Pick, 28, has schizo-affective disorder.

"Mental illness is just part of the human condition," the actress said today on "Good Morning America," adding that her family hopes that the sisters' campaign will help foster a dialogue about a condition that we should "talk about as openly as cancer or diabetes."

Glenn Close, an Emmy, Golden Globe and Tony award winner and Oscar nominee currently starring in the series "Damages," is also the creator of a nonprofit organization called BringChange2Mind, which she founded to raise awareness about mental illness and to provide support and information to the mentally ill and their families...

>>> For the Full Article 

>>> For the Bring Change 2 Mind Website