President Vetoes Funding for Lifespan Respite...

President Vetoes Spending Bill that Increases Funding for NFCSP, Provides $2 Million for Lifespan Respite

On November 13, 2007, five days after Congress sent President Bush the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations legislation for Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 (H.R. 3043), the President vetoed the bill. The bill would increase funding for the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP) by $2 million, up from $156 million in FY 2007. The bill would provide a $7 million increase for older adult supportive services and senior centers (Title IIIB), up from $350.6 million in FY 2007, and an increase of $28.1 million for home-delivered and congregate meals, up from $587.2 million in FY 2007. The bill also includes $2 million for the Lifespan Respite Care Act, a new program signed into law in December 2006. It remains to be seen whether Congress has the votes to override the veto.

School Inclusion and Mock Testimony

Our last Partners weekend focused on best practices for school inclusion and preparing for mock testimony in January. Dr. Jill England was our facilitator on school inclusion.She said that inclusion one child at a time does not work and that systems need to change in order to help the most children and create lasting change. She recommended the following book and DVD as reading to follow up her presentation. Jill also gave us two websites on history and news for students that are worth looking at:

news-2-you.com and eyewitnesstohistory.com

She also brought lots of great learning toys and products like the EZ padlock for lockers for kids in middle and high school, and a film called Through the Same Door about kids with disabilities in college.

Bobby Goldberg, our speaker on Sunday, says advocacy is like a "constant drumbeat" and that we need to develop relationships with legislators in order to facilitate systems change. Bobby's recommended book is below, and she urged us to become familiar with the White Book that lists all of the Georgia state legislators. Dave and Bobby stayed for the rest of the day advising Partners in their mock testimony groups. I threw down a challenge to this class to beat the current Partners record of sixteen legislators to attend a mock testimony. Over the next month, they will invite their legislators to participate.The class of 2005 still holds the Georgia Partners record.

Partners graduates will be hosting a chat tonight for Parent to Parent of Georgia.

Amy White and Kathy Sutton, Partners graduates from the class of 2007, will be the guest experts during a chat tonight for Georgia parents of children with disabilities.

Date: November 14, 2007 – 8:00 p.m.
Topic: How to survive the 3 H’s – Horribly Hectic Holidays

Starting in November and ending on January 2, many families celebrate a variety of holidays. These holidays are exciting for everyone. You get to spend time with family and make memories for the children. However, some families have a difficult time during this season and need a little extra help with useful ideas on how to cope with the added stress. Our two expert guests will share their ideas on how to make this season easier.

Kathy Sutton is the Southwest Coordinator for Parent to Parent of Georgia. She has a son with ADHD and bipolar disorder. Her simple solutions and creative ideas have helped her son cope with the overstimulation this time of the year often brings.

Amy White is mother to Hunter, a 7 year old boy who has G.E.R.D. Amy has extensive traveling experience with Hunter, and has common sense solutions to the Holidays.

Holidays don’t have to be hectic any more!

These chats are your chance to interact with experts in various aspects of parenting a child with a disability. Click on this link for more information and to enter the chat: Parent to Parent of Georgia

Shift Happens: Training and Technical Assistance Series to Develop Positive Behavioral Supports

Announcement from the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases concerning training and technical assistance on providing positive behavioral supports.

Shift Happens: FY’08 DD Training and Technical Assistance Series to Develop Positive Behavioral Supports

Background: The Division of MHDDAD is dedicated to improving the support of individuals in order to reduce behavioral challenges and increase independence. The competent and skilled use of positive behavioral supports can help individuals make meaningful progress toward life goals such as social relationships, employment, self-determination, health, and safety. The Shift Happens training and technical assistance series will incorporate and build on the values of the Good to Great initiative underway in Georgia.

Click here for more information on the training and how to register.

Become A Child Advocate!

Are you interested in participating in the Parent Leadership Support Project to become an Advocate for students in Georgia?
The next Parent Leadership Support Project will be held in Metro Atlanta, beginning on January 13, 2008. This is a three-month training program coordinated by the Georgia Advocacy Office, Inc. (GAO) . The Parent Leadership Support Project consists of weekly presentations given by leading educational and legal experts.
The Georgia Advocacy Office is committed to assisting parents of children with disabilities to master the information and skills necessary to secure education opportunities to which all children are entitled. Upon completion of this intensive training, participants will be able to advocate for other children with disabilities across the State. This project is supported by a generous grant from the Georgia Bar Foundation.

The goals of the project are:

• To train advocates and enable Georgia parents of children with disabilities, and other concerned citizens, to master information, and negotiate systems in order to secure the educational opportunities that are mandated for children with disabilities;

• To support grassroots parent leadership efforts; and

• To sustain shared learning among advocates.

The requirements of the parents participating in the training are:

• Attendance and completion of the PLSP training curriculum, and a commitment to advocate on behalf of our communities' children to secure an appropriate education leading to a meaningful life.

We are recruiting applicants for the eight PLSP training to be held in Metro Atlanta beginning in January of 2008. We are recruiting concerned citizens with the belief that all students need a quality education. Click for the application and invitation letter. Applications are due December 10, 2007.

Please forward this link to others that maybe interested in the project. You may also send an email to plsp@thegao.org to receive an electronic version of the application or call (404) 885- 1234 to discuss the possibilities of you applying.

Employment Resources

REFERENCE POINTS:
Promising and Featured Practices For Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies
VR PROMISING PRACTICES
The Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), as part it's monitoring of state employment and independent living programs funded under the Rehabilitation Act, together with state vocational rehabilitation agencies and their stakeholders, have identified promising practices in a number of topic areas including 1) the transition of youth with disabilities from school to employment; 2) independent living programs; and 3) Vocational Rehabilitation Programs.
Brief descriptions of these practices are available online.
Programs and practices highlighted by RSA include the following:

Statewide Partnerships Leveraging Resources to Maximize Access to Services for Transitioning Youths
Alabama College Preparation Programs and Career Preparation and Training Initiative
Maryland Program for Transitioning Youth and Evidence Based Supported Employment Practices
Nebraska's Transition Scholarships and Consumer Involvement Practices
Pennsylvania's Community on Transition.
Rhode Island's Shared Youth Vision Federal Collaborative Partnership
South Dakota Collaborative Independent Living Service Delivery
Vermont's Jump on Board for Success (JOBS) and Learn, Earn and Prosper (LEAP) programs

Click for more information

VR FEATURED PRACTICES: STATE EMPLOYMENT SPECIALISTS IN VOCATIONAL EDUCATION
The goal of State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies is to assist individuals with disabilities to become employed. To that end, VR agencies (with the support of their federal partners) stand ready to provide employers with qualified job candidates with disabilities to meet the workforce needs of American business. Each state has devised practices that are useful for their regional industries, geographic profile and demographics. This Web site will highlight effective practices, models and tools so that agencies can learn from one another what works. In addition, RSA maintains a listing of state employment specialists who are willing to share their experiences and expertise with others in the network. To access the site, click here.

THE ARC OF ILLINOIS: FAMILY MANUAL FOR TRANSITION TO WORK AND ADULT SERVICESThe ARC of Illinois has published an informative guide that provides a detailed look at what steps can be taken to help an individual with developmental disabilities make the transition from the school system and various services to the workforce and/or adult services. Many useful resources are provided, as well as checklists of steps to take. Click here for the Manual.

EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES
This question-and-answer document addresses the application of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to persons with intellectual disabilities in the workplace. Click here for this new publication.

Changing Offensive Language

Advocates' Ballot Measure Would Erase "Idiot" And "Insane" From New Jersey Laws
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
October 30, 2007

TRENTON, NEW JERSEY--In 1844, the New Jersey legislature adopted a law to forbid any "idiot or insane person" from voting.

That language is still in the state constitution, 163 years later.

On November 6, New Jersey voters will be given the choice to have that language erased from the books.

Ballot Question Number 4 is the result of months of intense advocacy by people with disabilities and their allies across the state. It reads:

"Shall the amendment of Article II, Section I, paragraph 6 of the Constitution, agreed to by the Legislature, revising the current constitutional language concerning denial of the right to vote by deleting the phrase 'idiot or insane person' and providing instead that a 'person who has been adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to lack the capacity to understand the act of voting' shall not enjoy the right of suffrage, be adopted?"

Disability rights advocates, led by the Monday Morning Project of the New Jersey Developmental Disabilities Council, persuaded lawmakers of both the state Senate and Assembly to unanimously pass measures to put the question of changing the language to voters.

Diane Jones of The Arc of New Jersey testified before legislators earlier this year.

"I am here to tell you that I do not like the word 'idiot' on the thing," she said. "I want it to be cut out of the New Jersey Constitution. I want everybody to be free and happy and to be just who they are."

Advocates are currently campaigning for voters to vote "yes" to approve the ballot measure.

New Jersey is believed to be one of just six states that still use words such as "idiot" and "insane" in their laws.

Related:
"Editorial: Vote to remove offensive description of voters with disabilities" (East Brunswick Sentinel)

"Editorial: Ballot question No. 4 is long overdue on disabilities issues in New Jersey" (The Hammonton News)

"Ballot Question Number 4" (The Arc of New Jersey)

"Words Can Hurt . . . And That Matters" (New Jersey Developmental Disabilities Council)

Disabilities, rights grab spotlight at forum

Saturday, November 3, 2007
By HOLLY RAMER
The Associated Press

Democratic presidential candidate Chris Dodd talked up his commitment to people with disabilities Friday with help from a personal source of inspiration: his sister.

Carolyn Dodd, a retired teacher who is visually impaired and uses a cane, introduced her younger brother at a forum sponsored by Granite State Independent Living. She described a letter he received last spring from a disabled man who remembered how kind and helpful Dodd had been to him when they were high school classmates...

Dodd was one of several Democratic hopefuls to address about 600 voters, most with disabilities, who attended the forum. He described his long-time support for disability rights, from cosponsoring the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1975 to sponsoring and then fighting for years to pass the Family and Medical Leave Act, which he said was inspired by the family of a young Connecticut girl with disabilities...

The forum was designed to pressure presidential candidates to support people with disabilities and their right to equality, opportunity and access.

"Those three words are really about civil rights, and that's why we're here today," said Andrew Imparto, president of the American Association of People with Disabilities. "People with disabilities have a right to be full participants in all aspects of society, and we need leadership from the top."

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton promised to reinstate her husband's executive order calling on federal agencies to hire 100,000 people with disabilities in five years.

She also said she would get rid of federal rules that cut benefits for people with disabilities when they get jobs...

Former Sen. John Edwards also would reinstate the executive order on hiring, said his campaign manager, former U.S. Rep. David Bonior of Michigan, who noted that adults with disabilities are 30 percent more likely to live in poverty. He framed his remarks around Edwards' call to build one America that serves all citizens equally...

Sen. Joe Biden argued that the power of the presidency lies not in issuing executive orders or proposing legislation but in using the bully pulpit to remind the public about the nation's core values, including equality and dignity for all...

Though he used most of his time to promote his single-payer health care system, Rep. Dennis Kucinich also highlighted his personal connections to the disabilities community. He described a young boy who learned to read at age 3 but was in danger of failing in school because of a severe stutter until a teacher arranged for him to get speech therapy...

Former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel, meanwhile, revealed that he struggled with dyslexia as a child. He devoted his speech to describing his plan to give all policy decisions to the people through a direct vote.

Sen. John McCain, the only Republican to participate, addressed the group by phone. He focused on health care for disabled veterans, repeating a favorite quote from George Washington: "The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional as to how they perceive the veterans of earlier wars were treated by their country."

Click here for the complete article:
Disabilities, rights grab spotlight at forum

November 8, 2007 Board Meeting

AGENDA
November 8, 2007, 9:00 a.m.
Twin Towers Building
20th Floor, West Tower, Floyd Room
200 Piedmont Avenue
Atlanta, Georgia 30334

Call to Order - Richard Holmes, Chairman

Approval/Adoption of Minutes - Mark Oshnock, Secretary

Opening Comments - Richard Holmes

Meyers and Stauffer CMO Audit Update - Jared Duzan and Beverly Dilley

Department Updates

1. Director, Health Planning Division Clyde Reese
▪Certificate of Need Rules 111-2-2-.07, .09, .33 and. 34 -
Final Adoption

2. Chief Financial Officer - Carie Summers
▪MRWP/CHSS Public Notice – Final Approval
▪DSH Payments Public Notice – Final Approval

3. Chief, State Health Benefit Plan - Nancy Goldstein
▪SHBP Strategy

4. Chief, Managed Care and Quality - Kathy Driggers
▪Georgia Families Quality Strategic Plan -
Request for Required Public Input

F. Commissioner’s Comments - Dr. Rhonda Medows

G. New Business and Chairman’s Closing Comments - Richard Holmes

H. Adjourn

NOW and COMP Waivers - Provider Enrollment

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved the New Options (NOW) and Comprehensive Supports (COMP) Waivers. As part of the transition to these waivers, the Office of Developmental Disabilities has reviewed current Mental Retardation Waiver Program (MRWP) and Community Habilitation and Support Services (CHSS) waiver services and determined corresponding NOW and COMP waiver services. The Office of Developmental Disabilities is working with the Division of MHDDAD’s Provider Network Management Section and the Department of Community Health (DCH) on the enrollment of existing MR/DD waiver providers for NOW and COMP waiver services. DCH is requiring Department of Human Resources, Division of MHDDAD approval documentation for the enrollment of existing MR/DD waiver providers for NOW and COMP waiver services. This required documentation is being generated by the Division based on previous approval by DHR, Division of MHDDAD of a provider for MR/DD waiver services under the MRWP and/or CHSS Waiver Programs.

Providers will be receiving letters from the Division of MHDDAD as enrollment for NOW and COMP waivers services proceeds. Providers may also receive a letter from ACS if a new provider number is generated. The Office of Developmental Disabilities is scheduling provider trainings across the state. A part of this training will describe the crosswalk to NOW and COMP services for existing providers and provide the opportunity for providers to ask questions about the provider enrollment process. Information will be forthcoming about the provider enrollment process for the new services offered in the NOW and COMP Waivers.

Thank you for your cooperation as we move forward with a significant transition in service delivery for the individuals with developmental disabilities in Georgia.

From:
Stephen Hall, Ph.D., Director
Office of Developmental Disabilities