Access Alaska

The ADA is an antidiscrimination statute passed by Congress and signed into law by the President in July 1990. The EEOC is responsible for enforcing Title I of the ADA, which prohibits employment discrimination against individuals with disabilities. The ADA requires employers to make reasonable accommodations to employees and job applicants with disabilities.

"We encourage the public to submit comments directly to the EEOC." "People with disabilities will be the winners when the new regulations are fully implemented and extensive public comment will ensure they are the best that they can be."

The ADA Amendments Act, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2009, and the regulatory revisions embedded in the proposed rule now available for public comment, makes it easier for an individual alleging employment discrimination based on disability to establish that he or she meets the ADA's definitions of "disability." The ADA Amendments Act also modifies the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibits employment discrimination in the federal workforce on the basis of disability.

The regulatory changes in the proposed rule emphasize that the definition of disability-an impairment that poses a substantial limitation in a major life activity-must be construed in favor of broad coverage of individuals to the maximum extent permitted by the terms of the ADA, and should not require extensive analysis.

The regulatory changes expand major life activities to include "major bodily functions, and clarify that mitigating measures, such as medications and devices that people use to reduce or eliminate the effects of impairment, are not to be considered when determining whether a person has a disability. They also clarify that impairments that are episodic or in remission, such as epilepsy, cancer, and many kinds of psychiatric impairments, are disabilities if they would "substantially limit" major life activities when active.

Finally, the regulation revisions provide a more straightforward way of demonstrating a substantial limitation in the major life activity of working, and implements the ADA Amendment Act's new standard for determining whether someone is regarded as having a disability.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking containing the regulatory changes is posted on the EEOC website, http://www.eeoc.gov/ada/amendments_notice.html along with a question-and-answer guide about the proposal and instructions for submitting public comments to the Commission.

You Can Submit Comments by Mail, Fax and Electronically, Here's How:

Written comments should be submitted to Stephen Llewellyn, Executive Officer, Executive Secretariat, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 131 M Street, NE., Suite 4NW08R, Room 6NE03F, Washington, DC 20507.

Comments submitted by fax. As a convenience to commenters, the Executive Secretariat will accept comments transmitted by facsimile (``FAX'') machine. The telephone number of the FAX receiver is (202) 663-4114. (This is not a toll-free number.) Only comments of six or fewer pages will be accepted via FAX transmittal to ensure access to the equipment. Receipt of FAX transmittals will not be acknowledged, except that the sender may request confirmation of receipt by calling the Executive Secretariat staff at (202) 663-4070 (voice) or (202) 663-4074 (TTY). (These are not toll-free telephone numbers.)

Comments submitted electronically You may also submit comments and attachments electronically at http://www.regulations.gov , which is the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions online for submitting comments.

Copies of comments submitted by the public will be available for review at the Commission's library, 131 M Street, NE., Suite 4NW08R, Washington, DC 20507, between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. or can be reviewed at http://www.regulations.gov.

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For Immediate Release July 1, 2009

Contact: Cathy Stadem, 269-3495, catherine.stadem@alaska.gov, Sarana Schell, 269-8041, sarana.schell@alaska.gov

State Senior and Disabilities Services responds to federal review

Temporary moratorium on some Medicaid applications and enrollment

(Anchorage, AK) —The state Division of Senior and Disabilities Services is working this summer in coordination with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to improve its compliance with federal standards in the areas of Home and Community Based Medicaid Waivers and Personal Care Services (Personal Care Assistance).

“We greatly appreciate the thorough and helpful review that CMS recently completed and we are eager to work hand-in-hand with them in any way that will better serve Alaskans who use and need our services,” said Rebecca Hilgendorf, Director of Senior and Disabilities Services.

The CMS review cited several areas in need of improvement to assure that the state’s oversight of the Waivers and Personal Care Services is consistent with federal and state regulations.

While the improvements are ongoing, the state cannot accept new applications for the Home and Community Based Services Waivers or Personal Care Services at the direction of CMS. The department is evaluating other programs available to provide interim services to the persons who are affected by the CMS-imposed moratorium.

“This is only a temporary moratorium while we catch up with a backlog of assessments and implement systems designed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of Alaskans,” Hilgendorf explained.

The division will also assure that its staff and managers responsible for the Home and Community Based Services and Personal Care Services programs attend Web-based waiver training, which is sponsored by CMS. Following the training sessions, the division will develop a work plan and timeline to implement a quality-improvement strategy and end the moratorium.

“After our plan is developed, we will submit it to CMS for approval,” Hilgendorf said. “Our goal is to quickly resolve the areas of concern while strengthening Alaska’s long-term care system for now and the future.”

Providers and Medicaid recipients with questions may contact Angela Salerno at 465-4874, or angela.salerno@alaska.gov.

More information here.
Download memo from DSS

Tags: Olmstead, HCBS, Healthcare, Long Term Care, Nursing Homes, Independence

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By Cindy Skrzycki
Tuesday, February 24, 2009; D02

The Bush administration shut off a source of information last fall about abuse and neglect in long-term care facilities that people suing nursing homes consider crucial to their cases.

The change, which affects the $144 billion nursing-home industry, was enacted with no public notice or attention.

"This is pretty stunning," said Mark Kosieradzki, a plaintiff attorney in Plymouth, Minn. "Nobody was told. It was just done."

The rule designates state inspectors and Medicare and Medicaid contractors as federal employees, a group usually shielded from providing evidence for either side in private litigation.

The restrictions affect about 16,000 nursing facilities and 3 million residents in the United States. The practical effect is to force litigants to go to greater lengths, including seeking court orders, to get inspection reports or depositions for cases they are pursuing or defending.

"This change hurts nursing-home residents and their families by allowing bad practices to be kept in secret by nursing homes and inspectors," said Eric M. Carlson, an attorney with the National Senior Citizens Law Center in Los Angeles. "Government inspectors have the right to go into nursing homes and investigate, and they learn things that residents and families otherwise could never find out."

The new rule, which was issued in September, generally prohibits state health departments and contractors from participating in private lawsuits involving facilities that are in the federal assistance program without approval by the head of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The rule was justified as being necessary to accommodate the hiring of new contractors to make Medicare payments to providers, perform audit and fraud reviews, and do survey, certification and enforcement work for the program.

Requests for these employees to participate in private cases "divert employees from their federal survey, certification and enforcement responsibilities," the Bush administration said in a supporting document. "The cumulative effect of these requests can impede these activities."

The effect of the directives has started to play out in the nation's courtrooms. Requests for information, once fairly routine, now are stalled between state and federal officials.

Anne Marie Regan, an attorney with the Kentucky Equal Justice Center, a nonprofit poverty legal advocacy and research center, said the change has slowed a case she is pursuing on behalf of an 85-year-old man who was evicted from a nursing home in 2007.

Priscilla Shoemaker, legal counsel for the American Health Care Association in Washington, said nursing homes "are in the same boat" because they also have difficulty getting information on how state inspectors determine penalties, citations and orders to shut down homes.

From the Washington Post.

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By REBECCA BOONE ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

BOISE, Idaho -- Vice President Joe Biden says that President Barack Obama is committed to programs designed to improve the livelihood of Americans with disabilities and special needs.

To demonstrate his point, Biden announced that Kareem Dale, a former member of Obama's campaign in charge of coordinating the vote of disabled Americans, has been named the special assistant to the president for disabilities policy.

Biden made the announcement to a small group of Special Olympics athletes, volunteers and coordinators Thursday afternoon. The vice president was in Boise to attend a portion of the Special Olympics World Winter Games with a presidential delegation including U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Olympic figure-skating medalists Scott Hamilton and Michelle Kwan.

"This is a civil rights movement," Biden said. "There's a need to have changes in policy."

The nation needs policy changes that will ensure Americans with disabilities can get and keep fulfilling jobs without worrying about losing government-funded health insurance or other assistance, Biden said. Advocates have long complained that programs like Social Security Disability Insurance, Supplemental Security Income, Medicaid and Medicare essentially force disabled workers to leave their jobs or prevent them from working so that they can qualify for the medical care they need.

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Organizers concerned disabled may have to stay home

By Leah Fabel

Those with physical disabilities will find Barack Obama's inauguration all but inaccessible, and organizers are concerned that people with disabilities may be forced to stay home.

According to a release from the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies -- the group responsible for the details of Obama's swearing-in -- parking restrictions near the Capitol include cars with disability plates or tags. Drop-off points for the disabled will be located several blocks away, and "traffic conditions and restrictions may make reaching these drop-off locations extremely difficult," the release said.

Even for those who finally arrive, designated areas for people with disabilities in the coveted ticketed section of the festivities are "limited in size and available on a first-come, first-served basis."

"This is like a big, bold sign that says if you're a person with a disability, this is not your event," said Richard Simms, executive director of the D.C. Center for Independent Living, a nonprofit that promotes independent lifestyles for disabled residents...

Take Action!

To address these and other issues with Congress's management of the ticketed inauguration ceremony on the Capitol Grounds:

Contact Senator Diane Feinstein (http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactUs.Home), who is serving as chair of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC)

Speaker Pelosi (http://www.speaker.gov/contact) and

Majority Leader Hoyer (http://democraticleader.house.gov/email_and_rss/email_the_leader/)

JFA previously distributed the contact information for Obama's inaugural team's accessibility contact, Mazen Basrawi. Contact him with issues regarding the opening ceremony, the inauguration viewing from the Mall, the parade, and inaugural balls. 

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All Things Considered, January 2, 2009 - Rudely Interrupted is an Australian indie rock band that has just embarked on its first international tour.

Nothing remarkable about that. What sets the band apart is that all but one of the musicians has a serious disability, ranging from Asperger syndrome to Down syndrome to autism to blindness. The band played at the United Nations as part of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. Rudely Interrupted is believed to be the first rock band to play the U.N.

Tags: npr, rock and roll, disability

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Read it here.

Read Harriet McBryde Johnson's article about her debate with Peter Singer here.

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While her classmates sat in their classroom in Parsons learning the three Rs, 9-year-old Allie Jones was in Washington, D.C., last week learning lessons in history, politics and life.

It is in Washington where Allie saw direct action in progress -- the same type of direct action that has led to change over the years from the civil rights movement.

Martin Luther King Jr. once wrote in a letter from Birmingham jail, "Why sit-ins, marches and so forth? Isn't negotiation a better path? You are quite right in calling for negotiation. Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct action. Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored."

Allie was in Washington for the 25th anniversary of ADAPT (American Disabled for Attendant Programs Today), a group that uses direct action to fight for legislation to promote services in communities instead of warehousing people with disabilities in institutions and nursing homes.

"It's about having access to everything, so they have their rights like everyone else does," Allie said.

Way to go Allie! Read more here in the Parsons Sun.

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Read more here.

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Independent Living

Indian          Lands – Notice that gap?

It is so incomprehensible to me that people with disabilities in the most dominant society that have secured the benefits of an Independent Living Center usually will not extend their service parameters to include American Indian people with disabilities when they reside on Indian Lands.

People with disabilities in the most dominant society understand, or I thought they did understand CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUES. We have one minority population discriminating against another minority population – perhaps “discriminating” is not the correct word – “disregarding” may be even more appropriate – disability disregard.

I found on the ADAPT page something very interesting about people with disabilities in the most dominant society – it was in DENVER – If you read the HISTORY of the Independent Living Movement, you will see in 1986 ADAPT invited ROSA PARKS to lead a Detroit march.

They MUST HAVE REALIZED the same connection that I see here today - Civil Rights.

Civil Rights for people with disabilities in the most dominant society – If you’re on Indian Lands the same courtesies are not extended. There is a gap and I’m working on that gap.

Will the Independent Living Centers Administration kindly extend their services to American Indian people with disabilities when they reside on Indian lands?

If you cannot do that – tell me why.
If you have found a way to do that – tell me how.

Connie Lee Berg e-mail your response: redlake679@hotmail.com

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Michele Norris talks with Habib, whose son has cerebral palsy.

Listen here. Visit the website here.

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June 5, 2007

By John Wisely
Free Press Staff Writer

A still combative Jack Kevorkian promised again not to assist any more suicides but also said he will press for natural rights, including the right to doctor-assisted suicide.

The famous felon, who was released from prison Friday after serving more than 8 years on a second-degree murder conviction, held court for more than hour at Southfield's Skyline Club, answering questions from the media and quoting philosophers and statesmen.

"(Assisted suicide) is a natural right; you were born with that right," Kevorkian said as more than a dozen photographers snapped away and video cameras rolled. "You have all your rights in you."

Kevorkian appeared stronger than he had at his release from prison. He stood the entire time he talked, gestured frequently and sipped water only occasionally.

He said his hepatitis isn't bothering him currently, but he worries that his liver disease could flare up at any time. He wore one of his trademark powder blue cardigan sweaters and a blue jacket that he said he bought at a thrift store for $15.

Kevorkian wouldn't say if he would do anything differently in the crusade that launched him to international fame, but said he hopes to foster appreciation of the 9th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which says that rights spelled out in the Constitution don't deny or disparage other rights retained by the people.

"That's your savior," Kevorkian said.

About a dozen members of Not Dead Yet, a disabilities rights organization, protested outside. Kevorkian's lawyer, Mayer Morganroth, said they were entitled to their opinion "and he's entitled to his," pointing at his client.

Kevorkian wasn't bothered by their presence: "Let the crippled people demonstrate," Kevorkian said.

Contact JOHN WISELY at 248-351-3696 or jwisely@freepress.com

SOURCE: Detroit Free Press

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ANCHORAGE, AK – With the aid of 89,000 members, AARP is calling on U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Ted Stevens to stand with the overwhelming majority of Alaskans and vote to give Medicare the power to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices. Murkowski and Stevens are two of the few remaining Senators yet to publicly state their position on this important issue, and their votes are critical to the bill’s success.

On Wednesday, April 4, AARP members throughout Alaska and across the country will be calling Senators and urging them to support legislation that could help lower Medicare drug prices for Alaska’s Medicare beneficiaries.

According to a recent AARP poll, 85% of Alaska residents want Medicare to leverage the buying power of 43 million Medicare members to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs. “You would think this would be an easy decision for Senator Murkowski and Senator Stevens. Our polls show that Alaska residents support giving Medicare the power to bargain for lower drug prices,” said Ken Osterkamp, AARP Alaska State Director. “AARP members want – and deserve - to know if Senator Murkowski and Senator Stevens will side with their constituents or with the pharmaceutical industry on this important issue.”

Americans pay more than anyone else in the world for most brand-name drugs. In 2006, on average, brand name prescription drug prices increased 6.2 percent for a sample of 193 brand-name drugs widely used by older Americans. During that same period general inflation was just 3.2 percent. Older Americans are the largest consumers of prescription drugs, with a typical senior taking four prescriptions daily.

Giving Medicare the authority to use its bargaining power to negotiate with drug companies to help achieve even lower drug prices would strengthen the Medicare drug benefit even further.

Earlier this year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4, the “Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2007” by a bipartisan vote of 255 – 170. AARP strongly supported H.R. 4 and is now putting its weight behind passing similar legislation in the Senate.

AARP is tracking key votes in the 110th Congress and reporting back to its 38 million members how Congress votes on legislation AARP members are interested in like health care.

“Giving Medicare bargaining power is a key issue for AARP Alaska’s 89,000 members, and we will be letting them know how their elected officials voted on this matter,” said Osterkamp.

Contact info

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Law & Order: Criminal Intent is featuring an episode called "The Silencer", starring a talent-heavy cast of Deaf actors, including:

Deanne Bray more here and here.
Alexandria Wailes
Garrett Zuercher
Darren Frazier
Hillary Baack
Willy Conley
Raymond Luczak

Adding to the excitement, NBC broke history by hiring the most Deaf extras (35 people) for a network TV episode.

Please tune in to your local NBC provider on Tuesday, April 3rd at 9pm to watch the exciting bullet-ridden drama unfold!

Read more about deafness as portrayed on TV here.

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(Published: April 2, 2007)

Linda Spencer was trying to focus on her most immediate problem: Her mattress on the floor at Brother Francis Shelter was good for only two more days. Then she had to find another place to sleep.

It was 25 degrees outside and snowing.

For an hour, she'd been meaning to catch the bus to somewhere she could get on the Internet. But the blind man next to her at Bean's Cafe was singing hymns and the sound soothed her, taking her mind out of the humid soup kitchen, away from the shuffle and the smell of bleach. She decided she'd catch the bus later, maybe after lunch.

Her shelter time was almost up, she told the others cupping mugs at the table. They nodded. They knew the drill: Spend 30 days in the shelter, then you have to leave and you can't come back for 30 more. There's an exception for people who are making serious progress getting a place to live. But Linda's time had run out and she wasn't getting more.

Maybe she could sleep outside on layers of cardboard, suggested the blind man.

Or camp out in that van off Muldoon with the bad transmission, someone else advised.

"I just love singin' " said a child-size grandmother in a spotty kuspuk. She smiled, showing her pink gums, and launched into "I'll Fly Away." Linda and the blind man joined in.

Linda, 59, doesn't drink or do drugs. She's never been in trouble with the law. She was married once, has a daughter and worked as a jeweler. But in the '80s, she suffered a head injury and her life began to fray. Like many at the shelter, an overwhelming list of troubles trails behind her.

A few years back, she hurt her Achilles tendon running for the bus and that put her in a wheelchair for a while. Then there was a diagnosis of colon cancer. Then surgery. Was all that before or after the fight with her family, and the mistake with paperwork that made her disability payments quit coming? It's hard to keep the dates straight. While she was in a homeless shelter in Washington state, there was a flood in her house in Alaska. Mold moved in.

In December, she locked her belongings in a storage unit in Eagle River and took a bed at the Rescue Mission. Now life is the bus schedule, the meal schedule, the rules of the shelter and all the lines to stand in; the paperwork for housing, disability payments and health care. Misplaced forms. Faxes that never make it.

"Sometimes I get lost. Sometimes I get sidetracked. It's part of my problem," she said.

Some days she gets desperate and frustrated. She has difficulties with her doctors and her social workers and the women in the shelter who complain about her snoring. She wants to protest or sue. On the day she was trying to catch the People Mover bus, she had government paperwork in her breast pocket along with some toilet paper.

"People say that everybody has choices, but sometimes the choices suck," she said. "Sometimes there are no answers."

Finally, she got the bus, but it was late arriving at the transit center, so she missed her connection. She took a place on a bench to wait for No. 13. A man next to her swayed forward, his eyes glassy.

"Sometimes I think about it, you know?" the stranger said. "I'm a drifter. I haven't really found my place yet."

"You're still looking," Linda assured him.

She was thinking about her daughter who just had a baby in Washington. You can tell a lot about a tree by the fruit it bears, she said. She keeps a neat folder with a copy of her girl's birth certificate. And pictures of her prom. They're 20 years old.

"My daughter. I love her dearly. She's been the greatest joy in my life. Be sure to put that in the paper," she said.

Just then, a black-haired woman breezed in. She was keyed up and chewing gum. Linda had met her at the Rescue Mission. She calls her "The Raven," because she's usually up to mischief.

"Got kicked out of the hostel," The Raven said. She was carrying a garbage bag and a wad of cash. "I owe you a dollar."

"No you don't, you owe me 25 cents," Linda said, adding that she was getting kicked out of the shelter too.

"They said I wasn't making sufficient progress," Linda said.

A woman on a neighboring bench butted in.

"And, you can't go to AWAIC because you're not abused, right?" she said.

"Want me to beat you up?" asked The Raven, half-joking.

"Could you do it where it doesn't hurt?" Linda said.

The bus rolled up. It was too late to get to the Internet place, but Linda got on anyhow. So did The Raven. The bus pulled onto Sixth Avenue. Scenes of Fairview scrolled past the windows: gritty snow, the iron fence around the downtown cemetery, a woman with a case of beer in the parking lot of Carrs on Gambell. The Raven pieced through a stack of pictures someone left. She laughed too loud and snorted.

The bus slowed. Linda stood and took a few steps forward, like a woman walking upriver.

"I love you!" The Raven called, yelling the digits of her phone number.

The doors sighed open and let Linda out into the street.

"I love you, too," she called back, repeating the numbers to herself so she wouldn't forget.

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Joined by Wounded Soldier, Caregivers, Advocates for Military Families, Medical Experts

Washington, DC - Today on Capitol Hill, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) joined with advocates for wounded soldiers and their families to announce a new legislative initiative, co-sponsored by Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), to improve the detection, assessment and treatment of traumatic brain injury and expand support systems for members and former members of the Armed Services with traumatic brain injury and their families. Senator Clinton also announced introduction of legislation to help ensure wounded soldiers receive the disability benefits they need and deserve and to further protect military family financial benefits. Senator Clinton was joined by Sergeant Ted Wade U.S Army 82nd Airborne Division, who incurred a severe traumatic brain injury and his wife Sarah Wade of Chapel Hill, NC; Lee Woodruff, TBI caregiver and co-author with husband Bob Woodruff of New York Times bestseller In An Instant; Dr. Bert Vargas, a resident at New York University School of Medicine who served as an Air Force flight surgeon in Iraq and leadership from the Wounded Warrior Project, the Military Officers Association of America, the National Military Family Association, the Brain Injury Association of America and the American Academy of Neurology.

"If you serve your country your country must serve you. This is the promise our country must keep to the men and women who enlist, who fight and who return home often bearing the visible and invisible scars of sacrifice. We have a duty to reform and ready the military for the increasing number of veterans suffering from complex injuries like traumatic brain injury. Today we are taking steps needed to ensure our men and women in uniform and their families have the care and support they need and deserve," said Senator Clinton.

Senator Clinton today introduced legislation to build on the groundbreaking "Heroes at Home" initiative she authored and secured in law last year aimed at helping U.S. troops and their families to transition after deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan and get the help they need with readjustment to work and coping with post-traumatic stress disorder and TBI. Today, Senator Clinton announced a new initiative to expand Heroes at Home by:

• Improving the screening process for our troops before deployment to improve TBI diagnoses after deployment. Traumatic brain injury, which affects approximately one out of every 10 returning service members, has been identified as the "signature wound" affecting soldiers deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. Multiple deployments and prevalent use of IEDs have put service members at increased risk of sustaining more than one mild or moderate TBI. However, mild and moderate TBI may go undetected, especially if a service member has sustained more obvious injuries. It also can be difficult to distinguish mild TBI from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder since both conditions have common symptoms, such as irritability, anxiety and depression. Senator Clinton's bill will improve detection of mild and moderate TBI by implementing an objective, computer- based assessment protocol to measure cognitive functioning both prior to and after deployment. Senator Clinton's bill will require that the same assessment tool be used across all branches of the Armed Services and for every member of the Armed Forces who will be deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.
• Helping families struggling to take care of a loved one with training and certification for dealing with brain injuries and psychological injuries. Family members of returning soldiers with TBI are often ill-equipped to handle the demands of caring for their loved one, which in some bases can become a full-time responsibility. Senator Clinton's bill will establish a Traumatic Brain Injury Family Caregiver Personal Care Attendant Training and Certification Program, which would train and certify family caregivers of TBI patients as personal care attendants, enabling them to provide quality care at home and at the same time qualify for compensation from the VA.
• Expanding Access to Needed Care. Service members and veterans continue to face problems in accessing needed medical and mental health care, especially veterans or Guard and Reserve members who live in rural areas. Senator Clinton's bill will help increase the reach of needed care for TBI by expanding use of telehealth and telemental health services. Senator Clinton's bill will create a demonstration project, administered jointly by the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs that would use telehealth technology to assess TBI and related mental health conditions and facilitate rehabilitation and dissemination of educational material on techniques, strategies and skills for servicemembers with TBI.

"The proposals in this legislation were built on the recommendations of family caregivers now tending to the wounds of their loved ones who have incurred Traumatic Brain Injuries on our nation's behalf. Senator Clinton and the Wounded Warrior Project have listened to these families and their requests for help and we applaud her for her leadership on this legislation. We stand committed to assisting the Senator in seeing this bill through to enactment," said John Melia, Executive Director of the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Heroes at Home Act of 2007 is endorsed by the Wounded Warrior Project, National Military Families Association, Military Officers Association of America, American Academy of Neurology and Brain Injury Association of America.

Senator Clinton today also announced introduction of legislation to help ensure wounded soldiers receive the disability benefits they need and deserve and to further protect military family financial benefits:

• Restoring Disability Benefits for Injured and Wounded Warriors Act of 2007. Following up on complaints she heard from New York soldiers at Walter Reed about widespread problems with disability claims, Senator Clinton today introduced legislation that will restore disability benefits for wounded and injured members of the Armed Forces. The act will direct reviews of disability claims, traumatic injury claims and the Physical Evaluation Board process, and re-open cases that warrant an increased disability benefit rating or traumatic injury payment. In addition, the bill will increase the availability of legal counsel for members appealing their disability cases, and direct the GAO to investigate efforts currently being made by the Department of Defense to address deficiencies in the Disability Evaluation Systems; the adequacy of the Department of Veterans Affairs Disability Schedule for Ratings as it relates to the nature of wounds our warriors suffer in combat today; and to report on the standards and procedures of Physical Evaluation Boards.
• Protecting Military Family Financial Benefits Act of 2007. Senator Clinton also introduced legislation that will protect financial benefits for military family members by closing gaps in coverage for Death Gratuity and Survivor Benefits beneficiaries and improve pre-deployment counseling and services for all members of the Armed Forces. Everyday single parents deploy to distant battlefields and leave their minor children in the care of a financially ill-prepared guardian or caretaker. Unfortunately, when tragedy strikes and a military service member makes the ultimate sacrifice, minor dependent children and families are excluded from receiving benefits and entitlements. In too many cases, pre-deployment systems and processes designed to protect military family financial benefits are under-resourced or not available and create unnecessary burden for survivors. Senator Clinton's bill will require each military service to provide adequate pre-deployment counseling and services to every deploying member of the Armed Forces to ensure that families and dependents receive survivor benefits and entitlements.

These bills are supported by the Wounded Warrior Project, National Military Families Association, Military Officers Association of America, American Legion and the Gold Star Mothers.

As New York's first Senator to serve on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Clinton has made it one of her top priorities to ensure that our brave men and women in uniform have the healthcare and support they need. She has pressed for an independent investigation of the conditions at Walter Reed and called for a new GI Bill of Rights to once again honor the service and invest in the future of our men and women in uniform. She authored legislation signed into law last year that required an audit of widespread pay issues wounded soldiers are facing, recently released by the Army showing continuing problems. Senator Clinton has fought to ensure service members have the body armor they need. She has also secured in law access to TRICARE military health benefits for all drilling members of the National Guard and Reserves and their families.

Source: Senator Clinton
www.clinton.senate.gov/news/statements/details.cfm?id=271591&&

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Alaska’s Personal Care Program Must Have:

• Integrity
• Accountability
• Sustainability

The Campaign for PCA Reform has been working since 2004 to make these principles a reality at the highest levels in PCA service delivery, in State policy, and in management of the program. Our efforts are discussed in detail in our attached Briefing Paper.

• Legislation To Strengthen State Medicaid Audits, ensuring accountability and fairness, and protecting the State of Alaska from undue Federal fiscal recoveries.
• Legislative Support For Annual Rate Readjustments, so that PCA Providers never go another 10 years without any rate increase to keep up with increasing business and compliance costs. While PCA rates were frozen from 1998 through the present, Alaska Medicaid paid hospitals and nursing homes with automatic and annual index-based rate increases every year since 1999, averaging over 3% per annum.
• One Time Catch Up Adjustment In FY2008 Operating Budget. Medicaid has not allowed a single payment increase in PCA rates since 1998. We are seeking a 2.5% per annum equivalent, with a raise from the 1998 rate of $21 per hour to $26.88 for FY2008.
• To Assure The Legislature That Improvements Have Been And Are Being Made In The Integrity And Quality Of Dh&ss Management Of The Pca Program. We are available at any time to describe the progress that the State and Providers have made.<

Integrity:
In April, 2006 new State regulations governing the PCA program were signed into law. These new regulations, among other changes, implemented a third-party assessor of services across the State. Professionally trained assessors have greatly improved program integrity by replacing the provider agency in its previous dual role as both assessor of eligibility/service level and provider. Third-party assessors also have increased the quality of assessments by ensuring only those individuals truly in need are receiving PCA services, and only at the accurate level of services necessary to maintain safe community living. PCA services are now based on a professionally conducted and objective assessment with no potential for conflict of interest.

Accountability:
With the implementation of SB41, PCA providers were audited for the first time in the history of the program. According to data provided by the Department of Health and Social Services, during audits conducted in FY2005 the billing error rate among PCA services providers was 14.42%. Through efforts of the PCA Provider’s Association and the technical assistance provided by the Division of Senior and Disability Services, in FY2006 the billing error rate dropped significantly to 4.75%. The Departmental goal for FY2008 is to show additional improvement of another 10% or 4.28%. PCA service providers have embraced the concept of accountability and will continue to strive for lower error rates. (Please note that billing “errors” are not necessarily “overpayments,” in fact most of the audited “errors” did not overpay the provider.)

Sustainability:
Ideas about the best way to care for the elderly and people with disabilities have undergone dramatic changes in the past several decades. In Alaska and at the national level, the pendulum has swung towards in-home care and greater control over services by the recipient of care. As our population ages and chooses to remain in Alaska, the need for in-home support services will grow as well. PCA services are often the first line of defense, after familial and community support, for seniors who require hands-on assistance to remain in their own homes. With the assistance of a PCA, seniors are able to meet their basic health needs often preventing the need for more costly medical intervention or out-of-home placement. PCA services have effectively reduced the amount of time an individual may need to spend in very costly nursing homes at the end of his or her life; however, there is a cost to the provision of PCA services as well.

In order to sustain this viable service, PCA Providers must be adequately compensated to meet the rising operational costs. The Department of Health and Social Services has identified sustainability of a qualified provider pool as a key component challenge stating: “In order to provide affordable access to quality health care services to eligible Alaskans, a sufficient supply of providers must be enrolled in Medicaid. A strategy to maintain provider participation is for provider reimbursement rates to keep pace with health care costs. Since provider participation in Medicaid is voluntary, if Medicaid’s rates are too low providers may stop seeing Medicaid clients.”

Legislation To Strengthen State Medicaid Audits
We support the ongoing technical assistance efforts of the Department in assisting PCA Providers in continuously improving their accuracy rates on billing issues. Now that the State has good background data, as a result of SB41, we are seeking legislation to further strengthen Alaska’s system for auditing Medicaid providers, particularly in dealing with collection of “overpayments.” We urge the Legislature to follow the example of many other states, and adopt “safe harbor” audit rates and audit recovery principles:

• 10% or less in overpayment billing errors would incur only the obligation to pay back the difference between the correct billing amount and the overpayments (if any), and to take corrective action to prevent future errors, so long as no intent to defraud or to ignore prior corrective actions is indicated. (No extrapolation assessment.)

• Billing errors, of any rate, that result in underpayment to the provider or that result in neither underpayment nor overpayment shall not be subject to payback to either provider or the State, but shall be subject to corrective action regulations of DH&SS (e.g., requiring proof of improved provider documentation practices).
• When the rate of overpayment errors is more than 10%, only the average amount of overpayment above the correct billing amount may be extrapolated against the rest of the provider’s Medicaid billings for the audit period. (Again, assuming no fraudulent intent or disregard of prior corrective action.)

Legislative Support For Annual Rate Readjustments
The rates for reimbursement for PCA services have been frozen in regulation since 1998. We request regulations setting an annual adjustment to the PCA rate equal to the change in the consumer price index or the CMS nursing facility market basket (a national cost data study). It should be noted that Alaska’s Medicaid payment rates for hospitals and nursing homes are “re-based” every four years, and on the years in between the rates go up automatically by the percent of change in the CMS market basket. We support the Department’s efforts to establish rate-setting methodology that establishes uniformity among provider types of comparable services. This must happen to ensure that PCA providers are adequately compensated for the provision of their services. The cost of providing PCA services, as with all goods and services, continues to rise annually, including workers’ compensation insurance for this high-risk category of workers.

One Time Catch Up Adjustment In FY2008 Operating Budget.
We request a one-time “catch-up” adjustment of the current rate to reflect a 2.5% per annum adjusted rate from November 1998 through June 2008. For FY2008, this would raise the PCA rate to $26.88 an hour. Please note that the Governor’s budget includes funding for an 8% average increase between FY2004 and FY2008 in the Medicaid rates for hospitals and nursing homes, which are “re-based” every four years. PCA rates have not been adjusted since 1998.

Legislative Assurance Of Improvements In Integrity And Quality Of DH&SS Management Of PCA Program.
We support the continued efforts of the Department of Health and Social Services in conducting third-party assessments to determine eligibility and service level needs. PCA service providers are able to focus their attention on the provision of high-quality in-home support services without any potential for conflict of interest. Consumers can choose their service provider based on the quality of care they receive.

For more information, please contact:

Sandra J. Heffern
Chief Executive Officer
Ready Care
800 918-3045
sheffern@jobready-ak.com

Connie J. Sipe
Executive Director
Center for Community
csipe@cfc.org

James Beck
Executive Director
Access Alaska
800-770-4488
jbeck@accessalaska.org

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The bill does not appear to be online yet.

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WHEREAS, MS is a chronic and disabling disease of the central nervous system in which the progression, severity and specific symptoms cannot be foreseen; and

WHEREAS, every hour of every day someone new is diagnosed with MS, a disease that can erode a person’s abilities and hopes, halt a career and unravel the fabric of families; and

WHEREAS, last year in Fairbanks more than $4500 was raised to find the cure for MS and develop effective treatments for the disease, as well as provide a wide range of client programs to improve the lives of the 200 individuals living with MS in our city.

WHEREAS, this investment is paying off in significant advances in treating MS, such as new medications which may reduce or delay future disability for people with MS; and

WHEREAS, research advances have brought us closer to finding the cure, much remains to be done, and services must continue to be provided to those who live with the disease; and

WHEREAS, there are public and private agencies available to serve the constantly changing needs of those with MS and their families living in Alaska by extending essential services to all who need them;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Steve Thompson, Mayor of the City of Fairbanks, do hereby proclaim March 5-11, 2007, as

"MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AWARENESS WEEK”

in Fairbanks and commend this observance to all our citizens.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my Hand and caused the Seal of the City of Fairbanks to be affixed this 2nd day of March in the year of our Lord Two Thousand Seven.

Steve M. Thompson, Mayor
City of Fairbanks

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For more information, contact Mike Mitchell at 258-0465.

Is the disability community represented on this committee?

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Dickerson, who was still practicing at age 91, had a reputation as a fierce advocate for the poor and underprivileged and argued many cases involving racial and gender discrimination.

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Dickerson, who was still practicing at age 91, had a reputation as a fierce advocate for the poor and underprivileged and argued many cases involving racial and gender discrimination.

More in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

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These teams are part of the first-ever and only pro-sports league in Cambodia. With tens of thousands of Cambodians missing limbs due to landmines laid during the country's civil war, the league was launched as a way to help rehabilitate amputees and to raise the profile of the landmine issue.

Read or Listen here.

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Loneliness may put people at risk of an Alzheimer's-like dementia, a study reported Monday. "People who described themselves as lonely were twice as likely to develop dementia," says researcher Robert Wilson of the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Other studies have found that people who are unmarried and socially isolated are at higher risk for dementia, including Alzheimer's. But this study is one of the first to show a link between loneliness — or the feelings of disconnection from other people — and a higher risk of developing dementia late in life, says Laurel Coleman, a spokeswoman for the Alzheimer's Association and a geriatrician in Portland, Maine.

Read it with a friend here.

Check out Alaska support groups here.

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Anchorage lawyer Jim Gottstein has emerged as a player in a national controversy over the psychiatric medication Zyprexa, which is Eli Lilly's best-selling drug.

An advocate against forced medication in the treatment of mental illness, Gottstein obtained documents about the drug that had been sealed in Outside lawsuits against Eli Lilly and provided them to a New York Times reporter. According to the Times, the records showed a decade-long effort to downplay the drug's health risks in order to protect sales.

Read more.

More on the PsychRights website.

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Found in the Anchorage Daily News, but I'm sure you could google them and find them all over the web.
Any others? Submit a comment below.

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Read more in the Anchorage Daily News

"I sympathize with how complex Medicaid is for clients, health care providers, program managers, as well as employees. We also find it difficult as legislators to find a legislative fix for most of these problems," Senate President Lyda Green, R-Wasilla said.

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From the Anchorage Daily News

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"Reports suggest it will take a concerted effort to address the health problems confronting our nation’s soldiers as they return from war. Their problems parallel some of the issues facing our overall health system, but in a more acute form. One such issue is catastrophic injury, and another is the complex world of brain injury."

Read more...

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DISCRIMINATION WATCH

"No dog, no dog," shouted the driver and another worker when District resident Joe Orozco and his guide dog tried to board a Todays Bus from Washington to New York. Orozco protested that the company is required by law to accommodate service animals, but the workers continued to block his entry and laughed, he says, when he threatened to call police. Once he called police, the workers said he could ride if the dog was put in the bottom of the bus with the luggage. They relented after police came.

When Orozco tried to board the return bus the next day, a Todays Bus employee in New York yanked his ticket away and tried to return his money, he says.

The bus pulled away. After Orozco called police, workers said he could take the next bus but ordered him to sit in the back. He complied, but he is filing a complaint with the Justice Department, which enforces the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). Todays Bus did not respond to four telephone messages left for the manager and owner.

The ADA guarantees interstate service to disabled passengers; that includes providing access, with advance notice, to people in wheelchairs. But many of the companies that pick up passengers curbside -- the so-called "Chinatown buses" -- simply ignore the law. In 2004, regulators checked 14 companies that operate between Washington and New York, and cited 11 of them for violating the ADA. The Justice Department launched an investigation in October 2004. "We continue to work on it," spokeswoman Cynthia Magnuson said last week.

Gathering evidence seems quick and easy to CoGo, who recently called Todays to ask about wheelchair access. The man who answered refused to give his name, but his answer was clear: "No wheelchair."

To register a complaint, call the Justice Department, 800-514- 0301.

Source: The Washington Post

Outraged? Email or call Todays Bus

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By Jimmy Tobias
January 30, 2007

As Fortune 500 companies continue to diversify their offices with different types of top-tier students, candidates with disabilities may prove to be the next target audience.

Last week, PepsiCo - the parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay and Tropicana - visited the University specifically to recruit students with disabilities, both physical and mental, for employment positions.

The recruitment effort, which included a dinner and formal presentation, was facilitated by Morris Street Partners, a New York-based organization that currently has projects with PepsiCo and Merrill Lynch and aims to increase the number of disabled persons in the corporate workplace.

To help companies draw in students with disabilities, Morris Street Partners hosts events that are just like standard on-campus recruitment ones but are exclusive - and tailored - to disabled students.

Last week's initiative was PepsiCo's first disability-focused recruitment project with Morris Street Partners, said PepsiCo Director of Executive Staffing John Delpino, who heard about Morris Street Partners through a disabled executive at PepsiCo.

After deciding to "get [their] tail wet," Delpino said, PepsiCo officials deemed the disabled a "very important population" and decided to go after it.

And those students taking advantage of Morris Street Partners' services are singing the company's praises.

"The idea behind the company is inspiring," said College freshman Julie Gutowksi, who does marketing for the company on campus.

"Hopefully, [it] will take hold on college campuses, as well as in the business world," she said.

Gutowksi began working at Morris Street Partners after attending one of their recruitment sessions last semester with Merrill Lynch.

One Wharton senior, who is currently utilizing Morris Street Partners' services - and who refused to disclose her name because of the sensitive nature of her own disability, an auditory- processing disorder that impairs hearing - is currently in the early stages of recruitment at PepsiCo.

She called Morris Street Partners' work "very insightful," adding that, "as long as the disability does not affect [the person's] performance as an employee," why not hire them?

Still, officials at Morris Street Partners say they are not offering these services just for the sake of being considerate.

"It is not about being nice - it is about being smart," said Susan Lang, the CEO of Morris Street Partners.

Lang added that the non-profit organization approaches its work from a business perspective.

Rich Donovan, who started the organization last March, added that "Morris basically aims to bring disabled individuals into the market economy."

Donovan, who has cerebral palsy, called the disabled a significant national minority and pointed out that "this is something that hasn't been attempted before in a meaningful way."

Morris Street Partners is active on five campuses and is in contact with 15 others. It will return to campus next year with a new, although not-yet-chosen, name.

Career Services, which typically organizes on-campus recruitment events, advertised this event, but most of the planning was done by Morris Street Partners themselves, Barbara Hewitt, associate director of Career Services, wrote in an e-mail.

Source: ) Copyright 2007 The Daily Pennsylvanian

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