|
Awareness Month 2001 materials available now
March 2001 brings another Disability Awareness Month to Indiana, and the Council is excited to bring Hoosiers yet another full campaign to help spread awareness about disability-related issues. Materials are available to order now. You will find an order form included in this month's issue of On Target.
Materials available include posters, bookmarks, buttons, T-shirts, coffee mugs and much more. New offerings for 2001 include a white, long-sleeved T-shirt and a tall, 16 oz. latte mug. As always, 24 different information packets are available to aid advocates in conducting awareness activities for the community.
The 2001 Awareness Month theme
The 2001 Awareness Month theme features two teen boys. On the poster, the headline,"I can picture the real you" is opposite a strip of photos of the two friends, like that from a photo booth. In the photos, the boys are obviously best friends enjoying
the photo booth experience. The subhead, "Friends focus on the person, not the disability," draws the viewers' attention to the wheelchair sitting outside the photo booth. It becomes evident that one of the friends has a disability and uses a wheelchair, but the viewer cannot tell which one from the photo booth pictures. The body copy on the poster reads, "It's important to see people for who they are. Then you can start to see them as friends."
The poster is smaller than in years past, measuring about 17 inches x 24 inches. "A smaller poster gives organizations more options when displaying them," said Suellen Jackson-Boner, executive director of the Council. "The colorful artwork still draws
attention, and the size is notable. But the flexibility gained will allow us to see these posters displayed in ways we've never seen."
She continued, "The new direction we've taken with the long-sleeve T-shirt and tall latte mug will appeal to those who requested a different style of Awareness Month materials this year. I think anyone placing an order will certainly be impressed."
As in previous years, 2001 Disability Awareness Monthwill be celebrated with community-based activities carried out by hundreds of advocates and people with disabilities throughout the state. The activities are centrally coordinated by the Governor's Planning Council and include events such as mayoral proclamations, art contests, and awareness campaigns in schools, government agencies and businesses.
For more information:
Please return order forms to Kim Dennison at Borshoff Johnson & Co., 47 S. Pennsylvania Street, Suite 500, Indianapolis, IN 46204, or (317) 631-6499 (fax) or: kdennison@borshoffjohnson.com (e-mail). For direct
questions, call Kim at (317) 631-6400 (voice).
State project to improve transportation
Transportation is crucial B without it, life is complicated and people literally have little chance of getting to work, school, church, stores and medical appointments or visiting friends. People with disabilities know these limitations especially well.
The Governor's Planning Council awarded the Southern Indiana Center for Independent Living (SICIL) a one-year grant to address transportation issues in the state.
The project, called the Community Transportation Initiative (CTI), is already underway; the official kick-off was held during a CTI workshop at the
Indiana Conference for People with Disabilities Dec. 12 and 13.
"This grant will allow us to jumpstart meaningful
strategiesto address community transportation issues," said Al Tolbert, SICIL executive director. "Transportation is really a quality-of-life issue for all Hoosiers, and we're fortunate that the Council sees the value of connecting mobility and acces
sibility."
The $220,000 will be used to stimulate development of affordable, available and accessible transportation services in all areas of the state to promote community access and independence for all people with disabilities.
The goals of CTI are to:
- Facilitate a Transportation Policy Coalition that will work to unify state policies effecting community transportation and to serve as a resource to local communities that need technical assistance;
- Initiate a statewide conference highlighting topics and experiences that will enable participants to discuss transportation models and best practice strategies to address implementation issues; and
- Conduct the Community Transportation Initiative Academy to provide technical assistance from conceptualization to implementation of a transportation system in these communities whose representatives will be chosen to participate through a statewide solicitation.
The first CTI Conference will be held in Indianapolis at the Indiana Government Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Jan. 31, 2001. A host of national and local experts have been invited to share best practices and provide direction on how to tackle local community transportation issues.
For more information or to get a registration form for the January conference, contact Debra Simmons-Wilson at (317) 547-5058 (voice), (317) 568-1723 (fax) or debsimwilson@aol.com (e-mail).
Medical help for families
Providing families access to their children's health care without barriers is the major goal of the Family Opportunity Act of 2000 (FOA). Similar to the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act, the FOA would allow states to offer middle-income families of children with disabilities the option of buying into Medicaid.
The FOA would address two major barriers: lack of access to appropriate services and lack of access families need to cut the red tape with help from advocacy and assistance services.
A recent family survey in 20 states showed that 64 percent of families had to turn down jobs, raises and overtime, while not being able to save for the children's future. Parents wanted to ensure they would stay in the income bracket that would allow their child to continue to receive Medicaid or SSI.
Children in these families often end up uninsured or underinsured because health insurance is not available through an employer, is too expensive or is very limited.
If passed, the FOA has three options:
- States could permit parents to buy into Medicaid and pay on a sliding scale basis. This would provide the child with disabilities a full range of health care options. For example, a child with a disability could participate in the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) program.
- A demonstration program would allow states to cover young children with "potentially severe disabilities." The program could improve overall health, prevention of future disabilities and the opportunity for full community inclusion for young children.
- The FOA would establish "family-to-family" health information centers.
A decision from Congress is still pending. For more information, visit The Arc's Web site at www.thearc.org or contact Kathy McGinley, Arc Governmental Affairs Office, at (202) 785-3388 (voice), (202) 785-3411 (TT) or GAOinfo@thearc.org (e-mail).
WOW! offers online rating service
People often enjoy going out on the town with their family or friends. However, people with disabilities often face barriers that prohibit them from making the most of their day out. Wired on Wheels (WOW!), a nonprofit Internet organization is committed to making it easier for people to visit the places they want to visit.
WOW! gives people with disabilities, family members and advocates an online community to rate accessibility, view others' ratings and make informed decisions about where to go. The goal is to have a central information bank that is easily accessible for everyone, regardless of one's disability.
For example, people with disabilities face obstacles at restaurants when people have to stand up to let a wheelchair through, or when a waitress has to read the menu because large font or Braille menus are not available. The goal of WOW! is to eliminate these frustrating or embarrassing situations.
A number of Indiana restaurants are listed by city, but none have received a review as of yet. That's where you come in! Visit WOW!'s Web site at www.wiredonwheels.org to review your favorite restaurant. If the restaurant is not listed, you will be given the option of adding the restaurant and completing the review.
For more detailed information on how to rate a restaurant or for a complete listing of restaurants, visit the WOW! Web site at www.wiredonwheels.org.
WOW! has created 10 tips for reviewing and rating a restaurant:
- No special credentials are required to do an accessibility review at a restaurant.
- You don't have to eat at the restaurant in order to review it.
- The main question to consider as you rate restaurants for accessibility is: Would you recommend this destination to a friend? If so, how highly?
- If you prefer to save yourself a trip, call the restaurant first.
- Consider how easy it is to get there and the parking. For example, is it close to public transportation and does it have accessible parking?
- How easy/difficult is it to get inside the entrance?
- How easy/difficult is it to get around inside?
- How easy/difficult is it to use the bathrooms? Is there an accessible stall?
- Ask the staff about large font and Braille menus. Is it easy to communicate?
- What is your overall rating?
*Editor's note: This access rating system is not designed to assess ADA compliance.
Of Note
ADA training series
ADA Indiana and the Great Lakes ADA Center are sponsoring the 2000-2001 ADA Distance Learning Series. The training, which is free, is available in the following areas: Bloomington, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Richmond, Terre Haute, Vincennes and West Lafayette. The series is divided into three tracks:
- general ADA information track
- employment and human resources track
- architectural track
For more information, including an informational flier and specific directions, contact Amy Beatty at (812) 855-6508 (voice) or adainfo@indiana.edu (e-mail).
President signs act into law
President Bill Clinton signed the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 into law in late October. This legislation re-authorizes programs that serve people with developmental disabilities. The Council receives full funding from this act, while Indiana Protection and Advocacy and the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community receive partial funding. Currently, the Health and Human Services budget, which determines how much each agency will receive, has not passed Congress.
New publications now available
The Council's three-year annual report, as well as 5-Year State Plan is available by contacting the Council at (317) 232-7770 (voice), (317) 232-7771 (TT) or gpcpd@gpcpd.org (e-mail).
Media award reminder
Each year, the Council, along with Ball State and Indiana Universities, recognize excellence in reporting on people with disabilities and disability issues. And the Council needs YOUR help!
Monitor your local papers, television and radio stations for entries that focus on a need for change in public policy for people with disabilities, or
increasing awareness of disability issues. The entries should be published or broadcast in Indiana from April 1, 2000 to March 31, 2001 by an Indiana journalist. A panel of judges from Ball State University, Indiana University and the Council will evaluate the entries based on: readability, effectiveness, accuracy and completeness, relevance to disability issues, and resourcefulness of the reporter. Entries can be submitted at any time during the year.
To enter:
Submit your entry with article/ program title, date of publication/ air date, reporter/news organization, and reason for the nomination. Also include your name and contact information as the person nominating the entry.
Award entries can be mailed c/o Heather Harshbarger, Borshoff Johnson & Co., 47 S. Pennsylvania Street, Suite 500, Indianapolis, IN 46204; or (317) 631-6499 (fax). For more information, call Heather at (317) 631-6400 (voice).
*Editors Note: The Council recognized the 1999-2000 award winners at its annual conference this month.
Donated services bring brighter smiles
Imagine having a bad toothache and not being able to visit someone to get it fixed. Often, people with disabilities cannot
take advantage of dental services because Medicare does not provide for people to see a dentist, and Medicaid offers limited benefits to Hoosiers.
The Indiana Dental Association and the Indiana Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped created the Donated Dental Services (DDS) program for Indiana in 1989 to combatthose problems. DDS has 547 volunteer dentists and 91 dental laboratories in India
na that contribute to the program.
To qualify for the program,a person must:
- Have a disability, be elderly or have a serious or terminal medical illness
- Have no means to pay for dental work
- Need comprehensive dental care including root canals, teeth pulling, dentures, etc. Teeth cleaning does not qualify a patient for the program.
If the person meets these qualifications, he/she must first obtain an application from the local program coordinator. The coordinator verifies the information and refers the person to a dentist located in a nearby area. The dentist will examine the person before agreeing to donate the services.
Since February 1991, the Indiana DDS program has completed a total of 1,208 cases, with the value of treatment totaling $1,516,908.
For more information or to obtain an application, contact Ann Farkas, program coordinator, at (800) 452-6022 (voice).
|