On Target is a monthly publication
of the Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities.
We welcome your suggestions for newsletter content and
ideas concerning the actions of the Council. On Target is made available
in accessible formats upon request.
Suellen Jackson-Boner
Executive Director
Christine Dahlberg
Associate Director
Paul Shankland
Grants Manager |
Human services programs face more budget cuts
Task force offers home and community-based care legislation
As the Indiana General Assembly battles over the budget, disability advocates across the state are becoming increasingly concerned about the potential for budget cuts in essential human services programs.
"The budget situation is pretty bleak, and the session is getting off to a slow start because there's no agreement on how to handle the deficit," said AARP Executive Director Nancy Griffin. "Unless we see a tax increase or a new significant revenue stream, we will undoubtedly see severe cuts in a number of programs that serve people with disabilities."
Advocates at the ARC of Indiana will focus on avoiding cuts in essential programs.
"As the legislature starts looking at ways to deal with the deficit, we're worried that they might start cutting the optional services available under Medicaid," said Kim Dodson, ARC of Indiana director of government relations and development. Examples include dental coverage, which was capped in the last legislative session but now could be eliminated.
On a proactive level, a new bill introduced by the Indiana Home Care Task Force would direct resources toward home and community-based care, ensuring the availability of flexible care and eliminating the waiting list by 2005. The bill also requires the state to review applications for home and community-based care within 30 days and, if the applicant is eligible, provide services within90 days.
"If we are able to pass this bill, within three to five years we will be making home and community-based care as much of an entitlement as nursing home care has been," Griffin said.
Dodson said her organization also is watching a number of smaller health and insurance-related bills that would modify existing policies and practices.
To follow the progress of bills in the Indiana state legislature, visit www.in.gov/serv/lsa_billinfo.
Disability advocates across the state need your help to avert further budget cuts in essential human services programs. Call, write or e-mail your local legislators to let them know how budget cuts in these programs would affect you and others you know. To find contact information for your local legislators, visit www.in.gov/legislative/contact. You can also contact the General Assembly at the following numbers:
House of Representatives - (800) 382-9842 (voice),
Senate - (800) 382-9467 (voice),
or (800) 548-9517 (TT for both House and Senate).
International exchange fellowships available
The National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange (NCDE) and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) are offering Exchange Pioneers Fellowships to support people with disabilities in obtaining internships with U.S.-based international exchange offices and organizations.
Five $2,000 fellowships will be awarded. The application deadline for spring 2003 is March 1, and the deadline for summer is May 1.
For more information or an application, contact Mary Ann Higgins at machiggins@sssnet.com (e-mail) or (330) 854-9048 (voice), or Pam Houston at pr@miusa.org (e-mail) or
(541) 343-1284 (TT).
NCD to examine Supreme Court's ADA rulings
In response to a wave of anti-ADA rulings by the Supreme Court, the National Council on Disability (NCD) is releasing a series of policy briefs addressing specific concerns created by the rulings.
"The NCD will examine various specific substantive aspects of the Court's rulings
that have weakened or restricted the impact of the ADA," said a statement released by the organization.
For instance, the fourth paper in the series, "Broad or Narrow Construction of the ADA," was released in December 2002 and focuses on restrictive interpretation of the ADA. The NCD argues in the paper that the Court should have chosen a less restrictive definition of "disability" because civil rights laws have traditionally been interpreted broadly and because the Court already had adopted a broad definition in previous cases.
In addition, the second paper, "A Carefully Constructed Law," released in October 2002,
contradicts the Court's statement that the ADA was poorly considered or hastily constructed. Future papers will examine the potential consequences of recent ADA rulings and will summarize instances of discrimination stemming from the rulings.
At the end of the process, the NCD will present a final comprehensive report, "Righting the ADA," offering legislative recommendations to remedy issues created by the recent Court rulings.
The policy papers are available online at www.ncd.gov or by calling (202) 272-2004 (voice).
Supreme Court accepts new ADA-related case
The Supreme Court, after issuing a string of anti-ADA rulings in its last session, has agreed to hear yet another ADA-related case. The ruling has the potential to further limit the scope of the landmark disability rights legislation.
The case, Hason v. Medical Board of California, began when Dr. Michael J. Hason moved to California and was turned down for a California medical license because of his history of treatment for depression. Dr. Hason sued the California Medical Board under Title II of the ADA, which prohibits discrimination by state and local governments.
The board argues that a license is not a "service, program or activity," which the ADA requires governments to offer to people with disabilities.
The ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Hason could sue the medical board. However, the outcome of that suit could be overturned by the Supreme Court, preventing this lawsuit and others like it. The Supreme Court will probably hear Hason v. Medical Board of California in March and issue its decision by late June.
"I have at times railed against denying professional licenses based on mental illness," said Frank Epperson, chairperson, ADA-Indiana. "If they can create conditions such as drug compliance and demonstrated competence while medicated, there is no more risk from a doctor with depression than from a doctor with high cholesterol."
The Hason case is the latest in a series of "states' rights" cases heard by the Supreme Court. In those decided to date, the court has found that Congress did not have the power to subject the states to damages suits under various civil rights statutes.
"Our position in this case is simple," said Sharon Masling, director of legal services at
the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems (NAPAS). "We believe Congress has the authority to pass laws that protect individuals with disabilities from
discrimination."
Ira Burnim, legal director at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, said, "The stakes are high. The court is going to be considering the very constitutionality of the ADA."
The Bazelon Center is the nation's leading legal advocate for people with mental disabilities.
The state of Minnesota has plans to file a brief in support of the ADA, but other states may join a brief in support of the states' rights position. Activists are urged to ask their state lawmakers to support Hason's position in the suit.
"We're counting on advocates to let their states know how important the ADA's protections are to people with disabilities," says Masling. "Briefs from the states could have a big impact on the court's decision."
Additional information on the case is available online at http://www.bazelon.org/hason.
Hoosier attends international conference
Indiana resident and self-advocate Betty Williams was one of only 25 people from the United States invited to attend the October 2002 Disabled Peoples' International (DPI) 6th World Assembly in Sapporo, Japan.
Williams is a member of the ARC of Indiana board of directors, a leader of Self-Advocates of Indiana, a Partners in Policymaking graduate and a former Council board member.
At the assembly, Williams and other attendees had the opportunity to make recommendations to the United Nations about supports and services needed by people with disabilities on an international scale.
According to DPI's Web site, a major goal of the organization is the full participation of all people with disabilities in the mainstream of life, particularly those in developing countries, who form the vast majority of the world's 500 million people with disabilities.
Yet Williams said she was frustrated that people with developmental disabilities were largely absent from the conference and had not been asked to make recommendations about their own needs.
"Even though it was a conference for people with disabilities, people with developmental disabilities were excluded, and it was frustrating," Williams told the ARC of Indiana.
"I had to speak up to let people know that we needed to be part of the recommendations."
A copy of the assembly's final set of recommendations is available online at www.dpi.org (Click on "Sapporo Declaration, October 2002") or by calling (301) 309-8269 (voice).
Local housing authorities win Fair Share vouchers
The Department of Housing and Urban Development recently announced the winners of 16,500 national Fair Share Housing vouchers, and several Indiana housing authorities were on the list.
The vouchers were awarded on a competitive basis, with applicants receiving extra consideration if they pledged to give at least 15 percent of the vouchers to people with disabilities and at least three percent to those on home and community-based waivers.
In a recent news bulletin, attorney and disability rights advocate Steve Gold encouraged people with disabilities and advocates to ensure their local housing authorities use the vouchers as promised. "Hold your local and state housing authorities accountable," he said. "This is an easy win if you make it a grassroots issue."
Housing authorities in Indiana that received vouchers include:
- Cannelton - 24 vouchers
- Crawfordsville - 26 vouchers
- Fort Wayne - 50 vouchers
- Lafayette - 93 vouchers
- Peru - 24 vouchers
- St. Joseph County - 24 vouchers
- South Bend - 40 vouchers
- Tell City - 24 vouchers
Crawfordsville receives 20 Mainstream Housing Vouchers
People with disabilities in Crawfordsville will soon have increased housing opportunities thanks to 20 Mainstream Housing Vouchers the city's housing authority recently received from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. These vouchers are in addition to the 26 Fair Share vouchers also awarded to Crawfordsville this year.
Fewer than 2,000 Mainstream Housing Vouchers, which are exclusively for people with disabilities, were awarded nationally. The vouchers are designed to help people with disabilities locate "accessible, affordable, integrated" housing.
Officials at the Housing Authority in Crawfordsville say they already have established a waiting list for the vouchers, with people assigned based on their level of need. For more information or to apply for a voucher, contact the Housing Authority at (765) 362-2407 (voice).
Of Note
Adobe offers Internet access tools
PDF documents have long been a barrier to access for people using screen readers. Now, Adobe, which makes the PDF reader Acrobat, is offering ways to improve access for people with disabilities. Its special access Web site links to programs like Acrobat Reader to increase online accessibility for people with disabilities and to help site designers create more accessible Web pages. For more information or to download the program, visit access.adobe.com.
Track legislative bills online
The state's Web portal, accessIndiana, is expanding to provide a free tracking service for bills in the 113th Indiana General Assembly. Citizens and businesses will be able to track up to five bills at a time at www.BillWatch.IN.gov.
Action Alert!
To keep you informed of up-to-the-minute news about legislation, policy issues and training opportunities, we will be sending urgent news via e-mail. If you are interested in receiving this e-mail newsletter, please send your name, mailing address and e-mail address to Christine Dahlberg at cdahlberg@gpcpd.org.
Correction
Jennifer Boen, health and social services reporter for the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel, was incorrectly identified in a photo in the November/December edition of On Target. Boen was recognized with an Excellence in Reporting on Disability Issues Award at the statewide conference in November.
Save the date
The date for the 2003 Indiana Conference for People with Disabilities has been set. Plan to join us Tuesday and Wednesday, December 2 and 3, at the Westin in downtown Indianapolis. More information will follow later in the year.
Indiana Governor’s Planning
Council for People with Disabilities
150 West Market Street, Suite 628
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
(317) 232-7770 voice
(317) 232-7771 TT
E-mail: GPCPD@gpcpd.org
Web site: www.state.in.us/gpcpd
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