News
THE COMMONWEALTH FUND; How Medical Frailty Exemption Policies Can Offer a Lifeline to People with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses When Medicaid Work Requirements Are Implemented
By SD Network, 2025-12-19
H.R. 1 requires Medicaid expansion states to implement work requirements by January 1, 2027. Medical frailty exemptions exist but processes are underdeveloped. While 34% of Medicaid enrollees report disabilities, only 10% qualify based on disability determination. About 5.3 million people expected to lose coverage. States need new IT systems costing $10-270 million to identify medically frail enrollees. Authors recommend broad definitions, self-attestation options, and reasonable accommodations.
FORBES: How Immigration Curbs Make Care Less Affordable For Seniors And Others
By SD Network, 2025-12-19
Personal care aide pay averaged $16.78/hour in 2024, but actual family cost through agencies reached $34/hour with annual costs approaching $78,000. Over 300,000 aides left during the pandemic. About one-third of home care workers are immigrants; many now face deportation or fear for family members.
THE NEW YORK TIMES: More Disabled People Can Open Special Savings Accounts. Do You Qualify?
By SD Network, 2025-12-16
Starting January 2026, ABLE accounts expand eligibility to people who became disabled by age 46 (previously 26), potentially qualifying 6 million more people including 1 million veterans. Accounts allow disabled people to save up to $100,000 without affecting SSI or Medicaid benefits. Annual contribution limit increases to $20,000 in 2026, with ABLE-to-Work feature now permanent. Currently 223,000 accounts hold $2.9 billion. Funds can be used for disability-related expenses tax-free.
HOME HEALTH CARE NEWS: Geography, Income Complicate Critical Role Of Family Caregiving
By SD Network, 2025-12-16
Burd Home Health surveyed 1,000 Americans who provide or plan to provide in-home care. Caregiving typically falls on one sibling by default, with 62% citing unspoken expectation that daughters will be primary caregivers. Geography, birth order, gender, and income influence roles. While 42% describe caregiving as stressful but manageable with clear communication, only one-third felt responsibilities shared fairly.
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This article explores the reluctance of older Americans to identify as disabled despite experiencing physical limitations and health conditions that qualify them for accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Through insights from a University of Michigan survey of nearly 3,000 adults aged 50 and older, the article highlights the disparity between self-perception and actual disability status. It discusses societal attitudes toward disability, generational differences, and the benefits of identifying as disabled, such as improved access to healthcare accommodations and community support. The piece also examines the challenges in enforcing ADA provisions and the stigma surrounding the term "disability," which often prevents individuals from seeking necessary assistance.
Changes to Disney parks' Disability Access Service (DAS) program have some people upset. The DAS program allows qualifying disabled guests and their families to make online ride reservations and access expedited lines at Disney parks in California and Florida. The program was revised to address past abuses, where some individuals exploited it for profit. The new policy narrows eligibility to guests with developmental disabilities, such as autism, who struggle with waiting in long lines. Applicants must now undergo a video interview with Disney staff and a contracted medical professional to determine eligibility. Critics argue the changes are too restrictive and exclude individuals with other disabilities, leading to lawsuits and a shareholder proposal for an independent review of the policies. Disney defends the changes, citing the Americans with Disabilities Act and alternative accommodations for those who don't qualify for DAS. The article also mentions Disney's main competitor, Universal, which offers a similar program for disabled visitors.
Emmy Award-winning disability rights leader Keith Jones critiques how the disability movement frames itself on the Civil Rights Movement while maintaining internal racism and discrimination. He argues "proximity to whiteness" prevents authentic cross-cultural, cross-disability collaboration, with organizations prioritizing white parents' interests over inclusive justice. Jones challenges prominent leaders to reject white nationalism, noting "we are not a fully realized movement until we are a fully inclusive movement" and calls for coalescing around core principles of freedom, authority, support, responsibility, and confirmation.
FORBES: Why Portable Disability Support Is The Next Big Workforce Innovation
By SD Network, 2025-12-11
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Lilly Grossman's Beyond The Box Advocacy is building a federal disability support portability framework allowing services to follow individuals regardless of location, income, or marital status. Currently, state-tied Medicaid programs force disabled Americans to choose between employment, marriage, or relocation and losing vital supports. Only 23% of disabled Americans are employed versus 66% of non-disabled people. Grossman's model would standardize eligibility federally, like Social Security, enabling mobility and workforce participation without losing care. |
USA TODAY: These people know how to fix the caregiving crisis. Is it doable?
By SD Network, 2025-12-11
USA TODAY surveyed 450 caregivers about solutions. Experts say universal respite care is possible with federal funding, but Trump is defunding Medicaid. Care navigators exist through platforms like Care.com's new $350 senior navigator program. Free counseling unlikely due to mental health worker shortages. Expanding paid family caregiver programs requires federal support; California's model could scale nationwide. Middle-class families remain stuck between qualifying thresholds.