News
The Center for Self-Determination and Tom Nerney comment on the CMS proposed rules for the Home and Community Based Waiver and encourage folks to review the proposed changes from CMS, as well as Tom Nerneys comments, and submit their input directly to CMS.
Posted at the request of the Board for People with Developmental Disabilities.
The proposed caps to Family Care/IRIS in the governor's budget would affect every youth in transition in the state who needs long-term care services as an adult, resulting in re-establishment of county waiting lists for supports. Here is what families, school staff, youth and providers can do.
Beth Swedeen
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PLEASE DISTRIBUTE FAR AND WIDE!
JOINT FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS MUST HEAR
HOW THE FREEZE ON LONG TERM CARE WILL IMPACT PEOPLE IN THEIR DISTRICTS
THIS MESSAGE INCLUDES NEW INFORMATION<http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/public-policy> YOU CAN USE TO SHOW THE IMPACT OF THE FREEZE ON LONG TERM CARE!
The Governors budget includes a proposal to cap all community-based long term care programs for the first time since Family Care was introduced in the budget in 1999. This cap includes Family Care, IRIS, Partnership, and the Childrens Medicaid Waiver programs. There will also be no new slots for legacy waivers like COP and CIP. This giant step backward in our states long term care system means we will see an increase in nursing home and other institutional admissions and growing waiting lists notably in some counties that have not had waiting lists in years. Some people on current wait lists are receiving no services at all and Medicaid card services do not provide enough support to keep people out of costly and unnecessary institutions. Some will likely go without services for the next two years. Institutional care can cost more than twice what community living costs. A long term care cap is not a wise investment for anyone, especially taxpayers. The Joint Finance Committee will be voting on the long term care cap very soon!
We need the Joint Finance Committee to take action NOW to lift the proposed cap
and re-establish the right to long term care for people with disabilities and older adults in Wisconsin.
USE THESE NEW LEGISLATOR PROFILES<http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/public-policy> ON LONG TERM CARE WAIT LISTS: http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/public-policy
Go to this link to find a profile for each Joint Finance Committee member which details how many people, including adults and children with disabilities and older adults in their district are currently receiving and waiting for long term care services.
ASK JOINT FINANCE MEMBERS IF THEY KNOW HOW MANY WILL NOW WAIT IN THEIR DISTRICT:
http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/public-policy
In some counties, waiting lists for adults are in the thousands, but those individuals had a hope before the proposed cap that they would soon receive supports that would allow them to maintain their independence and remain in their homes. In some counties there are hundreds of children with significant disabilities who continue to wait some of them for several years. The cap means there is no end in sight for waiting. See the attached document Impact of Proposed Cap on Long Term Care Enrollment to see how this cap breaks a promise and not only threatens to result in individuals being forced into nursing homes and other institutions, but creates a hardship for families and new graduates with disabilities who will leave high school and now face a wait list with no services to secure and retain gainful employment or receive community-based supports. We continue to gather petition signatures to lift the cap. Sign here:http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/keepthecommunitypromise/
YOUR MESSAGE TO JOINT FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS IS CRITICAL AND SIMPLE:
Lift the proposed cap and re-establish the right to long term care for people with disabilities and older adults in Wisconsin. Our long-term care system, which includes Family Care, has improved access to supports in the community and offers people with disabilities and older adults choices that meet their needs. Long-term care in the community is FAR less expensive than institutional care.
CONTACT ANY AND ALL JOINT FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS NOW AND TELL THEM WHY YOU THINK THE CAP SHOULD BE LIFTED.
Please also copy your message to Lisa Pugh atLisa.Pugh@drwi.org<mailto:Lisa.Pugh@drwi.org>
The members of the Joint Finance Committee are listed below:
Co-Chair, Senator Alberta Darling, Phone:(608) 266-5830; District:
(262) 250-9440; E-mail:Sen.Darling@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Darling@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Luther Olsen, Phone:(608) 266-0751; E-mail:
Sen.Olsen@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Olsen@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Sheila Harsdorf, Phone:(608) 266-7745; E-mail:
Sen.Harsdorf@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Harsdorf@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Joe Leibham, Phone:(608) 266-2056or(888) 295-8750; District:
(920) 457-7367; E-mail:Sen.Leibham@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Leibham@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Glenn Grothman, Phone:(608) 266-7513or(800) 662-1227;
District:(262) 338-8061; E-mail:Sen.Grothman@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Grothman@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Randy Hopper, Phone:(608) 266-5300, E-mail:
Sen.Hopper@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Hopper@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Lena Taylor, Phone:(608) 266-5810; District:(414) 342-7176;
E-mail:Sen.Taylor@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Taylor@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Senator Robert Jauch, Phone:(608) 266-3510or(800) 469-6562; District:
(715) 364-2438; E-mail:Sen.Jauch@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Sen.Jauch@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Co-Chair, Representative Robin Vos, Phone:(608) 266-9171or(888) 534-0063; E-mail:Rep.Vos@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Vos@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Dan Meyer, Phone:(608) 266-7141or(888) 534-0034;
E-mail:Rep.Meyer@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Meyer@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Daniel LeMahieu, Phone:(608) 266-9175or(888) 534-0059;
District:(920) 528-8679; E-mail:Rep.LeMahieu@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.LeMahieu@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative John Nygren, Phone:(608) 266-2343, E-mail:
Rep.Nygren@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Nygren@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Patricia Strachota, Phone:(608) 264-8486; District:
(262) 338-3790; E-mail:Rep.Strachota@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Strachota@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Joel Kleefisch, Phone:(608) 266-8551, E-mail:
Rep.Kleefisch@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Kleefisch@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Tamara Grigsby, Phone:(608) 266-0645or(888) 534-0018;
District:(414) 873-5557; E-mail:Rep.Grigsby@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Grigsby@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Representative Jennifer Shilling, Phone:(608) 266-5780or(888) 534-0095; District:(608) 788-9854; E-mail:
Rep.Shilling@legis.wisconsin.gov<mailto:Rep.Shilling@legis.wisconsin.gov>
Survival Coalition Family Care Audit Statement
Family Care serves state's elderly, disabled
http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/120327199.html
BySteve Schultzeof the Journal Sentinel
April 20, 2011|(44) Comments
When Jeanne Fehr got word after a 10-year wait that her 31-year-old daughter, Nealy Rothe, would likely get state funding to live on her own, Fehr was thrilled.
Rothe, who has Down syndrome, works a part-time job but would need help managing money, taking the bus and with some chores if she were to move from the Milwaukee home she shares with her mother. Rothe said she is looking forward to having her own apartment.
But that excitement was tempered with Gov. Scott Walker's proposed freeze on enrollments in the state's Family Care program, which helps pay for community care of elderly and disabled people.
Unless Rothe's name comes off the waiting list soon or state lawmakers rewrite Walker's Family Care freeze, Rothe and Fehr might have to wait longer.
"I'm not going to live forever," said Fehr, 63, expressing a common fear parents of disabled children face as they get older. Who will care for Rothe when Fehr is no longer able?
Fehr said she was told by Milwaukee County officials there was a chance her daughter's name could come up for a spot in Family Care before July, when the Legislature is slated to approve a 2011-'13 budget.
Even so, that leaves many other families - including those with elderly members who were counting on Family Care once most of their money was gone - facing similar predicaments. New candidates could be enrolled only when someone else leaves the program, under the governor's proposal.
Program beneficiaries
Family Care provides community services to some 35,000 frail elderly and those with physical or developmental disabilities in the state, including almost 8,000 in Milwaukee County. It runs on a yearly budget of some $1.4 billion statewide and $260 million in Milwaukee County, with about 60% of the money from the federal government and the rest from the state. The program started in 1998 with five counties and has since expanded to 48.
The average cost for Family Care services is about $2,800 a month per client in Milwaukee County.
It is one of a cluster of social programs threatened in Walker's budget and part of his solution to a $3.5 billion state budget shortfall.
In Milwaukee County, the impact could be serious, though the governor has not identified how $500 million in proposed cuts in Medical Assistance would be parceled out, said Geri Lyday, interim director of the county's Department of Health and Human Services. Services potentially affected include outpatient mental health, community health, delinquency services and alcohol and drug treatment, she said.
While those trims are unknown for now, the Family Care freeze poses serious problems, county officials said.
"I just can't say how much we are disappointed about the cap on Family Care," Lyday said.
Walker's budget cuts funding for the program by more than $284 million over the next two years.
The governor wanted the freeze pending results of a state audit on the Family Care program, Kitty Rhoades, deputy secretary for the state Department of Health Services, said Wednesday. The department wants data on cost effectiveness, quality of care and the "fiscal sustainability" of the program, Rhoades said.
"Until we have those questions answered it doesn't seem logical to continue bringing people into the program," she said.
Rhoades described the freeze as temporary, but said it wouldn't be lifted until any problems raised in a forthcoming state audit are addressed. A report on the program will be issued by the end of the month, said State Auditor Janice Mueller.
"We put the freeze in (the budget) for two years because that's the worst-case scenario," Rhoades said. "Once the audit comes out and everything's coming up roses, then the caps don't need to be there," she said.
Rhoades said questions had been raised about program costs and effectiveness.
'No safety net'
County officials had been counseling frail elderly clients to spend down to their last $2,000 - the level for eligibility for Family Care services - in the expectation that the state would then cover a significant portion of costs for assisted living or adult group home care. That advice could prove harmful, said Stephanie Sue Stein, who heads the county Department on Aging.
Some seniors in assisted living or adult family day care could find themselves out of luck due to the proposed freeze, Stein said. People with disabilities, like Rothe, would have to wait longer to enter the program.
"There are going to be dire consequences," Stein told county supervisors. "There is no safety net left." Her department has been working to place as many seniors as possible in Family Care before the freeze is imposed, she said.
"It's a really bad thing to do to people," Stein said of the proposed freeze. Hundreds of seniors planning on Family Care "really have no recourse" besides nursing home care, at a cost of $5,000 a month or more, she said - nearly double what the state pays a month for seniors in Family Care.
Stein said the county also should expect lawsuits over denial of Family Care.
With a freeze, the county would re-establish a waiting list for seniors, who now apply for the program at the rate of about 150 a month. About 90 leave the program monthly, due mostly to death, which suggests a Family Care waiting list would grow by about 60 people a month.
In Milwaukee County, more than 2,000 people with disabilities are on waiting lists for Family Care, about one quarter of the statewide total. The state has had no waiting list for seniors in the program since 2002.
Among other changes in the governor's budget, the state SeniorCare program for prescription drug coverage gets downgraded, which would likely shift people into more expensive Medicare Part D coverage. It would mean $35 higher monthly costs and larger co-pays.
(Thanks to our friends at BPDD for sharing this article with us)For example, counties with Family Care and IRIS would not be able to addnew people to the programs unless a current participant dies or leaves.Students leaving high school would transition to a waiting list. Waitinglists for community programs will grow across the state.
The Legislative Audit Bureau released a report on Family Care thatconfirms the program has increased access to services that enable peoplewith disabilities and older adults to maintain their independence andremain in their own homes. Disability advocates fear that once the cap isin place, the only option for people with long term support needs incrisis will be institutional care such as nursing homes.
Disability advocates are circulating a petition to legislators askingthem to Keep the Community Promise and lift the caps on long term careprograms.
The Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities supportsexpanding the Family Care, IRIS and Family Care Partnership programsstatewide by the end of the next budget and strongly opposes the cap on
enrollment. If you have an opinion, now is the time to take action:
E-mail your comments to the Joint Finance Committee atbudgetcomments@legis.wisconsin.gov. Please be sure to include your nameand address.
Contact your own state representative and state senator with yourcomments. If you dont know who they are go tohttp://www.dawninfo.org/advocacy/legislature.cfmto find out.
Consider adding your name to the petition to legislators asking themto Keep the Community Promise and lift the caps. To view the petition andsign it go tohttp://www.ipetitions.com/petition/keepthecommunitypromise/
The deadline to sign the petition is May 10.
Send your own story about being on the waiting list or enrolled inFamily Care, IRIS, or the Childrens Long Term Support waiver to ChrisThomas-Cramer at Christine.ThomasCramer@Wisconsin.gov. Please contact
Chris at the same address if you have any questions.
There is still time to make your opinions heard on the state budget!
The 2011 statewide Self-Determination Conference is just over 6 months away! Mark your calendars for November 7, 8 and 9th. The conference will be held at the Kalahari in Wisconsin Dells. More information about the conference will be posted on the inControl Wisconsin website atwww.incontrolwisconsin.org
Do you want to see the webcasts and presenter materials from last years conference? Visit:http://www.incontrolwisconsin.org/icevents/self-determination-conference/2010-self-determination-conference/
Hope to see you in November!!!!
Shannon Munn
608.712.2212cell
608.318.0700office
Promoting a system of self-directed support for everyone.
Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD) Requests Comments
By Theresa Kulow, 2011-04-26
The Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD) has developed its next five-year State Plan and it is now available for public comment. Please review the draft of the BPDD's 2012-2016 State Plan and complete our online survey to help us to continue to improve the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities in Wisconsin.
- Review the draft of the BPDD's 2012-2016 State Plan.
- To provide comments on the State Plan, please complete the online survey.
- More information about how to provide your input.
4/11/11 UPDATE: You can keep up with the list of upcoming DHS Town Hall Meetings by going to the DHS Town Hall Meeting website.
The following information was shared byDAWN (Disability Advocates: Wisconsin Network).* This post will be updated as additional town meetings are announced.
The Department of Health Services (DHS) has announced a second Town Hall Meeting will be held in Fennimore on Tuesday, April 5. The meeting willtake place from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at South West Technical College inthe Lenz Conference Center in the Kramer Building (Building 300), 1800Bronson Blvd., Fennimore, WI.
The first Town Hall Meeting is in Eau Claire on March 30 at 1 p.m. atChippewa Valley Technical College in the WI Business Education Center,Room 103 Auditorium, 620 W. Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire.
The purpose of these meetings is for DHS to gather ideas from the publicon cost efficiencies, savings, and improved outcomes to the statesMedicaid programs. These ideas will help DHS develop plans designed toimprove overall consumer care, streamline program delivery and stabilizeprograms to ensure long-term sustainability.
Those who testify will have up to three minutes to share theircost-saving ideas. People can also submit their written testimony at themeeting. Testimony will also be accepted via email to DHS DeputySecretary Kitty Rhoades at
DHSDeputySecretaryKittyRhoades@dhs.wisconsin.govor via U.S. mail toSecretary Dennis Smith, Room 650, 1 W. Wilson St., Madison, WI, 53703.
DHS can gather ideas on all Medical Assistance programs, includingSeniorCare, BadgerCare Plus, Family Care, IRIS (Include, Respect, ISelf-Direct) and other long-term care programs.
People who require special accommodations to attend or participate inthe meeting should notify DHS at608-266-9622(TTY888-701-1250).
For more information, contact Beth Swedeen atbeth.swedeen@wisconsin.gov.
.
* DAWN is a grassroots, statewide network of people who care about disability issues and is a project of the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD). You can also sign up for the DAWN email networkto receive announcements directly.
For the first time, the Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education (RPSE) has joined forces with the annual Wisconsin Film Festival to sponsor Film*Able: Disabilities on Film, a series of eight disability-related films to be shown during the popular, four-day festival.
The Wisconsin Film Festival has been held every April since 1999 at venues on and around the UW-Madison campus. RPSE Assistant Professor Audrey Trainor approached Meg Hamel, the festivals director, with the idea of sponsoring a series of films that are more realistic in their portrayal of people living with disabilities. Most films resort to stereotypes, showing individuals with disabilities as victims, unlikely heroes, or in need of rescuing.
Predictable plots and themes tell us more about how people without disabilities form opinions that allay fears about acquiring and living with adversity, Trainor says. While the films in the Film*Able series have little in common with one another, they all challenge these stereotypical portrayals.
The series includes award-winning documentaries and autobiographies about people with developmental and physical disabilities and tackles real issues such as inadequate worker compensation coverage and the relationship between different and disabled.
A complete schedule and short description of the series eight diverse films is below. Advance tickets are available through Wednesday, April 11, and can be ordered online or at the Festival Box Office. For details, visit http://www.wifilmfest.org/.
To learn more about the Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education, go to the RPSE website: http://www.education.wisc.edu/rpse/.
Film*Able: Disabilities on Screen schedule
Thursday, April 12
7:15 p.m., Frederic March Play Circle Theater (Memorial Union, second floor)
Escape Velocity The story of an artist with Attention Deficit Disorder. Voted Best Experimental Film at the 2006 USA Film Festival.
BraindamadjdTake II An autobiography of a man who suffered a traumatic brain injury at the age of 30, and his determination to get his life back.
9:30 p.m., Wisconsin Union Theater
Heart of an Empire A documentary about the Fighting 501st Legion, a Star Wars fan group that visits childrens hospitals and participates in charity fundraisers.
Friday, April 13
7:30 p.m., Monona Terrace Convention Center
When Pigs Fly The story of a woman who is obsessively devoted to raising abandoned pigs despite being in a wheelchair.
The Cost of Living An award-winning adaptation of a stage play featuring a street performer with no legs.
10:00 p.m., Bartell Theater
Black Sun A collaboration between an artist who unexpectedly lost his sight and a filmmaker who creates the images to tell his story. Also playing on Saturday, April 14, at 1:45 p.m.
Saturday, April 14
11:15 a.m., Frederic March Play Circle Theatre
The Collector of Bedford Street An Oscar-nominated documentary short about a New York City neighborhood that rallies together to care for a man with developmental disabilities.
Kiss My Wheels The story of the Zia Hot Shots, a nationally ranked junior wheelchair basketball team.
1:45 p.m., Bartell Theater
Black Sun
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The following information was shared byDAWN (Disability Advocates: Wisconsin Network).*
The Joint Committee on Finance has announced the schedule for public hearings about the proposed biennial budget.This is your opportunity to make your opinions known about the freeze on Family Care expansion and cap onenrollment, cuts to education, and other issues.Check out the DAWN webpagefor a summary of the proposed budget.
The dates, times and location of the hearings are:
- Thursday, April 7 (10 am _ 6 pm). UW-Stevens Point (Lee Dreyfus University Center, Melvin Laird Room, Stevens Point)
- Friday, April 8 (10 am _ 5 pm). Northwood School Richard's Auditorium, Highway 53, Minong.
- Monday, April 11 (10 am _ 6 pm). State Fair Park, Expo Center Hall A, West Allis.
- Wednesday, April 13. (10 am _ 6 pm). Arcadia High School Auditorium, Arcadia.
The committee notice said it will stop taking testimony at the time specified. Written comments can be emailed to the committee at: budgetcomments@legis.wisconsin.gov or sent by US mail to: Joe Malkasian, Room 305 East, State Capitol, Madison, WI 53703.
*DAWN is a grassroots, statewide network of people who care about disability issues and is a project of the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD). You can also sign up for theDAWN email networkto receive announcements directly.
Share or Respond: People with Disabilities Asked About 9-1-1 Emergency Services
By Theresa Kulow, 2011-03-21
On March 16, 2011, the FCC's Emergency Access Advisory Committee (EAAC) released a national on-line survey to determine the most effective and efficient technologies and methods by which persons with disabilities may access Next Generation 9-1-1 emergency services systems. Among other things, the survey asks about accessing emergency services via video, text, and voice. The results of the survey will inform the EAAC as it develops recommendations for the FCC to draft rules to ensure that people with disabilities can access NG 9-1-1 services. The survey is available in English, Spanish and American Sign Language (ASL) video).
This survey will be available until April 24, 2011. We encourage people with disabilities to complete this survey, and share information about the survey with other people with disabilities and organizations that represent persons with disabilities.
Link to the survey in English and ASL:
Link to the survey in Spanish:
http://fcc.eaac-es.sgizmo.com/s3
The following information was provided by theDBTAC-Great Lakes ADA Center (www.adagreatlakes.org) for your information.