A great article inDisability Scoopwritten by Michelle Diament about how a change in federal law could greatly speed up the availability of ABLE accounts (which will allow people with disabilities to save money without losing their benefits). She explains that lawmakers approved a provision that will allow people with disabilities to open ABLE accounts in any state regardless of where they live. This is great news!

ABLE Accounts May Be Available Sooner Than Expected

By Michelle Diament

A tweak to federal law is poised to greatly expand choice and speed up availability of accounts allowing people with disabilities to save money without risking their government benefits.

Tucked inside a tax bill approved by lawmakers last month is a provision that will permit individuals with disabilities to open new accounts established under the Achieving a Better Life Experience, or ABLE, Act in any state, regardless of where they reside.

The change means that people with disabilities across the country will be able to open ABLE accounts when the first state programs are up and running which could happen as soon as February or March, advocates say.

by Michelle Diament| January 11, 2016

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With the new accounts, people with disabilities will for the first time be able to accrue up to $100,000 in savings without losing access to Social Security and other government benefits. Medicaid coverage will remain intact no matter how much money is saved in an individuals ABLE account.

Despite federalpassageof the ABLE Act in 2014, states had to approve their own legislation and develop mechanisms to regulate and administer the new accounts before letting consumers take advantage. So far, 35 states have approved such legislation, advocates say, but some are farther along than others in implementing programs.

Some of the smaller states dont have the capacity to create an ABLE program so this will allow more people with disabilities to access ABLE accounts and access ABLE accounts faster, said Sara Hart Weir, president of the National Down Syndrome Society.

Without the recent legislative change, individuals with disabilities would have been limited by the timetable and specific offerings in their state. Now, families will be able to shop around to find the state program that best suits their needs and the availability of many options should promote competition among states to make their programs attractive, according to Chris Rodriguez of the National Disability Institute.

Its likely that each state ABLE program will only work with one or a handful of financial institutions and fees may vary, so enabling families to access programs across state lines will dramatically increase their options, Rodriguez said.

Some states are already working to encourage residents to utilize in-state accounts by offering tax incentives, he said.

Its a pretty exciting development, Rodriguez said of the federal provision allowing consumers to access accounts originating in any state. I know its shaking things up. Some of the states are looking to quicken their development and others are sitting back and looking at whether they need to build a program.

Ohio, Florida, Virginia and Nebraska are widely expected to be among the first to make ABLE programs available. Accounts are likely to be created and administered through dedicated state websites, advocates say.

To be eligible for an ABLE account, an individual must have a disability that originated before the age of 26.

Funds in the accounts can be used to pay for education, health care, transportation, housing and other expenses. Interest earned on savings in the accounts will be tax-free.

Source: https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2016/01/11/able-accounts-sooner-expected/21752/

We are pleased to announce that the ADA National Network is hosting the 20^thannual ADA National Symposium on the Americans with Disabilities Act and related disability issues. The Symposium will take place in Denver, Colorado fromJune 19 to 22,2016.

The ADA Symposium includes up to date information regarding employment, communication, transportation, emergency preparedness, case law, regulatory updates for government and private entities and the latest on the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design.

Hear from presenters representing various federal agencies including the Departments of Justice, Education, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and U.S. Access Board. This year there arebreak-out sessions on a wide-range of ADA related topics and online access to hand-outs from all sessions prior to the conference.You can view the SymposiumSchedule and Agendaon-line.

The Great Lakes Centerwill continue our history of supporting participation and attendance from across our six state region.To that end, we are making available a number of stipends in the amount of $650.00 to cover the cost ofregistration (we will not pay late registration fees). The conference is very popular and registration #s have imploded over the past few years resulting in cut off of registration before the deadline due to it being full. Thus, its very important that individuals desiring to attend register for the conference in a timely manner.

Applications will only be accepted from individuals who reside in the Great Lakes Region (IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, and WI). This stipend is only valid for the 2016 Symposium and registration should be completed as soon as possible. Applications will be accepted throughJanuary 29^th, 2016. Notification to recipients will be made by emailwithinthe first week of February. Individuals will be responsible for completing the registration process in a timely manner. The sooner you register, the better chance you have of getting the sessions that you want as well as reduce the risk of the registration closing due to being full. Individuals who fail to register in a timely manner will forfeit the stipend. Receipt of the stipend does not guarantee registration. The registration process for the symposium is a first come, first serve process and our office does not have control over it.

Applications for theApplicationstipends can be completed on-line. Questions regarding the Symposium and the stipend program should be directed to the Great Lakes Center at800-949-4232(V/TTY) between the hours of8:00am-5:00pmCentral Time or by email toadata@adagreatlakes.org.

Stipend recipients are responsible for their own travel arrangements and travel costs. The registration fee includes 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches plus a networking reception. The 2016 Symposium will be held at theHyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center. Rooms are available at adiscounted rate of $163.00 plus tax. Hotel information can be found on the Symposium website at:http://www.adasymposium.org/Agenda.html.

***Thanks to the Great Lakes Center for sharing this information with us.

This is a very informative article inThe Wall Street Journal written by Anne Tergesen about 529 ABLE accounts. She does a great job of explaining what ABLE accounts are and how they'll be expected to work.

529 Plans Open Doors to Disabled From Any State

Similar to college-savings plans, ABLE accounts to offer investment without restriction to home states plan

By Anne Tergesen

A year ago, Congress created the 529 ABLE account, a savings vehicle for disabled people that offers the same tax-free growth available in 529 college-savings plans. Now, thanks to a tax law passed last month, consumers eligible to open a 529 ABLE account will be free to select a plan sponsored by any state, rather than being restricted to their home states plan.

That change will make it possible for people across the country to start one of these accounts as soon as the first state program opens for businesssomething that is likely to happen in the coming months.

Over time, experts expect there to be competition among states to attract out-of-state residents to their 529 ABLE programs, which may result in lower fees and better investment options for consumers.

About 35 states have passed legislation to sponsor ABLE programs, saidSara Hart Weir,president of the National Down Syndrome Society, which lobbied for the accounts. Officials in Nebraska, Virginia and Florida say they plan to make 529 ABLE accounts available in 2016.

Mary Morris,chief executive of Virginia 529, said Virginia is likely to launch its ABLE program in the second half of 2016.

In many ways, 529 ABLE accounts resemble 529 plans. A disabled person or friends and relatives can make one-time or regular contributions, which grow tax-free if they are used for qualified expenses. In the case of the 529 ABLEs, that includes education, housing, transportation and employment training. If used for other purposes, investment gains are subject to income tax and a 10% penalty.

The account owneror a parent or guardian appointed to make decisions on behalf of that disabled individualwill pick from the plans investment options, which are expected to include money-market funds and stock and bond mutual funds.

The biggest benefit of an ABLE account is that disabled individuals can have as much as $100,000 in one and still qualify for benefits including Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a federal program for disabled people with low incomes. Previously, to qualify for SSI, a person could have no more than $2,000 in assets. Traditionally, Medicaid had a similar asset cap.

To qualify for an ABLE account, a minor or adult must be blind or have a severe physical or mental disability before age 26, saidLen Weiser-Varon,an attorney in Boston who specializes in state-sponsored savings programs. The person must also be entitled to SSI or Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, or, with some exceptions, have a doctors diagnosis.

Now that these programs can attract contributions from other states residents, experts say it is unclear whether all the states that passed legislation will set up their own plans. Some may put their programs on hold and reassess once the initial 529 ABLE plans are operating, to see whether the market is big enough to accommodate additional players.

Others may opt to subcontract with another state or join a multistate consortium to achieve economies of scale to reduce investment costs and account fees, saidBetty Lochner,chairwoman of the College Savings Plans Network, which includes officials involved with 529 programs, and director of Washington states Guaranteed Education Tuition college savings plan.

Nobody really has a good sense for how big the potential market is, but it is clear that it is not nearly the size of the college 529 market, which has more than $258 billion in assets, said Michael Kitces, director of financial planning at Pinnacle Advisory Group Inc. in Columbia, Md. States that are among the first to enter the market may attract most of the assets, he added.

Experts say families who want to maximize their contributions to these accounts should set one up in 2016, even if there are relatively few plans to choose from. The reason: Annual contributions to 529 ABLE accounts are currently capped at $14,000 per beneficiary, and each beneficiary is restricted to just one such account. Such limits, which are far below those that apply to 529 college-savings accounts, make it harder to amass significant savings with 529 ABLE accounts, saidJamie Canup,who, as head of the tax department at Richmond, Va., law firmHirschler Fleischer,serves as a consultant to states on 529 ABLE plans.

Families may want to wait until the final months of 2016 so they can select from as many choices as possible. But they should keep an eye on offerings from other states that enter the market. If they find a plan with lower fees or better investment options they can initiate a tax-free rolloveror transferof their assets from one state plan to another, said Mr. Canup.

As with 529 college plans, some states may offer a state tax break for using your home-state plan. States that currently intend to offer one include Oregon, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York and Wisconsin, said Ms. Weir.

If maintaining SSI benefits, which are suspended once a disabled persons assets reach $100,000, isnt a concern, a family may also want to shop for a state plan that allows them to set aside the most money possible. On average, state 529 ABLE programs cap the balance on these accounts at $300,000 per person, but some states say they plan to allow participants to amass as much as $480,000 in savings, said Ms. Weir.

For families that can fund a special-needs trust, deciding whether to use that or a 529 ABLE accountor bothis complicated. Because these trusts typically cost from $2,000 to $5,000 to set up, they often make sense only if there is at least $50,000and potentially far moreavailable to invest, said Mr. Canup.

With the trusts, investment gains are taxable. But families can make unlimited contributions without affecting a beneficiarys eligibility for government benefits.

Perhaps the biggest downside to an ABLE account applies to beneficiaries who receive Medicaid. If beneficiaries die with money in ABLE accounts, a state has a right to seek repayment for Medicaid benefits received after creating the ABLE account. In contrast, when the beneficiary dies, a special-needs trust isnt required to reimburse the state for Medicaid benefitsunless the beneficiary funded the trust with his or her own earnings or savings.

Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/529-plans-open-doors-to-disabled-from-any-state-1452162541

This is an interesting article inDisability Scoopwritten by Michelle Diament about how an airlines has been fined millions of dollars for not accommodating travelers with disabilities properly. She explains that the airlines didn't properly assist people with things such as getting on and off the airplane and they didn't return equipment to passengers in a timely manner or in the same condition. It's interesting to learn what the fine money will be used for.

Airline Fined $2 Million Over Accessibility Complaints

By Michelle Diament

On Monday January 4^th, the Department of Health Services (DHS) shared publicly its December report on Long Term Care system redesign, as required by the 2015-17 state budget.

You can read the report here:http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/misc/lfb/jfc/200_reports/2016_01_04_health_services_medicaid_waiver_request_progress.pdf

DHSs report references an ongoing internal process to redesign the system, the Departments plan to report on its internal work in the Concept Plan (due to Joint Finance April 1^st), and states there will be two public hearings in March 2016. It is unclear whether these hearings will be to collect public comment on a draft of the Concept Plan.

Survival Coalition members continue to hear many questions and concerns from people with disabilities, their families, advocates, and providers across the state including:

• Will I have the same services at the same levels?
• Will my service plan look and stay the same?
• Can I keep all my sameproviders and doctors?
• Can I continue to fully self-direct if Im in IRIS, includingfull budget authority and full employment authority to hire, train,and fire my own workers?
• Can I still hire family members if I have paid family members now?

Survival Coalition finds that the quarterly report did not offer any additional information on what the content of redesigned Family Care will look like, any decisions the Department has made regarding the redesign, how the new system will operate, or when/how transition to the new system will occur.

Survival Coalition is aware that the Department has scheduled three meetings to be held this January, February, and March with selected invited advocates on select topics related to the redesign. Survival Coalition has respectfully requested additional meetings with Department leadership and redesign staff to discuss all of the topics raised in Survival Coalitions public comments.

Take Action Now

1.Read the report and see if it answers your questions about the long term care system redesign.

2.Contact your State Representative and State Senator with your unresolved questions (Go to Find My Legislators here:http://legis.wisconsin.gov/)

3.Stay tuned to participate in the upcoming public hearings in March.

***We thank the Wisconsin Survival Coalition for sharing this information.

This is a very interesting article inDisability Scoop/Kaiser Health Newswritten by Anna Gorman about how a new report shows a lack of oversight in the home care workforce could lessen wage and labor gains for workers. She explains that poorly regulated companies could risk the the enforcement of new labor standards (which are minimum wage and overtime protections). She goes onto say that stronger oversight is needed to ensure workers have fair pay and decent working conditions.

Report: Home Care Workers Need Better Protections

By Anna Gorman

A lack of oversight in the rapidly growing home care workforce could undermine new wage and labor gains for many of the nations 2 million workers, according to a newreport.

Private agencies employ the vast majority of home care workers, who provide services that are largely paid for by Medicare, Medicaid and other federal and state programs. But the companies are poorly regulated, which could hamper the enforcement of new labor standards, said the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a labor advocacy group.

Home care workers recently gained federal minimum wage and overtime protections after a lengthy battle in the federal courts. The U.S. Department of Labor is expected to begin full enforcement in 2016.

We are poised to really improve things for home care workers but we need to make sure that those standards are upheld no matter what the work arrangement is, she said.

For example, Leberstein said a worker may not benefit from the federal minimum wage and overtime laws if her boss calls her an independent contractor, a classification traditionally not covered by employment laws, and if no enforcement agency questions the designation.

Home care workers are among the fastest-growing occupations, according to the Labor Department.

There are different types, including home health workers who provide medical care, and personal care aides, who help with bathing, eating, shopping and other tasks.

The average wage of the largely female home care workforce is about $10 an hour and nearly 50 percent of them rely on public assistance such as food stamps, according to the Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute, which does research, training and advocacy for direct care workers.

Personal care workers in particular have long been underpaid and have lacked worker protections, unless they happen to be in a union or employed by an agency with good benefits, said Susan Chapman, a professor at UCSF School of Nursing, who was not involved in NELPs report.

Those poor working conditions, along with an improved economy, have contributed to a shortage of paid workers to care for the aging population, Chapman said.

If you could work at a coffee house with benefits and higher pay, you would take that job over working in a home care situation, she said. The care is valued but the workers are seemingly less valued by our economy.

Neither the federal nor state governments require home care agencies to report data on workers wages and hours, the report said. Without such transparency, they cant determine the amount of public funds used for agencys overhead versus employee pay, NELP said.

As taxpayers, we really should care what is going on with the money that is supposed to be used to provide really critical services for people with disability and older adults, Leberstein said.

The authors recommendations include paying workers $15 per hour and ending government contracts with agencies that have a record of labor violations. The report also recommends that home care agencies be required to produce wage and hour reports on employees.

If governments regulate the agencies more strictly and monitor them more carefully, workers would have a better chance at getting fair pay and decent working conditions, NELP said. Turnover also might be reduced and the quality of care might improve as well.

We think its the federal and state governments that should take the lead in reforming the home care industry, said Leberstein. They have a lot of power to do this because they are paying for home care services.

Source: https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2016/01/05/report-home-care-protections/21721/

11^thAnnualEssayContesthosted by the Autism Society of Wisconsin

Thiscontestwas designed to highlight positive social relationships that have developed as a result of inclusion.Theessaysshared over the years have been heartwarming and inspirational. We challenge you to get your school & community involved!Both classroom and individual student submissions grades K-12 are welcome.

Hereis a letter writtenspecificallyfor the building principal and hereis a letter for teachers. Hereis the student submission form. If you are a principal- please share this email with the educators in your school and district as a whole. If you are an educator- please share attached documents with your principal to encourage all grade levels to participate.Our goal is to give as many students as possible the opportunity to tell their story and spread autism awareness. The submission deadline is March 6th, 2016. The 1st place winners will be recognized at our 27th Annual Conference,Friday, April 8th, 2016.

On behalf of the Autism Society we appreciate your participation in this project and look forward to honoring students for their efforts in promoting autism awareness in their schools and communities.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact:

Melissa Vande Velden

Events Coordinator--Autism Socitey of Wisconsin

920-973-6636

This past July was the 25^thanniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act; November marked the 20^thAnniversary of the Disability Discrimination Act in Brittan; and December, 2016, will be the 10^thanniversary of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and this April will be the sweet sixteen forMultiple Perspectives on Access, Inclusion & Disability

It is time to move beyond the letter of the law to the spirit of the law; to shift our focus from redressing human and environmental problems through remedial design to preventing problems through holistic design.Leslie Kanes Weisman

UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE STUDENT POSTER COMPETITIONS

At the Sixteenth Annual

Multiple Perspectives on Access, Inclusion & Disability

April 13 - 14, 2016

The Ohio State Universitys Columbus Campus

Student Poster Competition Submissions are due no later thanMarch 15, 2016

Concurrent Session Proposals DueJanuary 28, 2016

The Multiple Perspectives Conference encourages students to network with professionals, the community, and scholars who share their interests in disability at its annual student poster reception. A generous gift from the Ethel Louise Armstrong Foundation will fund awards (Graduate Research - $500; Undergraduate Research $200, Art & Performance $200, Community Service $100, and Class Projects $200 at this years competition.

Submissions may focus on any aspect of disability and may be based on:

1.Independent & Supervised Student Research

2.Art & Performance

3.Class Projects & Papers (Award goes to department to support future projects)

4.Community Service & Applied Problem Solving from Service Learning Classes or student organizations (Award goes to organization/department to support future projects)

Posters can take a variety of forms including print material mounted on poster board or display panels or arranged on a table; PowerPoint presentations, web pages or video presentations from your laptop

Presentation materials must fit on a 3x6 table or along 6 or less of wall space

Presentation materials should present the informationin 10 minutesor less

Presenters or their designee must be present to interact with the audience

Presenters must provide their own equipment

Visit these sites for tips on developing a poster presentation:

http://denman.osu.edu/resources.aspx

http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/speaking/poster/index.cfm

http://www.plu.edu/~libr/workshops/multimedia/posters.html

Students and teams of students who wish to present a poster must send the following information toADA-OSU@osu.eduno later thanMarch 15, 2016

1.Title

2.Short Title - 12 word maximum

3.Poster Format (Print, Model, PowerPoint, Video, )

4.Description of their proposed poster topic 250 word maximum

5.E-mail address, phone number, and surface mail address of coordinating presenter

6.As appropriate, university, department, grant, course or student organization affiliation

7.A letter of support from a faculty member or organization advisor associated with the project

8.Name of individual, Department or Organization to receive cash award should the project win.

Early submissions are encouraged. Submissions will be reviewed as they arrive. Conference fees will be waived and lunch provided for all accepted presenters.

Please Note:

The full conference fees will be waived and lunch provided for presenters of accepted proposals. Presenters are responsible for their own travel and lodging.

The Multiple Perspectives Conference is hosted by Ohio State Universitys ADA Coordinators Office your participation issupported through the generosity of the Ethel Louise Armstrong Foundation Endowment Fund and ongoing support from The Ohio State University.

***We thankthe Great Lakes ADA Center (www.adagreatlakes.org) for this information.

You are invited to participate in a five-minute, seven question, online survey. The purpose of the survey is to obtain the thoughts and opinions of individuals with disabilities related to ability-based outdoor activity. Your responses will remain confidential, and will only be reported in summary, combined with the responses from others across the country. Feel free to forward this email to friends, colleagues, etc.

The survey is managed by the Ability Project, and all who complete the survey athttp://GreatLakesADA-abilityproject.questionpro.comwill be entered in a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card.

To make sure you are entered in the drawing for the gift card, please complete your survey byMidnight, January 15, 2016.

Click here now to complete this five minute survey:http://GreatLakesADA-abilityproject.questionpro.com

Questions regarding this survey should be directed to: Research@AbilityProject.org

This is an interesting press release about a group of disability organizations have formed a National Aging and Disability Transportation Center. It explains what it will provide and how it will be funded. It also gives some helpful links.