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Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits are set to surpass $1,000 per month next year due to a cost-of-living adjustment, but the strict $2,000 asset limit for individuals—unchanged since the 1980s—remains in place. Advocates warn that this discrepancy creates a severe hardship and work penalty, as even modest savings for emergencies or a security deposit put beneficiaries at risk of losing crucial assistance like SSI and Medicaid. While bipartisan legislation like the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act has been proposed to raise the cap and adjust it for inflation, it has yet to advance in Congress.
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FORBES: Wyden Raises The Profile Of Long-Term Care Reform But Has Far To Go
By SD Network, 2026-10-31
A recent policy initiative aims to reform long-term care by establishing a universal home-based system, increasing support and compensation for both paid and family caregivers, and improving facility quality through stricter oversight and regulations. While proponents praise the effort for elevating the issue on the political agenda, critics raise concerns that the proposal heavily favors home care at the expense of facility-based needs, underestimates the complexities of funding and caregiver costs, and relies on potentially unrealistic mandates. Future legislation will need to address these financial and structural challenges to ensure reforms are both sustainable and widely supported.
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ABC NEWS: Judge blocks Trump administration's Medicaid rule forcing sick recipients to prove frailty
By SD Network, 2026-10-30
A federal judge in Boston partially blocked a Trump administration Medicaid rule that required chronically ill individuals to prove their conditions "significantly impair" their ability to meet new work requirements in order to qualify for "medically frail" exemptions. Ruling in a lawsuit brought by 25 states and the District of Columbia, U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns found that the stricter rule would cause irreparable harm by forcing states to alter eligibility verification systems, though he upheld other provisions regarding medical documentation limits.
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WISCONSIN WATCH: Outreach, education key to voting accessibility, Wisconsin advocates say
By SD Network, 2026-10-30
A recent article explores the ongoing challenges surrounding voting accessibility for individuals with disabilities in Wisconsin. While the state boasts robust accessibility requirements—such as curbside voting, accessible polling places, and electronic ballot-marking equipment—advocates note a significant turnout gap and hurdles regarding implementation and awareness. Experts emphasize that greater outreach, education, and proper support for both voters and municipal clerks are essential to ensuring that the hundreds of thousands of voting-eligible residents with disabilities can fully exercise their right to vote.
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TIME: I've Been Disabled Since I Was a Child. Co-Writing Being Heumann Still Taught Me So Much
By SD Network, 2026-10-30
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WISCONSIN BOARD FOR PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES: legislative policy priorities
By SD Network, 2026-10-30
The Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD) released legislative policy priorities that focus on upholding the rights of people with disabilities to receive care at home, get an education, and live and work in their communities.
People with disabilities fought for decades for laws that ensure that we cannot be set aside and locked away in institutions. A recent U.S. Department of Justice memo says these laws do not give people the right to live in their own homes and communities. Medicaid cuts and federal actions targeting home care funding threaten the care infrastructure Wisconsin has built to prevent people with disabilities and older adults from unnecessarily ending up in costly Medicaid-funded nursing homes and other institutional settings.
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MCKNIGHT: States go above and beyond to prevent Medicaid home care fraud, KFF survey finds
By SD Network, 2026-10-23
Based on a 2026 KFF survey of state Medicaid home care programs, nearly all responding states exceed federal electronic visit verification (EVV) requirements and use a multifaceted approach to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse. Most states analyze claims by provider and enrollee, update care plans annually or more frequently, require in-person assessments, and verify claims against authorizations prior to payment, with a vast majority implementing all eight key program integrity strategies. Furthermore, states are increasingly adopting artificial intelligence tools—such as predictive algorithms and aggregated grievance monitoring—to enhance data oversight and program integrity, particularly across waiver programs for older adults, individuals with physical disabilities, and those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
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The National MLTSS Health Plan Association announced the release of a new brief titled Self-Direction 2.0 Framework: Advancing Self-Direction in a Managed Long-Term Services and Supports (MLTSS) Ecosystem, which provides actionable recommendations to improve person-centered and sustainable self-direction programs. Developed in partnership with the Self-Direction Center and the association's Self-Direction Workgroup—consisting of health plan experts and partnership program participants—this publication is the first in a series of briefs scheduled for release.
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