Circles of Life Conference 2019
35^th Annual Statewide Conference: May 2 – 3, 2019
Holiday Inn – Convention Center, Stevens Point, Wisconsin
 

The Circles of Life Conference invites you to submit a proposal (or two) for the 2019 conference. Between 400-500 individuals with disabilities, their families and professionals from across Wisconsin attend the Circles of Life Conference each year. The conference is a unique opportunity for participants to develop new skills, learn up to date information and form lasting relationships.
 
We are looking for presenters including: parents, family members, youth and adults with disabilities, professionals, providers, volunteers, or other potential presenters with information or expertise in a broad range of topics that affect families and individuals with disabilities.  Previous topics have included:

• Leadership and advocacy
• Community
• Education
• Family and self-care and wellness
• Health and mental health topics
• Long-term care
• Transition
• And many others…

We hope that you will consider submitting a proposal for the 2019 conference or share this information with other individuals who you think would be excellent presenters.
 
Please visit the Circles of Life website at circlesoflifeconference.com/call-for-presenters/ for application materials. The deadline for proposals is September 30, 2018.
 
For more information, please visit the Circles of Life Conference web site at:circlesoflifeconference.com or find us on Facebook.

People with disabilities can acquire new skills and decision-making capacity throughout their lives. Ensuring more people with I/DD retain their rights to make decisions and have the support they need to make choices in their lives is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• creating a time-limited guardianship option for young people with disabilities that gives young people the time needed for their brains to fully mature, gain life experience, and practice with decision-making, and offers an opportunity to re-assess competency
• ensuring guardians receive training on the roles, responsibilities, and duties required of guardians under Wisconsin’s law

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People with disabilities may rely on multiple public benefit programs—including Medicaid, FoodShare, public housing, and Social Security Income or Disability Insurance—to access the health care, food, housing, and funding they need to live independently and stay out of institutions. There is no tiered path across public assistance programs for people with disabilities to gradually increase their income and assets while maintaining access to some or all supports across public benefit programs. Improving people with disabilities access to public benefit programs as they move towards life goals is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

50% of people with disabilities in Wisconsin rely on all of Wisconsin’s 20 Medicaid programs. Medicaid provides services and supports that are not available or are not available at the level needed on the private insurance market and keeps people with disabilities living in their homes and out of costly facilities like nursing homes. Improving Wisconsin’s Medicaid programs is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• Creating a Medicaid waiver to provide a limited package of services to keep low-income people who make more than $12,000 per year independent and in their homes
• providing funding for continuous outcome improvement initiatives that improve community employment, transportation, and community living for people with disabilities
• transitioning the remaining residents of state institutions in to Family Care/IRIS
• improving access and navigation for families of the Children’s long-term support waiver program

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Poor educational preparation of students with disabilities translates into a lifetime of high unemployment, lower wages, and greater reliance on public benefit programs. Improving educational outcomes for students with disabilities is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• increasing funding for special education
• improving school accountability to make sure all schools report similar data and parents have an apple to apples comparison between education options

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Wisconsin’s bi-partisan Employment First legislation recognizes community integrated employment as a priority for people with disabilities. Wisconsin families want more competitive integrated employment choices; increasing the number of people with disabilities working in the community is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• creating a one-time grant program to help long-term care employment service providers change their policies, practices, and business models to increase the number of individuals transitioning into sustained competitive-wage community jobs
• creating individual independence accounts that provides matching dollars for youth to finance work-related expenses
• making sure people with I/DD who do not meet the nursing home level of care have access to employment supports

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People with disabilities are not able to get where they need to go on their schedule. Access to Transportation is consistently the top concern for people with disabilities in Wisconsin, and it is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• making sure that enough transportation is included for people with disabilities in Family Care and IRIS who are working or who want to work in the community
• reforming the Non-Emergency Medicaid Transportation (NEMT) service so people get the rides they need for medical appointments
• incentivizing a regional approach to transportation to maintain and expand public transportation capacity and make sure that people can get where they need to go on their schedules no matter where they live

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In Wisconsin a shortage of professional direct care workers has created a crisis for people with disabilities, older adults, and their families. Improving worker retention and increasing the number of workers is one of seven priority issues BPDD focuses on in our 2019-21 state budget and policy platform.

Recommendations include:

• creating a Medicaid Buy-In program for direct care workers so they can work more and keep their access to health care
• making sure worker wages in border areas match pay in other states so Wisconsin workers work for Wisconsin citizens
• supporting increases in wages, coverage of transportation costs, paid time off and retirement savings plans, and training or career advancement opportunities that retain and attract quality workers into the field
  

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