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November 18, 2024 | Vol. MMXXVIII | Issue 98 |
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Budget and Appropriations and Autism CARES Act |
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On September 25, Congress passed a 3-month long Continuing Resolution (CR) that extends government funding through December 20—H.R. 9747. The CR includes an extension of funding for the Autism CARES Act of 2019, delaying its sunset until December 20. Congress will need to fund the federal government for the rest of Fiscal Year 2025 and then reauthorize the Autism CARES Act of 2024 by December 20.
Congress is also continuing to hold hearings and markups next week, including:
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Congress has passed a bill to keep the government funded through December 20. The bill includes language that would help the Autism CARES Act of 2019 continue. This means that research and training focused on people with autism and other developmental disabilities can continue until December 20. Now that Congress is back, they need to pass more legislation to keep the government funded. People can call their Member of Congress and let them know how important it is to make sure the Autism CARES Act continues next year. |
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Action Steps |
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Representative Scanlon Introduces Legislation to Help People with Disabilities Vote |
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On November 15, U.S. Representative Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA-5) introduced the Disability Voting Rights Act (H.R. 10149), which would amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require states to promote access to voter registration and voting for people with disabilities. The bill would facilitate registration, absentee ballot application, and voting by mail processes. It would also mandate that each state designate an office that is responsible for providing voting information to people with disabilities. |
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U.S. Representative Mary Gay Scanlon introduced a bill that would help more people with disabilities vote, including when they want to vote by sending their ballot in the mail. The bill would also make sure each state has an office that will have information on voting for people with disabilities. |
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Action Steps |
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Read more about the bill. |
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President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities Releases Report on Home and Community-Based Services |
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On October 2, the President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID) delivered a report to President Biden entitled, “Advancing Independence and Community Integration for All: Supporting Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities Through High-Quality Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS).” The report focuses on barriers to accessing HCBS for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), and reviews opportunities and proposals to expand and strengthen HCBS.
Specifically, the report reviews the labor shortage crisis for direct support professionals (DSPs), employment for people with I/DD and pathways to competitive integrated employment (CIE), community living and “additional critical supports to promote independence and community inclusion,” and the impact of programs like Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, and Medicare. The PCPID outlines possible opportunities, strategies, and policy changes that would improve access to HCBS. |
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The President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID) wrote a report on how people with disabilities are able to get home and community-based services. |
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Action Steps |
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Office of Disability Employment Policy Launches Situations and Solutions Finder |
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On October 3, the Office of Disability Employment Policy’s Job Accommodation Network (JAN), part of the U.S. Department of Labor, launched a new resource that provides information on accommodations that employers and workers with disabilities can explore. Over the past few decades, JAN customers have provided information about the kinds of workplace accommodations that employees with disabilities have used and feedback about what has worked for them. The Situations and Solutions Finder uses this information so that more employees and employers can explore different accommodations and find guidance on workplace accommodations and compliance under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The employers who have provided information about workplace accommodations “represent government agencies and diverse industry sectors, including healthcare, education, manufacturing, service, wholesale/retail sales, etc., and span from very small businesses to global corporations.” |
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Plain Language |
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The U.S. Department of Labor has a program that focuses on workplace accommodations, which are supports in a job that help people with disabilities do their work and have equal opportunity to get jobs, like nondisabled people. There is a new website tool that has a lot of information and examples of different kinds of accommodations that have already been used in many different kinds of workplaces. This new website tool provides advice and can help more employees with disabilities in their jobs. |
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Action Steps |
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Visit the Situations and Solutions Finder. |
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New State Health Insurance Assistance Program Blog Post on Medicare Open Enrollment |
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On October 15, Medicare’s Open Enrollment period began, and it will run through December 7. The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) has a new blog post on open enrollment that can help older adults learn more. During open enrollment, people can make changes to their Medicare coverage, including changing Medicare Advantage or Part D coverage. Changes made take effect January 1, 2025. |
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Plain Language |
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The time period when people can change their Medicare health care has started and will end on December 7. There is a blog post with information about how people can change their health care during this time period. |
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Action Steps |
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Read the blog post. |
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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Release Information on Medicaid Renewal Requirements |
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On September 20, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services released an informational bulletin to provide states with updates on compliance with federal renewal requirements. CMS identified many states that were not in compliance with some aspects of federal renewal requirements, including during the Medicaid unwinding period. Many states were found to have barriers to renewal for beneficiaries and issues with renewals being processed correctly.
In this bulletin, CMS provides guidance for states to assess their own compliance with renewal requirements and requires them to submit a plan to CMS outlining how they will address non-compliance by December 31, 2024. The bulletin also notes that “Federal Financial Participation (FFP) at a 90 percent matching rate is available to states for their expenditures on design, development, or installation” of claims and retrieval systems to ensure compliance with requirements. States are required to demonstrate compliance with renewal requirements (and comply with their own plans for remediation) by December 31, 2026. |
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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released information about how states can make sure people who qualify for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid health care can keep getting it year after year. |
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Action Steps |
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Read the information bulletin. |
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Administration for Community Living Announces Awards and Initiatives to Support Family Caregivers |
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On October 3, the Administration for Community Living (ACL) announced awards for multiple initiatives to support implementation of the 2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers. ACL announced grant awards of $490,000 each for the California Department of Aging, Maryland Department of Aging, Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs, and Wisconsin Department of Health Services. ACL has also awarded USAging a grant for approximately $2.5 million to look into the use of care and caregiver navigator services and released $1.3 million in supplemental funding to grantees in the Lifespan Respite Care Program to support the respite needs of family caregivers. ACL provided supplemental funding to eight states: Alabama, Montana, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin. |
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The Administration for Community Living is a government agency that gives funding to organizations and states. They are announcing grant awards that will help organizations and states support family caregivers. They have a new website that has a lot of resources and information about best practices to support family caregivers. |
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Action Steps |
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Visit the National Caregiver Support Collaborative website. |
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Register for the White House Office of Public Engagement Aging and Disability Communities Call |
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The White House Office of Public Engagement regularly hosts calls to discuss any federal updates that will affect older adults and people with disabilities. The next call is November 21 at 2:00 PM ET. Register. |
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Check out the latest episode of "Tuesdays with Liz: Disability Policy for All" |
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“Tuesdays with Liz: Disability Policy for All” is a YouTube video series highlighting current issues and hot topics in disability policy. Past guests of Tuesdays with Liz include U.S. Senators, U.S. Representatives, agency officials, AUCD leadership, and key members of the disability community.
Liz Weintraub is AUCD's Senior Advocacy Specialist and the host of "Tuesdays with Liz: Disability Policy for All."
Liz has extensive experience practicing leadership in self-advocacy and has held many board and advisory positions at state and national organizations, including the Council on Quality & Leadership (CQL) and the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council.
Find the full playlist on YouTube or check out the latest episode featuring Kayla McKeon, Registered Lobbyist and Manager of Grassroots Advocacy at the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS). |
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