Quick
Update/Clarification: Medicaid Re-D and ISCs
One of the missions of The Arc of Illinois is to provide correct and
current information that is vital to the community serving individuals
with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. The Arc of IL hosts many
trainings throughout the year and holds it’s large convention every April. This
April, a plenary speech was given regarding the timely topic of IL Medicaid
Redeterminations. Prior to the day of the presentation, the actual power point
was reviewed by IL Medicaid and the Division of Developmental Disabilities to
ensure it was factual. Their suggestions were implemented into the final power
point.
This convention speech seems to have initiated conversation about a possible
disconnect concerning whose responsibility it is to complete the actual redetermination
paperwork. While we are awaiting the forthcoming official bulletin from the
Division of Developmental Disabilities, it should be noted that the ISC
agencies are actively participating in assisting families with the Medicaid
medical redetermination process.
We expect an official memo from DDD to be released soon (hopefully within the
week) and will share it once it is out so everyone will be clear about
responsibilities and process.
Call Now! They
Deserve More
Time is running out for Kathy, 74, and her daughter Jenny, 43. Jenny is on the
waitlist to live in a group home — but the DSP staffing crisis perpetuated by
Illinois’ deplorably low wage reimbursement means that Jenny goes without key
services while her mom frets about what will happen after she is gone. Read and
share The
Chicago Sun-Times story published in Sunday’s print edition.
Jenny and Kathy are not alone. Thousands of people with disabilities are on a
burgeoning waitlist while agencies that depend on state reimbursements to
provide wages to direct support professionals battle high turnover and not
enough staff. Ben Stortz, president and CEO of Cornerstone Services, told The Joliet Herald-News that
his organization is struggling to hire and keep DSPs due to low wages.
We need our elected
leaders to make people with disabilities a priority. With just three weeks left
in the Illinois legislative session, please send an email to
your legislators and share The Sun-Times
and The Herald-News
stories on social media to elevate our issue above the noise!
ACL Announces Surprise
Reorganization
The Administration for Community Living (ACL) was created in 2012 under the US
Department of Health and Human Services to create a synergy and base for
disability and aging programs and issues. It has functioned very well
since then, often being the backstop to issues that could harm these
communities and offering the expertise and support to make sure broader
policies are better implemented for aging and disability populations. ACL also
houses the DD ACT programs, the P&As, DD Councils and UCEDD funding and
administration.
On Friday, the Trump Administration announced an unexpected reorganization of
ACL which includes separating the P&As from DD Councils and UCEDD
administration (all three national organizations representing these bodies
strongly oppose this shift). It also proposes the creation of a new
office – the Office of Disability Service Innovation and separates that office
from a new Office on Intellectual and Developmental Disability programs. There
will no longer be a Director for Independent Living programs (NCIL is strongly
against this change) and current ACL Disability Commissioner, Julie Hocker,
will take over as head of the Office of Disability Service Innovation
overseeing independent living centers, P&As, Projects of National
Significance, amongst other issues.
More to come in our analysis but we can share that so far, no national
disability organizations have expressed support for this reorganization and
those who have voiced their perspective have shared they feel it is
contradictory to the mission and purpose of ACL and overall an inefficient
restructure. Stay tuned to Capitol Correspondence for more!
www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/05/09/2019-09444/…
Budget &
Appropriations: House Committee Approves L-HHS-ED Appropriations
On May 8, the House Appropriations Committee approved its fiscal year (FY) 2020 Labor,
Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (L-HHS-ED) bill. The
bill provides $189.9 billion in funding, a 7% increase over FY 2019. Most of
The Arc’s priority programs received increases. Particularly notable increases
include the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B State
Grants (8.1%), Lifespan Respite Care Program (33.8%), State Grants to Remove
Barriers to Voting (28.7%), and Rehabilitation Services Administration
Demonstration and Training Programs (26.5%). Funding levels for The Arc’s
priority programs can be found here. Senate Appropriators, meanwhile, have
declined to move forward with spending bills until a deal is reached to
increase the spending caps for discretionary programs. Absent a deal, the
spending cap for all non-defense discretionary programs would be reduced by 9%
for FY 2020.
Child Welfare &
Adoption: House Committee Approves CAPTA Reauthorization
On May 8, the House Committee on Education and Labor approved the Stronger
Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (H.R.2480). This bill reauthorizes the Child
Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), which provides federal funding to
states to address child abuse and neglect. This bill increases investments to
address child maltreatment resulting from the opioid epidemic. Learn more about
the legislation here.
Employment/Family
Support: House Committee Holds Hearing on Paid Family and Medical Leave
On May 8, the House Committee on Ways and Means held a hearing titled
“Paid Family and Medical Leave: Helping Workers and Employers
Succeed.” Witnesses were Marisa Howard-Karp, Member, MomsRising; Anthony
Sandkamp, Owner, Sandkamp Woodworking; Pronita Gupta, Director of Job Quality,
Center for Law and Social Policy; Suzan LeVine, Commissioner, Washington State
Employment Security Department; and Rachel Greszler, Research Fellow in
Economics, Budget, and Entitlements, Institute for Economic Freedom, The Heritage
Foundation. Visit the committee website to review
testimony and archived video of the hearing.
Income Support: OMB
Seeking Comments on Federal Poverty Level Inflation Measures
On May 7, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a notice of
solicitation of comments on how to measure inflation for purposes of
determining the federal poverty level. The agency currently uses the Consumer
Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) to calculate inflation. One option
being considered is the Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers
(C-CPI-U). The C-CPI-U will result in a lower estimation of inflation than
under current practice. Over time, this change would result in people losing
eligibility for these critical programs. The Federal Poverty Level (FPL) is
used to determine eligibility for several means-tested benefits, including
Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Tax/Housing: HUD Issues
Guidance on Treatment of ABLE Accounts
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently issued
long-awaited guidance clarifying that funds in ABLE accounts should not be
included in determining a person’s eligibility for means-tested housing
assistance. ABLE accounts are available to people with significant disabilities
that developed before the age of 26, including those who meet the eligibility
requirements under Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security
disability programs, including Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).
Money in an ABLE account can be used to cover “qualified disability
expenses,” such as housing, education, and transportation. In general, to
be eligible for some public benefits that many people with disabilities and
their families rely on, including Medicaid and housing assistance, an
individual is limited to no more than $2,000 in cash savings, retirement funds,
and other items of significant value. ABLE accounts are an option for people
with disabilities to build savings without taking away their eligibility for
these important benefits.
The ABLE Act states that amounts in an ABLE
account or contributions to an ABLE account and pay-outs for qualified
disability expenses should not be counted for federal means-tested programs.
Consistent with Internal Revenue Service and Social Security Administration
policy, the HUD notice clarifies that, for the purpose of determining
eligibility and continued occupancy for a list of key HUD programs, HUD will
disregard amounts in the individual’s ABLE account. Some people with
disabilities and their families have heard confusing or inaccurate information
about whether or not participation in ABLE could threaten their receipt of
other critical federal benefits. The notice is good news for people in
HUD-funded programs and should be helpful in addressing questions about the
treatment of ABLE account funds.
Announcements
Education: LPI Releases
School Discipline Report
On April 18, the Learning Policy Institute (LPI) released a report titled “Protecting Students’ Civil
Rights: The Federal Role in School Discipline.” The report discusses the
negative impacts of zero-tolerance policies and discrimination in discipline.
It notes guidance documents and regulations the Trump administration has
targeted for elimination, such as the discipline guidance and the significant
disproportionality rule. Additionally, the report discusses strategies to
reduce the use of exclusionary discipline, such as teaching social-emotional
skills