1) What’s Happening in the Nation’s Capital?
Act Now! An Increase in Independent Living Funding is One Step Closer
ARAA Funds: New Guidance for Recipient Reporting Released
2) National News
Healthcare Update
Congress is Home This Month – What are YOU Doing?
NCIL Celebrates a Supreme Victory!
American Prospect: Should Disability Funding Be Part of Health Reform? When it Comes to Their Top Legislative Priority, Disability Activists Fear Later will Mean Never
3) State News
Georgia Veterans battle Veteran Affairs over Independent Living Program
4) Announcements and Additional Resources
USICD Presents: Frequently Asked Questions about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Act Now! An Increase in Independent Living Funding is One Step Closer
Last week in the WhAM, we reported that on Thursday, July 30th, the full Senate Appropriations Committee met and approved the Labor/Health and Human Services/Education bill that passed in the Subcommittee that Senator Tom Harkin chairs. NCIL was able to obtain the figures and there is great news! The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved an increase of $3,000,000 over the Fiscal Year 2009 amounts for Centers for Independent Living. Here is the language from the Senate Bill:
Independent Living State Grants (Part B Funds): The Committee recommends $23,450,000 for independent living State grants, the same amount as the budget request. The fiscal year 2009 funding level is $41,650,000, which includes $18,200,000 available from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The independent living State formula grants program provides funding to improve independent living services, support the operation of centers for independent living, conduct studies and analysis, and provide training and outreach. -Funding remains at 2009 levels.
Independent Living Centers (Part C Funds): The Committee recommends $80,266,000 for independent living centers, the same amount as the budget request. The fiscal year 2009 funding level is $164,766,000, which includes $87,500,000 available from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These funds support consumer-controlled, cross-disability, nonresidential, community-based centers that are designed and operated within local communities by individuals with disabilities. These centers provide an array of independent living services.
This would mean a $3 million increase over 2009 levels! This is not a done deal! The full Senate has yet to vote on this bill, and will have the opportunity to offer amendments to add or remove allocations made in this bill. NCIL has worked hard over many years to get increases in IL Funding and hopes to celebrate the success with members – but we need YOU to call your U.S. Senator and tell them that you want them to maintain the increase for the Independent Living Program in the 2010 Appropriations bill.
If the Senate approves the bill, it will have to be merged with the bill passed in the full House in July. NCIL feels good about the increase surviving the process as the House and President Obama both included the same increase in their respective budgets.
Finally, NCIL would like to remind members and non-members alike that it is the work of NCIL staff, board members, committee members and other involved members that lead to potential successes such as these. It is NCIL, your voice in Washington, DC, that is making calls and visits and writing letters to Congress to fight for more federal dollars that make it possible for most Centers in the United States to operate.
For additional information or questions, please contact NCIL Policy Analyst, Jason Beloungy at jason@nci.org. Jason can be reached by phone at 202-207-0334 (toll-free: 1-877-525-3400), ext. 1008.
ARAA Funds: New Guidance for Recipient Reporting Released
On June 23, the Office of Management and Budget released the much anticipated federal guidance concerning the use of funds pursuant to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The guidance can be found on the federal Recovery Act website, or, more specifically, by following this link: http://www.recovery.gov/?q=node/579.
Healthcare Update
The House of Representatives has been on recess since July 31st, and many members have been busy in their districts holding town hall meetings and listening sessions to talk about the reform proposals in Congress and to get feedback from constituents. Do you know of any events in your area? If so, have you attended to talk about the issues that are important to people with disabilities? NCIL strongly encourages members to be vocal and visible as public events around healthcare have gotten a lot of coverage and the groups opposed to the reforms in Congress have been well organized and vocal. Let’s not our generation’s opportunity slip by because those who wish to leave things the way they are controlling the dialogue. Tell your elected official that healthcare and long-term care reform is needed now. NCIL has continually included talking points and letters to Congress in the WhAM! and Action Alerts, and encourages NCIL members to use these items to tell your member of Congress what you feel needs to be in the healthcare reform legislation.
The Senate is on recess until September 8th. In the Senate Finance Committee, the bipartisan group of Senate Finance Committee members continues to negotiate a proposal for healthcare overhaul legislation. The goal is to have a bill that both Republicans and Democrats can support, thus making it more possible for the bill to pass the Senate. The six senators involved in the negotiations are Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT), Kent Conrad (D-ND), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Charles E. Grassley (R-IA), Michael B. Enzi (R-WY), and Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME).
If you live in one of these states, please make an effort to attend any town hall meetings or listening sessions held by your Senator. Also call their local office and tell them that healthcare reform is NOT complete unless it includes the language of the Community Choice Act, The CLASS Act, the language from the Promoting Wellness for People with Disabilities Act, and language to end the two-year wait for Medicare. We certainly support efforts to make a bill more likely to pass, unless that compromise is so weak that it does not address the healthcare and long-term care needs of people with disabilities.
Most of the work happening on the reform legislation during August is being done by committee staff, and that includes efforts to merge the different bills that came out of the three separate committees in the House of Representatives. With members of Congress back home, it is the perfect time to talk to all of your elected federal officials to let them know how you feel about this issue, and that we cannot wait another generation for change.
If you have questions about the priorities of Healthcare and long-term care reform, about the procedure to get the legislation passed, or other questions, please contact NCIL Policy Analyst, Jason Beloungy at jason@nci.org. Jason can be reached by phone at 202-207-0334 (toll-free: 1-877-525-3400), ext. 1008.
Congress is Home This Month – What are YOU Doing?
As mentioned above, your members of Congress are back home for the month of August recess. Take a look at their website or call their local offices to find out if they are holding events in your area. If they are, attend and talk about how healthcare and long-term care reform affects you and your family, and how the priorities NCIL is calling for are vital to people with disabilities. The August recess is your best opportunity to reach your members of Congress and make your voice heard! Access your members’ home pages:
NCIL Celebrates a Supreme Victory!
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor is sworn in at White House on Saturday after being easily confirmed by the Senate on Thursday by a vote of 68 to 31. Read an article on her historic nomination from the LA Times.
On August 5, 2009 in the Upper Senate Park on Capitol Hill, there was a rally to support the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the 111th Justice of the Supreme Court. The rally was led by Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Charles Schumer (D-NY), as well as Nan Zurkin from the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, Mary Kay Henry from Service Employees International Union, and Hilary Shelton from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Each speaker praised her ability to put the rule of law first and her efforts to always recognize diversity. The speakers applauded Justice Sotomayor’s efforts and accomplishments, which have allowed her to transcend all odds.
At the rally, the disability community was represented by Andy Imparato, President and CEO of American Association of People with Disabilities, who spoke to the crowd about the importance of this nomination, "Discrimination against people with disabilities is discrimination against everyone", he stated.
NCIL welcomes Sotomayor as the first Supreme Court Justice with a disability. This is an historic day for our community and for our nation as a whole, and we look forward to the positive changes in the Court’s appreciation for the civil rights of people with disabilities we hope to see in the coming years. NCIL applauds President Obama for his leadership in nominating, and the U.S. Senate for confirming, a well-qualified Judge who will respect the rights of citizens with disabilities
Lastly, NCIL thanks the many advocates that contacted their Senators and Representatives in support of her confirmation for their continued dedication to our Movement.
NCIL strongly encourages members to look at the list of Senators below and see how your U.S. Senators voted. If your Senator voted yes, call them or e-mail them to thank them for their vote. NCIL will now focus back on federal appeals court nominations to make sure President Obama nominates judges who respect the rights of people with disabilities, and that the Senate follows. The only Senator not to cast a vote was Kennedy (D-MA).
Senators by Voting Position
Yeas (68):
Akaka (D-HI), Alexander (R-TN), Baucus (D-MT), Bayh (D-IN), Begich (D-AK), Bennet (D-CO), Bingaman (D-NM), Bond (R-MO), Boxer (D-CA), Brown (D-OH), Burris (D-IL), Byrd (D-WV), Cantwell (D-WA), Cardin (D-MD), Carper (D-DE), Casey (D-PA), Collins (R-ME), Conrad (D-ND), Dodd (D-CT), Dorgan (D-ND), Durbin (D-IL), Feingold (D-WI), Feinstein (D-CA), Franken (D-MN), Gillibrand (D-NY), Graham (R-SC), Gregg (R-NH),
Hagan (D-NC), Harkin (D-IA), Inouye (D-HI), Johnson (D-SD), Kaufman (D-DE), Kerry (D-MA), Klobuchar (D-MN), Kohl (D-WI), Landrieu (D-LA), Lautenberg (D-NJ), Leahy (D-VT), Levin (D-MI), Lieberman (ID-CT), Lincoln (D-AR), Lugar (R-IN), Martinez (R-FL), McCaskill (D-MO), Menendez (D-NJ), Merkley (D-OR), Mikulski (D-MD), Murray (D-WA), Nelson (D-FL), Nelson (D-NE), Pryor (D-AR), Reed (D-RI), Reid (D-NV), Rockefeller (D-WV), Sanders (I-VT), Schumer (D-NY), Shaheen (D-NH), Snowe (R-ME), Specter (D-PA), Stabenow (D-MI), Tester (D-MT), Udall (D-CO), Udall (D-NM), Voinovich (R-OH), Warner (D-VA), Webb (D-VA), Whitehouse (D-RI), Wyden (D-OR).
Neas (31):
Barrasso (R-WY), Bennett (R-UT), Brownback (R-KS), Bunning (R-KY), Burr (R-NC), Chambliss (R-GA), Coburn (R-OK), Cochran (R-MS), Corker (R-TN), Cornyn (R-TX), Crapo (R-ID), DeMint (R-SC), Ensign (R-NV), Enzi (R-WY), Grassley (R-IA), Hatch (R-UT), Hutchison (R-TX), Inhofe (R-OK), Isakson (R-GA), Johanns (R-NE), Kyl (R-AZ), McCain (R-AZ), McConnell (R-KY), Murkowski (R-AK), Risch (R-ID), Roberts (R-KS), Sessions (R-AL), Shelby (R-AL), Thune (R-SD), Vitter (R-LA), Wicker (R-MS).
American Prospect: Should Disability Funding Be Part of Health Reform? When it Comes to Their Top Legislative Priority, Disability Activists Fear Later will Mean Never
Source: The American Prospect, by Ben Adler
With an estimated 37.5 million eligible voters with a disability -- and the aging baby boom generation means the ranks of the disabled will grow -- disability rights is an emerging brand of identity politics. The Democratic Party has been attuned to the change. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) disability caucus is growing in size and prominence. The Obama campaign had a comprehensive disability- issues platform, and President Obama hired Kareem Dale to be the first White House special assistant for disability policy. On July 21 the president also announced the U.S. will sign on to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
So why are disability activists in an uproar? Instead of celebrating Obama's announcement, on July 21 a coalition of disability-rights organizations held 26 simultaneous protests at the DNC headquarters, local Democratic Party offices, and at Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus' state office in Missoula, Montana. In April, 400 activists chained themselves to the White House fence and were arrested for civil disobedience. Why do they say they are being ignored, and even that they are victims of political discrimination? Because, like other key progressive constituencies, such as gay-rights and reproductive- rights advocates, disability-rights groups are watching long-awaited priorities be delayed as the president and Congress focus on the economy, climate-change legislation, and health reform.
The disability community's top legislative priority, the Community Choice Act (CCA), has been floating around Congress since 1997 and is distinct from any of the current health-reform bills under consideration. The CCA would make it mandatory, rather than optional, for states to offer Medicaid funding to people who would prefer long- term care at home instead of living in a nursing home. For disability activists, who regularly compare nursing homes to prisons, there is no issue more important.
… As a senator, Obama was a co-sponsor of the CCA, and as a candidate, he promised to support it as president. John McCain opposed the bill, citing concerns about its cost. For many disability-rights activists this constituted the major distinction between the two candidates.
They now feel they supported Obama under false pretenses. The administration contends that Obama's pledge to support the CCA never implied that it had to be a part of health-care reform and that the president still wants to enact it at a later date. Disability activists fear, however, that later will mean never. "The political capital used to pass health reform will make it very unlikely that Congress will want to tackle any health-reform cost expansion in the next couple sessions," says Jason Beloungy, a policy analyst at the National Council on Independent Living. "This is our one opportunity." Read More.
Georgia Veterans battle Veteran Affairs over Independent Living Program
Source: WTOC, Savannah, by Don Logana
Local vets say the Veteran Affairs system is not making it easy for them, and benefits are being kept secret. The biggest complaint is about the Independent Living Program. It is veteran benefit, some call a best kept secret, aimed at helping vets participate in daily living and possibly develop supplemental income. The problem is no one seems to know about it.
There are more than 20,000 eligible veterans in Georgia and last year, only 74 received the Independent Living benefit. However, one veteran found out about it and fought four years to get the benefit. He is now advocating and spreading the word.
For Bruce McCartney, a Vietnam vet, his greenhouse is his safe haven and a way for him to escape his war wounds. "I have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," McCartney told WTOC. "I got back problems. Knee problems also. This is supposed to get you back into the community." Read More.
USICD Presents: Frequently Asked Questions about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Source: U.S. International Council on Disabilities
1. What are “human rights”? “Human rights” are the rights that everyone has just by being human. Everyone is automatically entitled to enjoy the full range of human rights just because they are human. In other words, you don’t have to be a member of any particular group to have them, and nobody needs to give you your rights. Human rights are based on human needs, and we find them in human rights treaties (also called “conventions”), and also documents like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
2. What is a human rights convention? A “convention” is a legally binding agreement, in writing, between two or more countries. Conventions can also be called “treaties.” Conventions can be used to address many kinds of topics. A “human rights convention” is a convention that deals specifically with the topic of human rights. The Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD) is an example of a human rights convention.
3. What is the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD) about? The CRPD is a human rights convention intended to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights by persons with disabilities. It addresses a number of key areas such as accessibility, personal mobility, health, education, employment, habilitation and rehabilitation, participation in political life, and equality and non-discrimination. The CRPD embodies a change in approach to disability, from thinking of it as a social welfare issue to being a human rights issue. Specifically, the CRPD uses a human rights approach to show how societies can remove the societal barriers and prejudices that lead to the exclusion and marginalization of persons with disabilities.
4. Does the CRPD create new rights? No. The CRPD does not create any new or different rights for persons with disabilities under international human rights law. Rather, the CRPD talks about existing international human rights in a disability context.
5. How will the CRPD help persons with disabilities? Historically, persons with disabilities have been treated as people to be sympathized or protected, and have often been forced to change or conform with societal views of what is “normal.” The CRPD helps to change this perception by embracing diversity, emphasizing the dignity and equality of all persons with disabilities, and recognizing that all people must be provided with the opportunities to live life to their fullest potential, whatever that may be. The extensive support for the CRPD around the world will help to establish greater inclusion of persons with disabilities in a wide variety of contexts. For example, increasing commitment abroad to accessibility will provide Americans with disabilities fresh opportunities to work, travel and contribute as equal members of the international community.
6. Who are persons with disabilities? There is no internationally accepted definition of disability, and the CRPD does not include a definition of who persons with disabilities are. However, the CRPD approaches “disability” as an evolving concept which results from the interaction between people with different functional abilities and societal obstacles, such as physical barriers and attitudes. In other words, it is these barriers that are disabling for people, not their impairments or different functional abilities. The more obstacles and barriers a person faces the more disabled they become. Under the CRPD, persons with disabilities include but are not limited to those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments such as blindness, deafness, impaired mobility, and developmental impairments.
7. The U.S. is a States Party to other human rights conventions - why aren’t those enough to protect the rights of people with disabilities? None of the conventions to which the US is already legally bound mentions disability. The CRPD is the first human rights convention to apply the disability perspective to all the human rights found those conventions. The CRPD can help provide guidance on how we can better live up to the human rights obligations we have already undertaken in other conventions, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
8. Is "signing" a convention the same thing as "ratifying" it? No. When a country signs it becomes a “signatory.” Being a signatory means that the country agrees with the main idea of the convention, that it agrees it will not take any action to violate the main idea of the convention, and that it is interested in fully joining the convention in the future. When a country ratifies it becomes a “States Party.” Being a States Party means that a country is legally bound to comply with its obligations under the convention. Under the U.S. Constitution the President has the authority to ratify conventions with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate.
9. Will the CRPD create obligations on countries? Yes. The CRPD requires States Parties to ensure the enjoyment of human rights by persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others. For some countries this will require the introduction of non-discrimination legislation like the Americans with Disabilities Act. Additional measures might include eliminating laws and practices that discriminate against persons with disabilities, and considering persons with disabilities when adopting new policies and programs. Other measures could include making services, goods, and facilities accessible to persons with disabilities.
10. How is the CRPD monitored? The success of the CRPD’s implementation will be independently monitored at both the national and international levels. At the national level States Parties must designate or establish an independent body to do this monitoring. At the international level a panel of independent experts called the “Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities” will monitor the CRPD. For example, the Committee will review periodic reports submitted by States Parties and make recommendations on how implementation of the CRPD can be improved.
11. In the United States, we already have the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Why do we also need to sign and ratify the CRPD? The U.S. is a global pioneer in championing the rights and inclusion of persons with disabilities. Indeed, many countries have modeled their disability legislation, policies and practices on those adopted by the U.S. Nevertheless, we still have more work to do to ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities in all areas of American life. Although ground-breaking, legislation such as the Americans with Disabilities Act does not address every fundamental right to which persons with disabilities are entitled. The CRPD addresses many of these missing areas, and its core principles are consistent with American values. Furthermore, the 2008 National Council on Disabilities report comparing the CRPD with U.S. law found that “there is no legal impediment to U.S. signature and ratification on the basis that, in large measure, the legal standards articulated in the CRPD align with U.S. disability law.” By joining the CRPD the U.S. would strengthen its approach to ensuring the full equality of persons with disabilities, and would send a message to the world that our commitment to the human rights of persons with disabilities is as strong as ever.
12. Does it make economic sense to join the CRPD? Yes. Ensuring that persons with disabilities are able to live up to their potential makes good economic sense. By removing barriers persons with disabilities are just as able to be employees, employers, entrepreneurs, consumers and taxpayers as anyone else. When persons with disabilities are excluded from society we all lose out on the contributions they would otherwise make. Also, complying with the CRPD benefits all people, not just persons with disabilities. For example, universal design features such as elevators, ramps, and clear signage assist many people in addition to persons with disabilities.
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August 10, 2009