DISABILITY ISSUES PLATFORM
FOR CANDIDATES IN THE 2007
VIRGINIA GENERAL ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS
Disability
advocacy organizations of the
The Commonwealth's policies and practices should reflect the right of citizens
with disabilities to lead productive lives as they so choose. Currently,
18% of Virginians have a disability and their issues and concerns with policies
related to disabilities need to be addressed forthright. As a candidate
for the General Assembly, you can become a positive change for citizens with
disabilities. You will be faced with many policy issues during the
General Assembly session and this Platform gives you guidance on these policy
choices to be a positive force for citizens with disabilities. We
encourage you to utilize the Platform as guidance in developing disability
positions for your campaign.
As you conduct your campaign we encourage you to engage all citizens by making
your campaign accessible, by providing fully accessible locations, by providing
sign language interpreters, by ensuring that websites are accessible, and when
requested providing campaign materials in alternative formats, such as Braille
and large print. We look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail and
at the polls.
Services for
Virginians with Disabilities
DD AND MR MEDICAID WAIVERS
Additional
Medicaid wavier slots are needed to significantly reduce waiting lists. Medicaid Waiver services include personal
care, respite care, day support, supported employment, skilled nursing,
residential services, and other long term care services. Long waiting lists exist for both Developmental
Disabilities (DD) and Mental Retardation (MR) Waiver services. Over 750 people are on the DD Waiver waiting
list. Over 4,000 people are on the MR
Waiver waiting list with 2,000 in the Aurgent@ category. The Olmstead Task Force recommended reducing
waiting lists over a specified period to ensure Olmstead compliance.
Action: Fund 300 Medicaid Waiver
slots for people with DD and 800 Medicaid Waiver slots for people with MR each
year of the biennium.
EARLY INTERVENTION AND PRE-K
SERVICES
Intensive,
early intervention and pre-kindergarten services for children with
developmental disabilities and other disabilities ensure their needs are
addressed early in the "window of opportunity" to reduce the
long-term intensity of their needs.
Action: Increase state funding for
intensive, early intervention and pre-kindergarten services.
HOUSING TRUST FUND
There needs
to be stable, on-going funding for the Housing Trust Fund and additional funds
dedicated to increasing the availability of accessible, affordable housing that
is in compliance with federal law, and that utilizes universal design
principles.
Action: Fund the Housing Trust Fund.
MOBILITY OPTIONS
More than 1
in 5 adults age 65 and over do not drive.
Additionally, a significant number of persons with disabilities do not
drive as a result of their disabilities.
Adequate funding for transportation would increase the independence and
self-sufficiency of Virginians with disabilities and seniors. Support investment in public transportation
systems (both inter- and intra-jurisdictional), including completion of the
Dulles Corridor Rail Extension Project in Northern Virginia; and in rural parts
of the state develop strategies better meeting the transportation needs of
people who rely on public transportation. Increased funding for specialized
transportation programs serving persons with disabilities and seniors; and
funding to improve coordination among service providers statewide are needed.
Action: Request that the Department
of Rail and Public Transportation conduct a study that would outline what is
needed to expand public transportation in parts of
MONEY FOLLOWS THE PERSON (MFP)
PROJECT
A Money
Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration Project, was awarded to
Action: Fund state match to ensure successful
implementation of MFP.
Action: Support a state funded housing supplement to
facilitate an individual's move from an institution to a community setting.
PERSONAL MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE
The
Personal Maintenance Allowance (PMA) is designed to cover basic community
living costs such as housing, food and basic needs.
Action: Raise the Medicaid PMA to
300% of the monthly SSI payment.
PREVENTION OF INSTITUTIONALIZATION
People with
disabilities are sometimes placed in nursing homes and other institutions
because of the lack of information and supports that could have prevented their
institutionalization. Once someone is institutionalized they often lose their
housing and informal supports that can be very difficult to reestablish when
they choose to leave the institution. It is vital that timely, correct, and
thorough information and supports be provided so that people can avoid
unnecessary institutionalization.
Action: Increase funding for
information and referral services, support services and outreach to persons who
are at risk of institutionalization.
SERVICES FOR PERSONS WITH BRAIN
INJURY
JLARC was
directed by the 2007 General Assembly to report on the effectiveness of and
access to brain injury services in
Action: Support implementation of
the recommendations in the JLARC report due in the fall of 2007 that enhance
access to community based services for people with brain injury services.
STREAMLINE BENEFIT ELIGIBILITY
PROCESS
Action: Amend the eligibility
process so that people who are eligible for SSI become eligible for Medicaid,
without having to go through a second eligibility process.
Education
Students
with disabilities receive supportive services in schools, and school personnel
also adapt curricula and accountability measures. These services offer the key
to establishing maximum independence for people with disabilities, thereby increasing
contributions to society and reducing the need for (and intensity of) services
for adults with disabilities.
IMPROVING SCHOOL-TO-WORK TRANSITIONS
FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Students
with disabilities are entitled to educational services that will enable them to
maximize their independence. A critical
element of future independence is the transition planning provided by
schools. Transition services should be
coordinated, multi-agency approaches to assist students with independent living
and employment skills. The long-term
outcomes for adults with disabilities all too often include unemployment,
poverty, and restricted living environments due to lack of independent living
skills.
Action: Request a legislative study
of the transition process from school-to-work for students with disabilities,
including examination of the implementation of the required transition planning
elements.
MAINTAIN
Action: Maintain
Employment for
Virginians with Disabilities
Work should
be valued as a priority in
Unfortunately,
almost three out of four (75%) of Virginians with disabilities are unemployed
or underemployed while
COMPETITIVE EMPLOYMENT AS A CHOICE
FOR PEOPLE USING DD AND MR WAIVERS
The Medicaid
rate for Individual Supported Employment (SE) limits access to employment and
contributes to the already high unemployment rate of Virginians with
disabilities. Very few of the people who
are receiving MR Waiver services are competitively employed with SE services.
Action: Adjust the Medicaid
Supported Employment Rate for Individual Supported Employment to parallel the
SE rates assigned to each employment services organization (ESO) by the
Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS).
No cost is assumed since financial offsets will be realized when
existing Waiver recipients move to competitive employment from other more
expensive day services.
CONSUMER DIRECTED PERSONAL
ASSISTANCE SERVICES
Personal
Assistance Services (PAS) are provided through the Department of Rehabilitative
Services to individuals with disabilities such as spinal cord injuries, brain
injuries, cerebral palsy, or muscular dystrophy, who require assistance from
another person to perform non-medical activities of daily living. These services
are typically provided to people who are employed and who do not qualify for
Medicaid.
Action: Fund DRS PAS to serve an
additional 50 people who are waiting for these services.
DEPARTMENT OF REHABILITATIVE
SERVICES (DRS) “ORDER OF SELECTION”
DRS is currently
under an “Order of Selection” that limits vocational funding for Virginians
with disabilities that want to work.
Currently, only one category of four is open serving Virginians with the
most severe disabilities - creating a current waiting list of 300+.
Action: Appropriate sufficient funding to DRS to
eliminate the Aorder of selection@ and waiting list of Virginians with disabilities that want to be
gainfully employed.
ELIMINATE DISINCENTIVES TO WORK
Employment
improves the quality of life. Virginians
with disabilities should not have to pay a Medicaid Waiver patient pay from
their earned income. The current patient
pay requirements are a disincentive to gainful employment.
Action: Adjust the Medicaid Waiver patient pay
requirements to encourage Virginians with disabilities to work. Increase the current disregard from 200% to
300% (for 8-20 hours worked per week) and from 300% to 400% (20+ hours worked
per week) of countable income using SSI rules.
Under
Action: Amend the current Medicaid Buy-In to fulfill
its original federal intent. A viable
Medicaid Buy-In program will ensure continuation of needed health care coverage
providing an opportunity and incentive to seek gainful employment.
Persons
with physical disabilities may need personal care to prepare for and to remain
employed. Currently anyone who needs
personal care services cannot participate in the Virginia Buy-In program.
Action: Amend Virginia Medicaid home and community
based Waivers so that people can participate in the Waiver and the Buy-In
simultaneously.
LONG TERM SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT
SUPPORT SERVICES (LTESS)
LTESS funds
provide long term employment supports that help Virginians with disabilities
maintain employment. Only 2,694 Virginians with disabilities currently receive
LTESS services.
Action: Appropriate additional funding each year to
keep pace with the number of Virginians with disabilities who need long-term
employment support services to maintain employment.
PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYMENT OF VIRGINIANS
WITH DISABILITIES
Virginians
with disabilities that work become empowered and decrease their reliance on
social services supported with tax dollars.
Initially created by
Quality Direct Care
Workforce
A quality
direct care workforce is essential for Virginians with disabilities to live
independently. Individuals who provide personal assistance and health services
to people with disabilities must earn a living wage, have health insurance, and
have access to training and career advancement opportunities. In order to build
a stable, professional workforce that Virginians with disabilities can count
on, workforce development in the field of direct services must be a top
priority for the General Assembly.
BENEFITS AND WAGES FOR THE WORKFORCE
Virginians
with disabilities face great difficulty recruiting and retaining direct care
workers. In order to build a stable, professional workforce that allows
Virginians with disabilities to live independently at home, the direct care
workers who deliver services and supports need a living wage with access to
affordable and quality health insurance. Low wages and the lack of health
insurance result in high turnover rates, making it difficult for Virginians
with disabilities to recruit and retain quality workers.
Action: Provide access to
affordable, quality health insurance for all of
Action: Increase the Medicaid reimbursement rates for
home and community-based personal care assistants and other Waiver service staff,
especially consumer-directed staff, in order to stabilize the direct care
workforce by providing better wages and benefits.
DRS PERSONAL ASSISTANCE SERVICES
Virginians
with disabilities who receive supports and services under the DRS PAS program
to live and work independently deserve a quality personal care workforce which
receives a living wage.
Action: Provide funds to DRS to raise the
reimbursement rates for personal care assistants to be equal to the Medicaid
reimbursement rates.
STUDY OF WORKFORCE ISSUES
Ensuring a
stable, quality direct care workforce is a public policy priority, especially
as Baby Boomers begin to retire and the demand for direct care workers
increases exponentially.
Action: Request a JLARC study on the
direct care workforce, focusing on recruitment and retention of the direct care
professionals, including providers of consumer-directed services, who provide
quality supports and services to Virginians with disabilities and older
Virginians.
The following organizations support
these actions. For more information
about the items described in this Platform, please contact these organizations.
Brain
Injury Association of Virginia, 804-355-5748, www.biav.net
Autism
Society of Central Virginia, 804-257-0192, www.asacv.org
Disabled
Action Committee, 703-878-1737, members.aol.com/DAC4VA/index.html
National
Federation of the Blind of Virginia, 703-319-9226, www.nfbv.org
National
Multiple Sclerosis Society of Virginia – Virginia Chapters, 804-353-5008, www.nmss-centralva.org
The Arc of
Northern Virginia, 703-532-3214, www.thearcofnova.org
The Arc of
Virginia, 804-649-8481, www.arcofva.org
vaACCSES,
703-461-8747, www.vaaccses.org
Virginia
Adult Day Services Association, 804-261-0205, www.vadsa.net
Virginia
Association of Area Agencies on Aging, 804-644-2804, www.vaaaa.org
Virginia
Association of Centers for Independent Living, 540-342-1231, www.vacil.org
Virginia
Association of Personal Care Assistants, 800-893-8343, www.virginiapca.org
Virginia
Housing Coalition, 804-497-3060, www.vahousingcoalition.org
Virginia
Rehabilitation Association, 804-598-5187, www.vra.org