Senator Calls For Expansion Of Community-Based Services

By Michelle Diament
A new proposal in the U.S. Senate would eliminate a government bias toward placing people with disabilities in institutional rather than community-based settings.
Senator Tom Harkin: D-Iowa
U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Tuesday he is introducing a bill that would put an end to what’s known as the “institutional bias.”
Current law requires Medicaid to provide nursing home services to people with disabilities, but does not mandate that home and community-based options be offered. As a result, many states have long waiting lists for individuals wishing to obtain services in the community and a Senate report last year found that over 200,000 working-age Americans remain segregated in nursing homes.
Harkin’s proposal dubbed the Community Integration Act would change things by requiring that states deem all individuals who are considered eligible for institutional care to also be eligible for supports in home and community-based settings. What’s more, the bill would prohibit states from making people ineligible for services in the community based on their particular disability.
 The bill introduction comes just days after the 15th anniversary of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the issue. In the case known as Olmstead v. L.C., the court found that unnecessarily segregating individuals with disabilities in institutions is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“Studies clearly show that home and community-based care is not only what most people want, but it is also more cost-effective,” Harkin said. “The Community Integration Act honors the Olmstead decision and ensures that states take the steps needed to ensure that all individuals with disabilities are given the opportunity to receive their services and supports in a community-based setting, where they can work, participate in community life and be an integral part of their communities.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Study Finds Medicaid Waivers Help Parents Stay Employed

Image
Parents of children with autism are more likely to remain in the workforce if they have access to Medicaid waiver services for their kids, new research suggests. In a study looking at over 17,000 children on the spectrum, researchers found a link between the availability of waivers and parent employment. Read more........                   
Read more

News on Human Behavior: Brain Scans Could Help Doctors Better Predict Your Behavior

Image
 (CNN REPORT):  Forget horoscopes or fortune tellers. There's a new way to tell your future, and it involves a much more reliable medium: human neuroscience. A new study looks at over 70 scientific publications about brain scans such as functional magnetic resonance imaging or electroencephalography, noninvasive tests that measure brain activity. The paper that runs in the latest edition of Neuron concludes that doctors might have more success treating some patients if they examined the way a person's brain functioned first. Brain scans have been used to make basic discoveries about human behavior for decades, but they are not routinely ordered to determine someone's overall health or course of treatment in the way as blood test are used. This new study suggests technology in this area has become so advanced that approaches to treatment would be more effective if brain scans were used more routinely. For instance, when someone is being treated f
Read more

After Ethan Saylor Death in Maryland, Panel Calls for Better Training on Disabilities

Image
Commission to create recommendations for policy, training..... Ethan Saylor: Down Syndrome Maryland law enforcement workers need more guidance in dealing with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, according to a commission formed after a man with Down syndrome died in a struggle with Frederick County sheriff's deputies.     Gov. Martin O'Malley created the Commission for Effective Community Inclusion of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in September after Robert "Ethan" Saylor, 26, died Jan. 12 when deputies attempted to remove him from a Frederick movie theater. "Current training of law enforcement personnel in Maryland on how best to interact with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities is not offered in every jurisdiction and what is provided is inconsistent and not comprehensive," the commission wrote in a progress report released Thursday. The commission also
Read more