Developmental Disabilities Newsletter
June 2004 Volume 7; Issue 3
HHS AWARDS ADDITIONAL $ 9 MILLION TO HELP STATES DEVELOP AGING AND DISABILITY RESOURCES CENTERS
HHS Secretary announced 12 grants totaling nearly $9 million to support state efforts to create "one stop" centers to help consumers learn about and access long-term supports ranging from in-home services to nursing facility care.
The new grants represent the second round of funding of Aging and Disability Resource Center Programs. A total of 24 states have now received HHS grants to develop streamlined access to long-term support services under this program.
The grants announced are being awarded to state or territorial agencies in Alaska, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, New Mexico, North Carolina, Northern Mariana Islands and Wisconsin. In September 2003, HHS awarded similar grants to Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina and West Virginia.
The Aging and Disability Resource Center Grant Program is part of the President's New Freedom Initiative, which works to overcome barriers to community living for people with disabilities of all ages. The program is a joint effort involving HHS' Administration on Aging (AoA) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and provides states with an opportunity to effectively integrate their long-term support resources for consumers into a single coordinated system.
The centers will offer assistance to families often desperate to find appropriate and affordable support for a loved one. The grants will assist states in their efforts to streamline access to multiple public and private programs and ensure that families can find the assistance they need through a single point of entry into the long-term support system. More information on the Aging and Disability Resource Centers Grant program, including descriptions of grantee projects, is available at http:// www.aoa.gov and at www.cms.hhs.gov/newfreedom.
Taken from: AoA Press Office
April 2004
The National Council on Disability (NCD) Conducts a Native American Forum
April 15, NCD conducted a public forum, Disability Matters in Tribal Communities, as part of its quarterly meeting. The forum attracted more than 120 participants from various states, local public and private organizations, and tribes to a dialogue opportunity at the Santa Ana Pueblo near Bernalillo, N.M. Participants used NCD’s report, People with Disabilities on Tribal Lands, as a springboard for sharing examples of what seems to be working in Indian Country. Other comments, questions, and workgroup discussions touched briefly on personal stories and a broad array of government sovereignty and trust issues that affect relationships and, in turn, the provision of culturally sensitive services.
The Chairperson recounted in his welcoming comments NCD's national mindfulness of many diverse cultures noting that "despite this reality, sometimes people in the United States forget about the Indian Nations." During the forum, people with disabilities and their families provided perspectives for refocusing attention on outreach and more inclusive practices, incorporating underserved groups in the broader disability and public policy arena.
Taken from: ACF Media Clips
May 6, 2004
OPEN DOOR INITIATIVE
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched The Open Door Initiative, which is an initiative designed to seek input from beneficiaries, providers, and other stateholders interested in delivery of quality healthcare for seniors and beneficiaries with disabilities. This increased emphasis on responsiveness by CMS is captured through an ongoing series of "Open Door Forums" that provide a dialogue about both the many individual service areas and beneficiary needs within CMS.
There are currently fourteen individual ongoing forums held on a monthly basis or bimonthly basis. Each forum is chaired by a senior-level agency official and co-chaired by a CMS Regional Administrator.
Open Door Forums include Disability; Rural Health; Diversity; Ambulance, Home Health, Hospice, and Durable Medical Equipment; Hospitals; and New Freedom Initiative.
For additional information and to see the Open Door Forum schedule, consult CMS' website at: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/opendoor.
HHS Releases Child Abuse and Neglect Statistics
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released 2002 statistics from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System.
An estimated 896,000 children across the country were victims of abuse or neglect in 2002, according to HHS. The statistics indicate about 12.3 out of every 1,000 children were victims of abuse or neglect, a rate slightly below the previous year's victimization rate of 12.4 out of 1,000 children. The data show that child protective service agencies received about 2,600,000 reports of possible maltreatment in 2002. There were 896,000 substantiated cases of maltreatment of children-the majority of which involved neglect. About 1,400 children died of abuse or neglect, a rate of 1.98 per 100,000 children in the population.
The rate of child neglect and abuse in 2002 was about 20 percent less than the rate in 1993, when maltreatment peaked at an estimated 15.3 out of every 1,000 children. As recently as 1998, the rate was 12.9 per 1,000 children. During the past three reporting years, the maltreatment rate has been fairly constant. Rates for 2000, 2001, and 2002 were 12.2, 12.4, and 12.3, respectively.
Taken From: ACF Media Clips
May 6, 2004
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Announces New Grants
The Family Youth Services Bureau within ACF is accepting applications for grants that address the needs of runaway and homeless youth. The purpose of these grants is to establish or strengthen locally-controlled, community-based and faith-based programs that address the immediate needs of runaway and homeless youth and their families. County governments, city or township governments, special district governments, State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments, Native American tribal organizations, nonprofits having 501(c)(3) status, nonprofits that do not have a 5O1(c)(3) with the Internal Revenue Services other than institutions of higher education and faith-based organizations are eligible to apply. Application instructions may be found at: http//www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/open/HHS-2004-ACF-ACYF-CY-0011.html.
Child Support Demonstrations
On April 29, 2004, the Administration for Children and Families announced $3.7 million in funding to support demonstrations in Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, and Minnesota to promote improvements in child support enforcement efforts. With the addition of the four states, it brings the number of projects to seven that will develop and test new strategies in communities across the nation to support healthy marriage and parental relationships with the goals of improving the well-being of children, promoting paternity establishments, and increasing financial and emotional support to children.
The states will receive Federal funding in the following amounts: Illinois will receive $819,009; Louisiana will receive $924,000; Massachusetts will receive $973,180; and Minnesota will receive $989,999.
The goals of the demonstration projects include improving the establishment of paternity and increasing financial support for children as well as improving fathers' relationships with both their children and the mothers of their children. The projects also will include efforts to improve couple relationships and reduce the potential for domestic violence. The projects are required to screen participants for domestic violence and refer appropriate individuals for services.
National Leadership Conference for Youth with Disabilities
The National Leadership Conference for Youth with Disabilities will be held in Washington, D.C. (July 24-27, 2004). The theme for the conference is Learning, Living, Leading: Youth with Disabilities Continuing the Legacy. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from national disability leaders, public officials, and other young leaders with disabilities from all over the county.
The conference announcement can be downloaded from the National Youth Leadership Network website at: www.nyln.org.
WHERE IS IT FOUND IN THE DD ACT?
...establish a grievance procedure for clients or prospective clients of the system to ensure that individuals with developmental disabilities have full access to services of the system.
ADA Information Translated in Spanish
The US Department of Justice has expanded information on their website in Spanish. Below are addresses: