One can’t help but understand this is driven by the increasing number of veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq with severe disability which renders them useless to their former employer, the US Military. However, the end result is that people who may have been formerly overlooked, without a war to spur initiative, may benefit. About.com offers a comprehensive and insightful look at President Bush’s initiative.

President Bush has asked Congress for sweeping changes to the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) designed to improve educational, employment and social opportunities for over 54 million disabled Americans.

Signed into law eleven years ago by President George Bush, the ADA represented the first major piece of civil rights legislation since the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and opened many of the real and virtual doors of society closed for years to the disabled.

“Because of that law, millions of Americans can now compete for jobs once denied them; enter buildings once closed to them; travel on buses and trains once unequipped for them,” stated President Bush in a Feb. 1, 2001 announcement.

# Lower cost and improve access to “assistive” technologies (text telephones, adaptive computer equipment, lightweight and powered wheelchairs, modern artificial limbs, etc.)
# Expand employment opportunities for the disabled, including opportunities for the disabled to work from home.
# Offer new transportation solutions for the disabled.
# Improve access to places of worship.

PR Newswire

The U.S. Department of Labor today kicked off its “Transforming the American Workplace: A 21st Century Vision” summit, which focuses on including people with disabilities in the American workforce and reduced barriers to employment. The invitation-only summit continues through tomorrow at Gallaudet University’s Kellogg Conference Center in Washington, D.C.

“Our mission is to continue to promote a culture of inclusiveness in the best tradition of our nation,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao in her keynote speech today to summit attendees. “Hiring Americans with disabilities is not only the right thing to do - it is the smart thing to do. And the technological revolution of the last fifteen years has given us unprecedented ways to incorporate the talents of all members of our society into the workforce.”

The inaugural summit has attracted representatives of corporations, universities, interest groups and government. Some of the workshops they
attended today included “Transforming the Workplace with New Technologies,” “Universal Design/Accessibility” and “Self-Employment and
Entrepreneurship.”

Colleges are carefully watching the political wrangling concerning the ADA and what it means to already stretched budgets and resources. While most colleges already go above and beyond the ‘letter of the law’ in regards to accessibility, mandating certain levels of compliance can end up causing a poor return on investment with colleges spending more money to administrate the program than the actual output provided to benefit the intended recipients. Red tape is almost never good. Stay tuned.

Although it has been stalled in Congress for several months, legislation that would broaden coverage under the Americans With Disabilities Act has recently been on the radar of some college officials and the associations that represent them. Their concern: that expanding the definition of a disability could overwhelm offices that work to accommodate such students on university campuses.

Several higher-education associations have met recently about the bill, both with one another and with key Congressional staff members. Though the bill faces opposition from the Bush administration, its key sponsor hopes to get a modified form to the floor by this summer.
Most universities voluntarily go beyond the letter of the law in accommodating students on their campuses. But broadening the definition of a disability could add even more demand for campus offices that already work with hundreds, if not thousands, of students.

“There is a concern that having too many more students coming forward looking for accommodations would cause the resources of the disability offices to be extremely stretched,” said Ada Meloy, general counsel for the American Council on Education.

This Friday, Arizonan non-profit, Arizona Center for Disability Law, sponsored a workshop and seminar to highlight the difficulties the disabled face in civic life.

Advocacy for and community awareness of the physically and developmentally challenged was the aim Friday of the first Southwestern Arizona Conference on Disability Rights.

Held at the Yuma Civic Center, it provided a tool kit of resources the disabled and their caregivers can use to integrate more fully in employment and civic life, said Peri Jude Radecic, executive director of Arizona Center for Disability Law.

“We want the disabled to leave here knowing what to do if their rights have been violated,” she said of what’s expected to become an annual event.

Various workshops explained options for the disabled in: special education, employment, vocational rehabilitation, accessible housing, assistive technology, navigating the state medical health system, as well as other available services.

The most popular workshop, with 150 attending, was the opening session on voting rights for the disabled. Radecic demonstrated a voting machine for the blind with a headset that reads out the ballot to the voter.

“Under the law there has to be one of these in each precinct, and Yuma has a machine at every polling place,” Radecic said.

The Arizona Center for Disability Law is a nonprofit agency that provides legal services for the physically, mentally and sensory disabled. Joann Sheperd, a workshop presenter, focused on employer obligations under the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act.

Source.

The House passed legislation yesterday to extend and improve funding for a range of traumatic brain injury rehabilitation programs, such as assistance in returning to work, finding a place to live, and obtaining needed support and appropriate rehabilitation services. It also funds an important CDC program to prevent such injuries. The bill will be of major assistance to soldiers with such injuries from combat, and to children, who tend to have a higher incidence of the injuries.

Apr 09, 2008 (Congressional Documents and Publications/ContentWorks via COMTEX)

WASHINGTON, DC - Senators Edward M. Kennedy and Orrin Hatch released the following statement today commending the House of Representatives for passing the Traumatic Brain Injury Act Reauthorization. The bill is very similar to the measure passed by the Senate in December, and the Senate is expected to take up the House Bill very soon and send it to the President for his signature.

“Today, we’re a giant step closer to giving our nation’s military, veterans, children, and other citizens with traumatic brain injuries the best rehabilitation services we can provide. Over 5 million Americans are now living with permanent disabilities because of these injuries, and 1.5 million more suffer and survive such injuries every year. Modern medicine is now providing real hope for rehabilitation, and our goal in this legislation is to make it widely available to this vulnerable population. They deserve no less,” said Senators Kennedy and Hatch.

The legislation will extend and improve funding for a range of traumatic brain injury rehabilitation programs, such as assistance in returning to work, finding a place to live, and obtaining needed support and appropriate rehabilitation services. It also funds an important CDC program to prevent such injuries.

The bill will be of major assistance to soldiers with such injuries from combat, and to children, who tend to have a higher incidence of the injuries.

Summary of the Traumatic Brain Injury Act Reauthorization

What is TBI?

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that causes damage to the brain. Common causes include falls and car crashes. Every year, of the 1.5 million people in the United States who sustain a TBI, 50,000 die, 235,000 are hospitalized, and approximately 80,000 to 90,000 will become disabled.

Who would this bill primarily help?

Soldiers: This bill will provide assistance to the millions of children and adults in our nation who are facing an array of problems because of their traumatic brain injury. The programs authorized under this bill can help the thousands of soldiers wounded in the war. As of December, 2007 — 30,327 service members have been wounded in Iraq; brain injuries are approximately two-thirds of the injuries suffered in the war.

Children: There is an extremely high incidence of Traumatic Brain Injuries among children between the birth and age 14 - approximately 475,000 a year - and some of the highest numbers of injuries are among children under the age of five.

What would the bill do?

The Act expands the Public Health Services Act with respect to traumatic brain injury. Reauthorization of the TBI Act is crucial to continue federal funding for a range of traumatic brain injury programs. The bill will reauthorize grants that have been assisting States, Territories, and the District of Columbia in building or enhancing coordinated systems of community-based services and supports for children and adults with traumatic brain injuries. It will extend the ability to apply for these grants to American Indian Consortia.

In addition, when Congress first authorized the Traumatic Brain Injury Act as part of the Children’s Health Act of 2000 it had the foresight to include funding for the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury program. This program has played a crucial role because individuals with traumatic brain injury have an array of advocacy needs including assistance with returning to work, finding a place to live, accessing needed supports and services such as attendant care and assistive technology, and obtaining appropriate rehabilitation services.

Often these individuals are forced to remain in extremely expensive institutional settings far longer than necessary because the community-based supports and services they need are not available. Effective protection and advocacy services for people with traumatic brain injury can lead both to reduced government expenditures and increased productivity, independence and community integration. However, the advocate must possess specialized skills and the work is often time-intensive.

The reauthorization:

Extends the authorization of such sums as may be necessary for the CDC research, public education, and state registry programs; NIH research; and HRSA programs through 2012.

Establishes several new studies, including a study through the CDC and NIH to determine the incidence and prevalence of traumatic brain injury, identify common therapeutic interventions, and develop rehabilitation guidelines.

Establishes a CDC/NIH study to identify the best methods of coordinating prevalence data, in order to ensure that national research takes into account the incidence of brain injuries among our nation’s veterans and that current information about diagnostic tools and treatments are shared.

Amends the HRSA demonstration projection program such that American Indian consortia can apply for funding, that the projects are redefined to improve access to rehabilitation, and the grants are limited to 3 years.

Requires the Administrator of HRSA and the ADA Commissioner to coordinate data collection regarding protection and advocacy. It stipulates that, in any year where $6 million is appropriated for the HRSA protection and advocacy services program, 2% is used for a grant providing for training and technical assistance to protection and advocacy systems.

Contact: Melissa Wagoner (202) 224-2633

Medical News Today reports that the newly announced Medicare DME program adopted after Congressional mandate, has already hit snags in 10 major metorpolitan areas, with more expected in 2009.

A new Medicare bidding program for durable medical equipment (DME) scheduled to be implemented in 10 metropolitan areas starting on July 1, 2008 will put many DME providers out of business and will disrupt services for many of the three million seniors and people with disabilities living in those areas.

Those areas include Charlotte, N.C.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Cleveland, Ohio; Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas; Kansas City, Mo; Miami, Fla.; Orlando, Fla; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Riverside, Calif., and San Juan, P.R. Another 70 metropolitan statistical areas have been targeted for implementation of the bidding program in 2009.

Last Friday, DME providers in the first ten competitive bidding regions received letters from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) explaining whether they had been offered a contract, been disqualified from bidding, or bid outside of the bidding range for a product. Those DME providers that did not receive contracts for a given Medicare item or service are shut out of the Medicare program for three years.

Think you’re insured? Think again. And again. And again. Just recently we reported on a horrific miscarriage of justice allowing Walmart to sue a former employee for a chunk of her settlement resulting from an permanently disabling accident. In yet another potential blow to the unsuspecting ‘insured public’ Elizabeth Edwards urges caution regarding John McCain’s proposed health insurance plan.

Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of former Democratic presidential candidate and former Sen. John Edwards (N.C.), on Saturday said that the health care proposal announced by presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) would not provide health insurance for U.S. residents with pre-existing medical conditions, the Los Angeles Times reports.