Voter Accessibility Survey

mnccd — Wed, 30 May 2012 20:10:46 +0000

The State of Minnesota has been looking at voter accessibility issues and they need the help of the disability community. While the state has made changes, there are still some barriers that keep people with disabilities from taking part in elections. The organizations working on this issue want to hear about the voting experiences of individuals with disabilities in the LAST ELECTION on November 2, 2010. The survey takes about 10 minutes. You can take the survey here. Please complete by the survey by June 5, 2012. If you have any questions, please call Claire Wilson, Voter Outreach Director at the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State at 651-201-1339.

Filed under: Public Policy

Governor Dayton signs Omnibus Health and Human Services Bill into law

mnccd — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:43:22 +0000

On Friday April 27^th, Governor Dayton signed into law the Omnibus Health and Human Services Bill. On Monday April 30th the Governor held a ceremonial bill signing event in the Governor’s reception room at the State Capitol. This Minnpost article includes a photo of the bill signing, highlights some of the disability related provisions of the bill, and also profiles Charles Van Heuveln, one of the key advocates who worked on the positive MA-EPD (Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities) changes included in the bill. For a comprehensive list of disability related provisions included in the HHS bill, please visit MN-CCD’s Capitol Update.

Filed under: Public Policy

MN-CCD Action Alert: Call your legislators NOW and encourage them to pass the Health and Human Services Conference Committee agreement

mnccd — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:46:48 +0000

The Health and Human Services (HHS) Finance Conference Committee met three times last week and completed its work late Friday, April 20th on the HHS Omnibus Bill. The HHS Omnibus Bill now needs to be passed off the House and Senate floor. Please contact your state representative and senator now, and ask him/her to pass the HHS omnibus bill. This bill contains many positive and necessary changes for disability services, including a delay of the 20% relative PCA cut, a delay of the 1.67% continent disability provider rate cut, allowing those over age 65 to remain on Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD), and more. A comprehensive summary of the provisions included in the Health and Human Services Omnibus is available on the Capitol Updates Section of the MN-CCD website.

Please contact your legislators NOW and ask them to pass the HHS omnibus bill. If you don’t know who your state legislators are, click here.

Filed under: Public Policy

Still time to register – Olmstead Town Hall Meeting on May 8th

mnccd — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:51:51 +0000

In the 13 years since the Supreme Court decision in Olmstead vs. L.C., 527 U.S. 581 (1999), the goal of the integration mandate title II of the ADA — to provide individuals with disabilities opportunities to live their lives like individuals without disabilities — has yet to be fully realized. Some states and organizations have begun providing more integrated solutions to individuals at risk of segregation, yet many people who could and want to live, work and receive services in integrated setting are still waiting for the promise of Olmstead to be fulfilled. To assist individuals and organizations in better understanding their rights under title II of Olmstead, the Department of Justice has created a technical assistance guide that you can find posted on the MSCOD website.

There is still time to register for the Town Hall Meeting on Olmstead in Minnesota sponsored by MSCOD and the Metropolitan Center for Independent Living which will take place May 8th, from 9 – 12. The event will be an opportunity for audience members to learn more about Olmstead issues and how the new Olmstead Commission will create Minnesota’s plan for relocating people out of institutional settings in to the community of their own choice. Email Council.Disability@state.mn.us if you would like to join the discussion and hear speakers. The registration deadline is Thursday, May 3. For locations and more information, visit the MSCOD website.

Filed under: Public Policy

Legislators return from spring break, work resumes for final weeks of session

mnccd — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 14:56:24 +0000

This past Monday April 16th, legislators returned to the capitol after a weeklong legislative spring break. Legislators quickly got back to work on various legislative issues as we are rapidly approaching the April 30th date that most legislators have said they hope the legislative session ends by. Just before legislators left for spring break, both the House and Senate passed off their respective floors their own versions of the 2012 Health and Human Services (HHS) Omnibus bill. Many of the smaller individual bills that the disability community has been working on this session have now been wrapped into either one or both of these larger HHS omnibus bills. Now that legislators have returned from break, a conference committee made up of five senators and five representatives has been called to work out the differences between the two versions of this bill. This conference committee met for the first time on the evening of Tuesday April 17th, and they adopted a number of no cost provisions during that the meeting. For a comprehensive list of the provisions adopted at last night’s conference committee hearing, visit the Capitol Updates section of the MN-CCD website. Following the adoption of these provisions, testimony was taken on various additional topics related to the House and Senate HHS omnibus bills. DHS and disability advocates provided testimony on the foster care bed closure language that is being suggested to address the mandatory bed closure language passed last session (there have been many versions of this language this session). Testimony was also taken on a proposed licensing fee for some disability service providers. No official action was taken on either the foster care bed closure issue or the licensing fee issues. MN-CCD will continue to follow the work of the HHS conference committee as well as other disability related legislation that continues to move forward at this time. As always we will share this legislative information on the Capitol Updates section of our website.

Filed under: Public Policy

Still time to register for event: Managed Care Expansion for Minnesotans with Disabilities

mnccd — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:38:50 +0000

Tuesday April 10, 2012 | 6:00 – 8:00 pm

Goodwill Easter Seals Main Office, 553 Fairview Ave., St. Paul

The 2011 Health and Human Services Omnibus Bill requires persons with disabilities under age 65 who have Medical Assistance fee-for-service coverage to be automatically enrolled in a managed care plan unless they take specific action to opt out. The choice of what plan to choose or whether to opt out and to stay in fee-for-service is a big decision and letters are already being sent out to individuals and families about this issue. To help people with disabilities and their families better understand this change and make an informed decision, The Minnesota Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities and Arc Greater Twin Cities will offer a free Special Needs BasicCare Forum on Tuesday, April 10, from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Goodwill Easter Seals Main Office, 553 Fairview Ave., St. Paul.

The forum will include:

• The Minnesota Department of Human Services will explain the change and implications

• The Disability Linkage Line will explain the assistance they can provide to you

• Medica, UCare, and the Metropolitan Health Plan will have representatives present to explain their programs

Space is limited – please RSVP by emailing denafelper@arcgreatertwincities.org or by calling 952 920 0855 by April 9th.

For more information, contact Anni at asimons@arcmn.org

Filed under: Public Policy