As the dust settles from the 2012 elections, access to services and coverage appears to be more feasible for Florida families’ with disabilities. That’s not to say that there won’t still be a constant supply of bumps and potholes ahead, but we are on the move toward our destination of equitable and fair services. Find out more how the Affordable Care Act may impact your loved one.
Perhaps the greatest gift of life is the ability to share many its aspects with others. We have communication skills and empathies that can enliven mundane tasks and reinforce the greater joys and tragedies of the human experience. As social beings, we seek out these shared experiences from our earliest infancy to our later golden [...]
In recognition of the 22nd Anniversary of the ADA and its ground-breaking federal policy milestone, Sunrise is launching our “Crib Notes” Project. Contributors are asked to use ONLY SIX WORDS to describe what disability services means to them. (for example, how did it change one’s life, what does it allow a person the freedom to do, how do services impact family members and the general public?, etc…. how far do the “ripples of community inclusion” travel?) The idea is to get the conversation started and to better understand the intangible value of an inclusive life.
“Duty of the State” was a term coined by FDR in his 1931 speech on “The duty of the State toward the citizen is the duty of the servant to its master…. One of the duties of the State is that of caring for those of its citizens who find themselves … unable to obtain even the necessities for mere existence without the aid of others…. To these citizens aid must be extended by government—not as a matter of charity but as a matter of Social Duty.” Florida appears to have forgotten this historic lesson on responsibility.
With the rise of the smartphone and its ability to be the computer for millions of people around the world, mobile technology is becoming more powerful and less expensive every few months. And with those technological changes come changes of habit and expectation. One of the changes we and many others have commented on is [...]
With responsible advocacy, we have the ability to influence leaders, educate officials and build a strong base of supporters with personal impact stories and educational campaigns about the daily life challenges faced by people with intellectual and physical disabilities. Responsible advocacy should always empower people as opposed to invoking pity, or far worse, skepticism. Progress for people with developmental disabilities rests on the “integrity of what we do, what we say, and what we say we do.”
Eli Porter has shown us the exponential power of the internet as an effective tool for self-advocacy. Perhaps unexpected, he is a role-model. “The bar” for acceptable community inclusion has been forever raised. Going forward, inclusion must always be more than just “allowing people with intellectual disabilities to participate in an activity.”
Unlike the Santorums, most families with young children with developmental disabilities remain on the “margins of citizenship.” Sadly, many families with babies born with developmental disabilities have limited access to medical supports or the means to access basic health care for their child. Hopefully the Santorums will use their personal experience with Bella and frame it into a “teachable moment” for the entire country.
The macro-economics of aging over the next 40 years do not look great: the first Baby Boomers reached the age of Social-Security eligibility 15 months ago, but the crest of this so-called ‘Silver Tsunami’ will not come until about 2030. It will not recede for another couple of decades. The issue is not the number [...]
Summary: The final week of the session focused principally on appropriations for people interested in developmental disabilities. The Legislature adjourned sine die at 11:59 Friday night. Action during week 9: The Senate and House reached agreement on the General Appropriations Act (HB5001) and passed it late Friday night. For the Waiver, the results are shown [...]
For the past 14 years, American school children have celebrated the legacy and wonder of Dr. Seuss on his March 2nd birthday. On National Literacy Day, Seuss is revered as “the guy” who inspired multiple generations of independent readers with his fantasy-filled stories about imaginative heroes and heroines speaking on behalf of silent, often marginalized [...]
Developmental Disabilities Legislative Session Report #8 By Kingsley Ross kross@sunrisegroup.org Summary: Week eight of the session continued to focus principally on appropriations for people interested in developmental disabilities. There is one week left in this session assuming the legislature adjourns on time. Action during week 8: The Senate and House began the appropriations conference process [...]
The 2012 regular session begins on January 10 and the battle lines have been clearly drawn. This session will not only decide the extent to which people with disabilities have to deal with more cuts but may also decide whether community services continue to exist as we have known them since the 1970s. Continue reading to view our latest legislative updates.
Judge William J. Brennan, Jr. once noted that “Congress acknowledged that society’s accumulated myths and fears about disability and disease are as handicapping as are the physical limitations that flow from actual impairment.” Since then, the Developmental Disabilities Act, section 102(8), defined “the term ‘developmental disability’ to mean a severe, chronic disability of an [...]
On February 20, 2012, Florida’s Governor Rick Scott signed a proclamation recognizing March as Developmental Disabilities month in the state. Ironically, at the same moment, legislative leaders over at the Capitol continued proposing hundreds of millions of dollars in budget cuts that would jeopardize the health and well being of Florida’s most vulnerable, many of [...]
We have all heard the old saying, “You have the power to change the world!” While we may agree that it sounds cliché, most major religions charge their followers to do just that. Both the Bible and the Torah tell us the story of Cain and Abel and “being our brother’s keeper.” Socially and morally, [...]
On Monday, February 27, 2012, the Florida House Health and Human Services Committee will consider a proposed bill that is the House version of Senate Bill1516. Like SB1516, it will more than likely substantially alter how services are prioritized and individual consumer iBudget allocations are decided. A bill surfacing this late in the process means that it is on a fast track to passage.
The seventh week of the session continued to focus principally on appropriations for people interested in developmental disabilities. There are two weeks left in this session if the legislature adjourns on time.
The sixth week of the session focused principally on appropriations for people interested in developmental disabilities.
Developmental Disabilities Legislative Session Report #5 By Kingsley Ross kross@sunrisegroup.org Summary: The fifth week of the 2012 regular session focused both on appropriations and substantive legislation for people interested in developmental disabilities. The session has now passed the midway point. Action during week 5: The House General Appropriations Act (HB 5001) passed the full chamber. [...]
Dr. Bill Thomas is an international expert on elderhood and geriatric medicine. He is the founder of the Eden Alternative and Green House Project, a writer and musician. Follow Dr. Bill on Twitter and Facebook.
Follow Us