Family Voices Indiana

Have you called your Senators yet to urge them to vote NO on the Senate health care bill?  If not, please call now!  202-224-3121
Please find at least one more person to make a call as well – your spouse, mother, father, sister, brother, adult child, child’s teacher, neighbor…
It’s fine to call on the weekend.  Leave a brief message: 
“My name is ___ and I am a constituent living in (state), and I urge you to oppose the Senate health care bill.”
You can stop there or explain why this is important to you:
“I have child [grandchild, neighbor, student…] with special health care needs [name diagnosis if you wish], and this bill will harm my child and family by [as applicable] -- ·cutting Medicaid and/or ·removing protections for families with high medical expenses. Please don’t hurt my child and family.”
TO HAVE A GREATER IMPACT…
All contact info (including social media) for your Senator(s) can be found atwww.contactingCongress.org. 
Call the DC office and at least one local office.  If you leave a m…

July 13, 2017Adam Searing
The Better Care Reconciliation Act, the health bill now being considered by the United States Senate, contains substantial cuts to health care for children, parents, people with disabilities, the elderly and other adults served by the federal/state Medicaid program.  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that cuts to Medicaid in the bill will reach 35 percent over time. This cut is a key part of the bill despite the stated goal of the President and Congress of “improving” the Affordable Care Act through the legislation.  Some politicians have attempted to claim that cutting federal Medicaid funding for states by over 1/3rd can be done without hurting specific groups such as children with disabilities or the elderly. But as my colleague Andy Schneider explained, Congress can’t take billions and billions of dollars out of Medicaid and expect to protect anyone who gets coverage – the cuts are just too huge. The Congressional Budget Office agrees …

Thank you to the organizations and individuals who supported our letter to Governor Holcomb. It will be hand delivered to him and Senator Young and Senator Donnelly today. We appreciate your advocacy.

July 14, 2017
Office of Governor Eric Holcomb
State House
Room 206
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2797

Dear Governor Holcomb,
The undersigned organizations and individuals are all dedicated to ensuring the health and well-being of children in Indiana, particularly children and youth with special health care needs, and we respectfully urge you to advise Senator Young and Senator Donnelly to oppose the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA).
As you know, BCRA will fundamentally restructure and make drastic cuts in the Medicaid program.  Our state will lose billions of dollars in federal funding if this bill is enacted.  Unless state taxes are raised to cover the shortfall, the state will be compelled to cut Medicaid eligibility, benefits, and reimbursement, hurting the 791,659 children in the state …

from AUCD:
Medicaid expansion:  
*  There has been virtually no change to the Medicaid expansion provisions (only substantive change we have identified is states allow state to include Medicaid expansion population in block grants)
Per capita caps:  
*  There has been no change in the Medicaid per capita caps.  The bill still has the same initial growth rate and the more restrictive growth rate beginning in 2025.  
*  There have been no changes to the carve out from caps for "blind and disabled children."  (We had heard some talk about it being expanded).  In case you missed it,here is a blog about why it doesn't protect children with disabilities.
*  That means that the revised bill still will have, based on the recent CBO, $772 billion in cuts to Medicaid, and will cut Medicaid by 35% by 2036, and 15 million people with lose Medicaid.  
HCBS provisions:
*  The bill still cuts the enhanced match for 1915(k) Community First Choice.
*  The bill creates a new 1915(l) HCBS program. …

from National FV:
Health Care Legislation - Update The June 30 Update provided an explanation of the Senate version of legislation to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the "Better Care Reconciliation Act" (BCRA).  After a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis of the bill concluded that it would result in 22 million more uninsured individuals by 2026 compared to current law, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), cancelled a vote he had planned to hold on the bill before the Independence Day recess.
As leadership had feared, Senators faced widespread constituent opposition to the bill during that recess. There are currently 11 Republican Senators who have said they oppose the bill in its current form - Senators Collins (ME), Murkowski (AK), Capito (WV), Moran (KS), Heller (NV), Hoeven (ND), Portman (OH), Johnson (WI), Paul (KY), Lee (UT), and Cruz (TX). (The last three believe it should go further in repealing the ACA; the others are conc…

Thanks to everyone for your incredible advocacy over the 4th of July recess.  It has made a huge difference -- the public opposition to Congress' bill is stronger than ever!  
The Senate returned today from recess and is trying to bring the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) to floor for a vote as early as next week. It is critical that the Senate continue to hear that any bill with cuts and caps to Medicaid is unacceptable. 
In addition to continuing the great state-based events, rallies and protests, we need to make sure your Senators’ DC phones are ringing off the hook with opposition to the BCRA.
CCD has organized a National Call-In Day on Wednesday, July 12th
·Call your Senators toll-free at866-426-2631 or local number 202-224-3121.
oTell them you oppose the BCRA’s devastating cuts and caps to Medicaid for people with disabilities, children, women, seniors, veterans, and people with substance use and mental health conditions.  Ask them to #VoteNO to the BCRA and to #SaveMedicai…

To: DDRS Stakeholders
From: Kylee Hope, Director, Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services (DDRS)
Theresa Koleszar, Director, Bureau of Rehabilitation Services (BRS)
Date: July 10, 2017
Vocational Rehabilitation Services Order of Selection Implementation
The Bureau of Rehabilitation Services (BRS) has received approval from the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) to implement an order of selection. The Rehabilitation Act, as amended by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), requires a state vocational rehabilitation services (VR) agency to implement an order of selection when it does not have sufficient resources to serve all eligible individuals. Under an order of selection, a VR agency is federally required to serve individuals with the most significant disabilities first. RSA approved the amendment to the VR portion of the WIOA State Plan on June 30, 2017, which outlines the justification for the order of selection, and can be viewed at by clicking here…