Family Voices Indiana

from Pat Howey at Special Education Consulting: The small part of funding that comes from the federal government has been cut even further. Local school districts will now have to foot the bill for the services listed below. Local school districts that already are struggling to provide adequate services to all students will now have to stretch their budgets even further. After December 1, 2017, the IDOE will not longer be providing funding for the following services to local schools: (1) Extended School Year in Day Programs; (2) ABA services in centers and in schools; (3) One-on-one services (paraprofessionals and aides) in centers and schools; (4) Related Services; and, (5) Transportation. In addition, a cap on Residential Services and Day Services is being considered. What we can expect: Advocating for kiddos in special ed will become more and more difficult. We can expect to have to fight for these services for special education children who need them, even tho

from CCD: Background On November 17, the House of Representatives passed its version of a tax bill.  The Senate is prepared to act on its bill right after they return from Thanksgiving recess the week of Nov. 27.  Both bills would present serious threats to people with disabilities. A conference committee may have to work out the differences between the bills, meaning that provisions in either bill could end up in a final tax bill.  Both bills are harmful because they:  Dramatically reduce tax revenues by nearly $1.5 trillion over 10 years to provide tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthiest individuals and corporations .  Build pressure to cut Medicaid, Medicare, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and other critical programs for people with disabilities in order to make up for lost revenue stemming from tax cuts. While the neither the House or Senate tax bills directly cut Medicaid, they both would have a devastating impact on funding available for Med

To: Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services, Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services participants, providers, families and stakeholders From: Cathy Robinson, Director, Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services Re: Increasing budget flexibility for individuals receiving services through the Community Integration and Habilitation Waiver (CIH) Date: November 22, 2017 Effective January 1, 2018, an individual’s budget allocation under the Objective Based Allocation System (OBA) will no longer be distributed into three categories for individuals receiving services through the Community Integration and Habilitation Waiver (CIH). Individuals will be able to use their full budget allocation to support identified community integration needs through the person-centered planning process. This change will enable individuals to have more flexibility in their person-centered planning process in combining their natural supports, community resources, and their overall budget a

from IAUW: Organization Day kicks off the 2018 legislative session November 21 was Organization Day at the Indiana Statehouse which marks the ceremonial start to the 2018 legislative session.  Organization Day provides an opportunity for the  Indiana General Assembly  to gather and connect with their peers and staff to discuss legislative topics for the coming session.   The 2018 session will begin on  January 3  and will end no later than  March 14 .  This is a "short session" were lawmakers will discuss a range of issues that likely have minimal fiscal impact because it is not a budget-making year.   Now that we have heard more from caucus leadership and the Governor on their plans for 2018, you can expect key issues this session to revolve around workforce development, education and the opioid epidemic.  View Governor Holcomb's  Next Level Agenda  and look for caucus agendas and committee assignments to be released in the near future.    Save th

from National Family Voices: Tax Bill - Repeal of ACA's Individual Mandate On November 16, the House passed the  Tax Cuts and Jobs Act  (H.R. 1,  summary ) by a mostly partisan  vote of 227-205 . All Democrats opposed the bill, as did 13 Republicans. Most of the latter are from high-tax states that would be significantly disadvantaged by the bill's repeal of the deduction for non-business state and local income and sales taxes (SALT). (For more details, see the  November 8 Update .)   Among  other provisions that could be detrimental to children and families , the  House bill would repeal the  medical-expense deduction , which helps families who have very high medical bills,  and repeal the "orphan-drug" tax credit,  which encourages the development of drugs to help people with rare conditions.   The  Senate  version  of the tax bill was approved by the Senate Finance Committee last week along partisan lines. That bill would  not  repeal the medical-expen

Attention: ACA Navigators! Do you assist people with disabilities enroll in health insurance  through the ACA ? Do you have the resources you need to help people with disabilities select the best option for health insurance? Open Enrollment Year 5 begins Nov. 1 and the NDNRC has the resources to help...... Disability Guide for Navigators Topical Fact Sheets Population Specific Fact Sheets Weekly Newsletters All are available on the NDNRC website:  The National Disability Navigator Resource Collaborative ( NDNRC )