AAMR F.Y.I.
October 2003, Vol.3, No.11

Visit www.aamr.org/FYI/ to access current and past issues of this monthly newsletter.

Dear AAMR Friends and Colleagues:

IN THIS ISSUE:

LETTER TO MEMBERS FROM ANN TURNBULL, PRESIDENT
Ann Turnbull, President of AAMR shares her reflections on AAMR priorities in this new column at http://www.aamr.org/About_AAMR/pre_letter.shtml

CURRENT SOCIAL POLICY IS INADEQUATE IN REDUCING POVERTY AND UNEMPLOYMENT FACING PERSONS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION AND THEIR FAMILIES, ANALYSIS OF FEDERAL INCOME PAYMENTS REVEALS
High poverty rates, low employment, and lack of residential services make federal income transfers such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Disability Insurance (DI) an essential source of supports for persons with mental retardation. This makes this special population particularly vulnerable to the vagaries of changing public policies, which over the past two decades have included extensive changes in the benefit levels and eligibility criteria of SSI and DI in addition to welfare reform. Well-known disability researcher Susan L. Parish discusses this issue in the December 2003 issue of the journal Mental Retardation.

For free access to "Federal Income Payments and Mental Retardation: The Political and Economic Context," visit http://www.aamr.org/Reading_Room/pdf/income_transfers.pdf

To read other articles from the December ’03 issue of Mental Retardation, visit http://aamr.allenpress.com/aamronline/?request=get-current-issue

THE NEW SUPPORTS INTENSITY SCALE IS A VITAL TOOL FOR PERSONS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION TO ACHIEVE SELF-DETERMINATION
The new Supports Intensity Scale developed by AAMR makes it possible for adults with mental retardation to communicate with caregivers about the activities they’d like to consider part of their lives and live a life of their making. "For those of us who work tirelessly for self-determination and the full inclusion of citizens with developmental disabilities in community life--our ship has arrived," says Steven Hall, Executive Director, The Resource Exchange about SIS. "The Supports Intensity Scale is an assessment tool of great value and gives those of us who work to include persons in community life what we have needed for a long time--an assessment tool that helps us determine the frequency, amount, and type of supports necessary to help someone succeed in the real life of their community.  The SIS is the first assessment tool that doesn't fix blame and find what is wrong within the person.  Instead, SIS helps us determine the supports necessary for someone to succeed."

View parts of the Supports Intensity Scale Interview Form at http://www.aamr.org/Reading_Room/pdf/sis_overview.pdf

U.S. SENATE PASSES THE DIRECT SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION RESOLUTION, SIGNALING IMPORTANT CHANGES FOR THE DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY COMMUNITY
On October 23, the Senate passed Concurrent Resolution 21, the National Direct Support Recognition Act, demonstrating Congress’ recognition of the severe shortage of direct support professionals and the critical necessity to establish a stable direct support workforce. The Resolution was introduced by Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) and co-sponsored by Senator Blanche Lambert Lincoln (D-AR). A similar resolution, Concurrent Resolution 94, introduced by Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX) and co-sponsored by Congresswoman Lois Capps (D-CA), is pending in the U.S. House of Representatives.

To read the original resolution, visit http://www.ancor.org/dev/activities/nac/sconres21.htm

In other direct support news, the U.S. Health and Human Services has awarded 5 new grants totaling $6 million to help recruit, train, and retain direct service workers as a part of the Demonstration to Improve the Direct Service Community Workforce initiative launched earlier this year (Reported in August AAMR F.Y.I. at http://www.aamr.org/FYI/fyi_vol_3_no_7.shtml#funding)

Read more on who received the grants at http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2003pres/20031002.html

TWO HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS ON THE FIELD OF MENTAL RETARDATION NOW AVAILABLE AS E-BOOKS!
Two historical reference books published by AAMR–Embarking on a New Century: Mental Retardation at the End of the 21st Century and Out of the Darkness and into the Light–are now available as PDF e-books at AAMR Disability BooksOnline (www.disabilitybooksonline.com). Embarking is a collection of 18 essays on major public policy and service delivery advancements in mental retardation from 1975 to 2000. Out of the Darkness talks about the tremendous success the state of Nebraska has had dealing with the condition of mental retardation and is written by experts who made this change happen.

Read more at www.disabilitybooksonline.com under the
"Featured Books" link. Disability BooksOnline is the web portal for major AAMR books on intellectual disabilities.

U.S. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES CHOOSES 31 NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS TO STREAMLINE SERVICE SYSTEM FOR UNDERSERVED FAMILIES OF PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES
In an effort to create "One-Stop Shopping" centers for
persons with developmental disabilities, the U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded one-year grants of $100,000 each to 31 organizations across the country. "This will allow agencies serving the same populations to work together and make it easier for families to get the services they need," says HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson.

Read more, including the list of grant recipients at http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/add/hhsgrants.htm

In other grant news, the HHS has awarded $33 million to states and other organizations to help develop programs for people with disabilities or long-term illnesses (http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2003pres/20031002a.html) and the U.S. Department of Labor has announced $15.3 Million in Grants Supporting the Employment of People with Disabilities (http://www.onestops.info/website.php?page=grant2)

PAPERS PRESENTED AT THE RECENT WINGSPREAD CONFERENCE ON POLLUTION, TOXIC CHEMICALS, AND MENTAL RETARDATION NOW ONLINE
In July 2003, AAMR brought together environment and disability experts, and self-advocates to discuss current knowledge on toxins and their effect on developmental disabilities, and to chart a future course of action. Now, you can read the papers presented at the conference at a website dedicated exclusively to the event at http://www.aamr.org/ToxinsandMentalRetardation/

DON’T MISS THE UPCOMING CONFERENCE ON HEALTH CONCERNS OF PERSONS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION!
AAMR and six health organizations are sponsoring a national conference titled "A National Health Forum: Reducing Health Disparities for People with Developmental Disabilities by Improving the Quality of Health Care," from November 20-21, 2003 in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference is a follow up to the U.S. Surgeon General’s report of 2002 highlighting medical concerns of individuals with intellectual disabilities.

To access a conference brochure, visit http://www.aamr.org/Events/pdf/Health_Care_Conference_Program.pdf

To access past issues of AAMR F.Y.I. at www.aamr.org/FYI/. To subscribe, visit http://www.responsetrack.net/aamr/sign_up

© Copyright 2003 American Association on Mental Retardation

AAMR F.Y.I. may only be redistributed in its unedited form.