AAMR F.Y.I.
January 2006, Vol.6, No.1

We wish you a Happy New Year!

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

Dear AAMR Friends and Colleagues:

• Darkest day for people with disabilities in the United States, say national disability groups about severe budget cut approved by Senate; still time to ask Representatives to vote no
• Dramatic reforms needed now, to sustain long term services and supports for the elderly and people with disabilities, says new benchmarking report from the National Council on Disability
• Provider community in the Netherlands adopts the Supports Intensity Scale
• Interview with veteran teacher, psychologist, and advocate Robert Schalock
• Centers for Disease Control seeks public commentary on research priorities for the next decade, including health concerns for persons with developmental disabilities

DARKEST DAY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE UNITED STATES, SAY NATIONAL DISABILITY GROUPS ABOUT SEVERE BUDGET CUT APPROVED BY SENATE; STILL TIME TO ASK REPRESENTATIVES TO SAY NO
The United States Senate approved a budget reconciliation package that will have very harmful consequences for people with disabilities and families. The bill goes back to the U.S. House of Representatives shortly, and leading disability groups are requesting families to contact their representatives and ask them to vote no on the reconciliation bill. Low-income people with disabilities who rely on Medicaid for health and long-term care will be severely hit. With the bill, governors have unprecedented flexibility to raise co-payments on Medicaid prescription medicines and therapies, and states can deny certain medical care and long-term supports to those who need it most. Children born with a developmental disability will suffer without access to the essential Early Periodic Screening and Diagnostic Testing (EPSDT), which can prevent a disability through early screening, says Sue Swenson, Director of The Arc of the United States.

Read an action alert issued by the Association of University Centers on Disabilities at www.aamr.org. Visit http://capwiz.com/aucd/issues/alert/
?alertid=8293256&type=CO and enter your zip code to find your local Representative.

To learn more about the impact of this bill, visit www.aamr.org

To read an analysis of the budget provisions and impact of Medicaid cost sharing, visit the American Network of Community Options and Resources website at www.ancor.org

DRAMATIC REFORMS NEEDED NOW, TO SUSTAIN LONG TERM SERVICES AND SUPPORTS FOR THE ELDERLY AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, SAYS NEW BENCHMARKING REPORT FROM THE NATIONAL COUNCIL ON DISABILITY
America needs leadership, creativity, capital, and risk-taking to reform its long-term services and supports for people with disabilities and the elderly, says a comprehensive, 580-page report from the National Council on Disability. The current lack of coherent national policy and the fragmented nature of the support and delivery system are unsustainable. The NCD points out that there is no single federal program, agency, or congressional committee currently charged with the responsibility of managing long term services and supports in America.

To read The State of the 21^st Century Long-Term Services and Supports: Financing and Systems Reform for Americans with Disabilities, visit http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2005/longterm_services.doc

PROVIDER COMMUNITY IN THE NETHERLANDS ADOPTS THE SUPPORTS INTENSITY SCALE
The Netherlands becomes the first country outside of the United States to adopt the Supports Intensity Scale (SIS) for widespread use in gauging needs and developing support plans for persons with developmental disabilities. The Arduin Foundation (http://www.arduin.nl/), based in the Province of Zeeland in the Netherlands is the world’s first service provider to develop and use an electronic version of the Supports Intensity Scale to develop support plans for persons with intellectual disabilities. The Dutch Association of Professionals in the field of Intellectual Disability ( http://www.ngbz.nl/ ) based in Utrecht has also endorsed SIS and will train professionals across the Netherlands using a Dutch version of the Scale.

The Supports Intensity Scale assesses support needs of persons with intellectual disabilities in 85 areas. The SIS is the first planning tool to focus on needs as opposed to deficits, to identify services and supports.

To see a sample SIS interview form, visit http://www.siswebsite.org/site/pdf/SISInterform&casestudy.pdf.

VETERAN TEACHER, PSYCHOLOGIST, AND ADVOCATE ROBERT SCHALOCK TALKS TO AAMR F.Y.I.
With nearly half a century of experience as teacher and psychologist, and over 25 books and 100 articles on topics ranging from quality of life and setting up developmental disability services in rural America to defining mental retardation and adaptive behavior, Robert Schalock is an icon in the developmental disability field in the U.S. and abroad. AAMR F.Y.I. talks with this prolific writer and passionate advocate.

Read the interview at http://www.aamr.org/FYI/interview_Schalock.shtml

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENTARY ON RESEARCH PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT DECADE, INCLUDING HEALTH CONCERNS FOR PERSONS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is seeking your commentary on identifying critical health research priorities for the next decade included in the forthcoming CDC Health Protection Research Guide, 2006-2015. Chapter five of the Guide pertains to disability issues, including promoting health of persons with developmental disabilities. To send in your comments on the listed goals and their scope of research, visit http://www.rsvpbook.com/custom_pages/50942/index.php (registration required to see full text). Deadline for comments is January 15, 2006. For questions, contact Jamila Rashid at ResearchGuide@cdc.gov or (404)-639-4621.

Click here to read a fact sheet on this initiative.

On the topic of research priorities, National Goals for Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, published recently by the American Association on Mental Retardation, is the first book to assess the status of America with regards to its fulfillment of research goals for persons with intellectual disabilities.

To read a table of contents and introduction from the book, visit http://www.aamr.org/Reading_Room/pdf/NationalGoalsfm.pdf. The book is edited by K. Charlie Lakin and Ann P. Turnbull. To order, call 301-604-1340 or email aamr@pmds.com (Price is $39.95).

AAMR F.Y.I. is compiled by Anna Prabhala, Editor. Please submit comments, suggestions, tips, and news to annap@aamr.org.

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

© Copyright 2005 American Association on Mental Retardation

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