Category: Disability (page 10)
Healthcare Vote Expected Next Week
Healthcare Vote Expected Next Week: The Fight Is Not Over! From the National Council on Independent Living The Senate released their updated version of the Better Care Reconciliation Act (PDF) yesterday, and all of our concerns remain the same. Read the Senate summary (PDF).…
Darla Ervin Writes in Charleston Gazette-Mail
Darla Erwin: Medicaid’s future a life/death decision to disabled (Gazette)
I am — like thousands of others in West Virginia — a person with a disability. I was born with cerebral palsy and need a power wheelchair to get around. I’m also a mother, a widow, and a daughter. My handsome son, Wesley, is in the military and serves in Iraq.
Like many other people with disabilities, I have created a full life for myself: I am becoming a court-appointed special advocate for abused and neglected children; I serve on several boards for disability organizations; and I am the co-coordinator of West Virginia ADAPT, a grassroots disability rights organization.
Also like so many other people with disabilities, I am only able to live this full, active life because of Medicaid. Medicaid pays for my wheelchair, for my medications and for the attendant who helps me get up in the morning and go to bed at night. Without these supports, I would be in a nursing home. Or, I would be dead.
The current congressional proposals to fundamentally change — and slash — Medicaid leave me terrified. The home- and community-based services that Medicaid funds for me — and 13,000 other senior and disabled West Virginians — could disappear. Completely. We will be left with no choice but to abandon our jobs, our families, our volunteer work. Many of us might be forced into nursing homes. Others would have family members who quit their jobs to care for us. Still others would die.
Elkins Group Enjoys the Summer Weather
American Wheelchair Mission in Appalachia
Three West Virginia Centers for Independent Living received 75 manual wheelchairs of various sizes for distribution to those in need. Brynn Hochman and her family from Los Angeles have been working with American Wheelchair Mission as part of a humanitarian…
Coffee Shop
This coffee shop only hires people with disabilities.
MSNBC on ADAPT
The Rachel Maddow Show 6/22/17 Rachel Maddow tells the history of ADAPT and the activism of disabled Americans and points out the leadership role these activists have taken in challenging the Republican plan to take Medicaid away from millions. Duration:…
Take Action: Proposed Medicaid Cuts
Justin Dart urged us to get into politics as if our lives depended on it.” Today, his words were never more true – or important! The lives and liberty of disabled Americans are on the line as the US Senate considers massive cuts to Medicaid. Join NCIL in the fight to protect Medicaid and fight for the lives and liberty of disabled Americans across the country!
TAKE ACTION:
The US Senate needs to hear from the Disability Community about the dangers of cutting $800 billion from Medicaid. We need YOU to call Senator Capito. Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and asking the operator to connect you.
Message
Say: “My name is (your full name). I am a constituent of Senator (name). I am disabled and I rely on Medicaid to live independently in my community. I am calling to ask Senator (name) to vote NO on any legislation that will cap and cut Medicaid and put healthcare out of reach for millions of Americans, including the upcoming ACA repeal bill. Senator (name) has a responsibility to fight for their constituents, and that includes those of us with disabilities and pre-existing conditions. People (like me/in the disability community) rely on Medicaid for our health and independence, and converting Medicaid to a per capita cap system would be detrimental to people with disabilities in (state). If this bill is passed, I risk losing access to services that I rely on to live in my community. This is unacceptable. This is an extremely important issue to the disability community, and we are following the Senator’s actions closely. I hope we can count on the Senator to do what’s right for people with disabilities in (state) and around the country!”
It is imperative that you call now, and then do it again tomorrow, and every day after that while this legislation is still active! The entire Disability Community is depending on you to make these calls and stop this legislation from moving forward.
STEM Survey Accessibility Research Study
STUDY BASICS Do you have a physical disability? Were you in a science or engineering laboratory course after high school? If so, you may be eligible to participate in a study to gather information on the experiences of past/present students…
Elkins Group Creates Non-Newtonian Fluids
This week, Brenda Dasher and Tiffany Carr taught this group in Elkins about non-Newtonian fluids. As part of the lesson each group participant created their own slime. Looks like everyone had a blast!