Please take action! Funds for Medicaid Home and Community Based Services are essential ... and did NOT make it into the Senate proposal
BACKGROUND:
- No additional funds for home and community based services. These types services make up the essence of DD, or community, supports.
- Civil rights protections, including some under the Americans with Disabilities Act, would be lost
There are small victories. The Senate proposal ensures adults with disabilities who are claimed as dependents have access to stimulus payments; there are some non-profit supports; and it works to fix the Paycheck Protection Program loans. But broadly, the bill ignores the critical needs of people with disabilities, their families, the Direct Support Professional workforce, and service providers.
The Senate proposal has $1 trillion dollars of relief, while the House HEROES Act included $3 trillion in funding, much in the form of relief for states. The House proposal notably included an increase to the Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP) and new home and community based services funding, also called "HCBS funds."
In the Senate proposal, employees and people with disabilities would lose protections under several labor, employment, and civil rights laws, including:
- Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
- Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act
- Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
- Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
- Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act
- Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA)
- The Senate proposal also removes liability under the ADA and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for businesses and employers who cannot offer requested accommodations because doing so will pose serious risk to public health
The Arc's statement: Three Years to the Day Since Senator John McCain’s Thumbs Down: Congress is Still Forgetting #WeAreEssential
The National Disability Rights Network Statement: Senate COVID Bill Protects Profits, Not Lives
ABOUT "HCBS" and "FMAP":
Home and community based services (HCBS) are alternatives to
institutional care. If you or a loved one access services through the state Developmental Disabilities Administration or Aging and Long-Term Supports Administration, chances are they are funded by an HCBS waiver. The Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentages (FMAP), meanwhile, determine
matching federal funds for certain state medical and social service programs.
If the federal government increases FMAP rates, then the state's investment
in Medicaid goes further. Apple Health and long-term supports are funded
through Medicaid.
The Arc's policy staff in Washington, D.C., says negotiations are ongoing and a compromise is expected. They were still reviewing the text of the bills Tuesday afternoon and providing updates. The House is set to recess on
Friday, July 31, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi has indicated they will stay until a
deal is reached. The Senate is set to recess on August 7.
ALERT & TALKING POINTS FROM THE ARC's NATIONAL STAFF:
WE MUST ACT to keep the pressure on the Senate to include the needs of people with disabilities, the direct support workforce, and service providers in the next federal package. Things will move fast, and right now the Senate proposal does NOT address most of the critical needs of people with disabilities!
Your Senators need to hear from you so that these and other important provisions ,are included in the bill that ultimately passes Congress:
Your Senators need to hear from you so that these and other important provisions ,are included in the bill that ultimately passes Congress:
- Dedicated funding for Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS). These funds are necessary to serve people with disabilities in their homes and communities and will provide better wages and support for the direct support workforce. Better wages and support are needed to stabilize and grow the direct support field. Access to HCBS will limit the risk of people with disabilities being put in institutions. Now, especially, people need to avoid congregate care. And all states need robust alternatives to institutions.
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) for direct support professionals. This is urgently needed to protect the health and safety of this critical workforce. DSPs must be designated as essential workers so that they can get access to the PPE and medical supplies they need.
- Paid leave for all caregivers. As more people with disabilities lose their usual sources of care, family caregivers are scrambling and need access to paid leave and sick days to help their loved ones. Congress should include all family caregivers in the emergency paid leave provisions.
- Economic impact payments for all people with disabilities, including adults with disabilities who are claimed as dependents.
You can take action here: https://p2a.co/hy2tD8v
All alert messages can be edited.
If you prefer, you can also email Washington's U.S. Senators directly:
- Senator Maria Cantwell: https://www.cantwell.senate.gov/contact/email
- Senator Patty Murray: https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactme
