Patti's Blog - Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families

Bazelon Center and Disability Rights Maryland Comment on Recent Baltimore Public Health System Gap Analysis

November 8, 2019 

 

Last Friday, November 1, the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law and Disability Rights Maryland (DRM) jointly submitted comments on a report analyzing gaps in Baltimore, Maryland's behavioral health system.  "The Baltimore Public Health System Gap Analysis - Final Report, October 2019" is a requirement of the 2017 Consent Decree between the U.S. Department of Justice and the City of Baltimore, Maryland, and the Baltimore Police Department (BPD). The Consent Decree resolves the Justice Department's claims that the BPD violates the constitutional and civil rights of Baltimore residents, including people of color and people with disabilities, through the excessive use of force; racially discriminatory stops, searches, and arrests; and the failure to make reasonable accommodations when responding to calls involving people with disabilities and in crisis.

 

The "Gap Analysis" recommends that Baltimore expand and enhance services available in its public health system, to help reduce unnecessary and inappropriate interactions between BPD officers and people with disabilities, in Baltimore predominantly Black and Latinx people with disabilities. Bazelon and DRM believe the report's recommendations are sound overall, and make four suggestions for implementation. 

 

Read the one page executive summary of our comments here:

 

11-8-19 Executive Summary of Bazelon and DRM Comments on Baltimore PHS Gap Analysis

 

Read our full comment letter here: 

 

11-1-19 Bazelon Center and DRM Full Comments on Baltimore Public Health System Gap Analysis

 

Read "The Baltimore Public Health System Gap Analysis - Final Report, October 2019" here:

 

The Baltimore Public Health System Gap Analysis - Final Report, October 2019

Read the U.S. v. Baltimore Consent Decree here:

 

U.S. v. Police Department of Baltimore City, et. al.

 

 

 

The SSI Restoration Act of 2019 Introduced in the Senate

Thursday, October 31, 2019

 

 

Yesterday, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), with co-sponsors Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Robert Casey (D-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) introduced the SSI Restoration Act of 2019 in the Senate. Last month we reported that Representatives Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) introduced the bill in the House. Learn more in our SSI Restoration Act Policy Issue Brief.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) provides modest financial assistance for people who are unable to work enough to meet their basic needs. A 70-year-old woman who worked in “off the books” domestic jobs her whole life, or a younger person with a disability that makes it impossible to work enough hours to pay for rent, food, and other necessities are both examples of people who would qualify for SSI. While SSI is meant to help people in great need, many of the SSI program rules haven’t been updated in more than 40 years, and can make people’s financial problems even worse. If a person has even $1 more in their bank account than the $2,000 resource limit, their application will be denied or current benefits taken away entirely. 

The SSI Restoration Act of 2019

This legislation would modernize SSI rules and requirements that haven’t been changed for decades. In addition to raising the $2,000 resource limit, for example, the Act would increase the amount of income a person could keep from sources like Social Security. Currently, people receiving SSI are not allowed to keep more than $20 of income they receive from Social Security. This means older adults receiving SSI and Social Security (over half of all older SSI recipients) would be able to use more of their limited Social Security income to supplement their SSI benefit. The bill would also make improvements, such as removing a marriage penalty, so that couples could receive their full SSI benefit rather than a reduced amount. The bill would also eliminate benefit reductions that occur when people are able to live with others to save money. 

Improvements such as these are important to fulfilling SSI’s goal of helping those most in need who would not otherwise have enough income to get by. We support this legislation because it will ensure that, rather than keeping people out of the program because of outdated restrictions, we will be able to provide support to those who need it. 

Read our Policy Issue Brief for more information about this bill.

 

Contact Us

Justice in Aging
(202) 289-6976
[email protected]
View as webpage

 

 

 

New York Judge Blocks $250 Million State Medicaid Cut

Nov. 7, 2019, 6:19 PM

 

• Preliminary injunction puts hold on state Health Department reduction in funding for nursing homes
• Association lawsuit endorsed by legislators, labor union, advocacy groups

A New York judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking a planned $250 million state cut in Medicaid funding for nursing homes.

The Nov. 7 order by acting Justice Kimberly O’Connor of the state Supreme Court, Albany County, granted a motion by a coalition of nursing homes and associations suing the state over the retroactive funding reduction.

 

CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE

 

 

 

Auto No Fault - Town Hall Meeting Schedule

Good afternoon everyone.

 

Since our rally in September, the Brain Injury Association of Michigan has been working alongside CPAN, MBIPC and CAPP as part of our new MI Auto Insurance Promise coalition to assemble the strategic and tactical plan of execution around our series of planned Town Hall Meetings. These meetings will take place around the state and are designed to educate and inform the public about what they/we/YOU need to know about the pitfalls of the new Auto No-Fault Law (PA 21). The first two (Macomb County and Oakland County) took place last week, and the rest are scheduled through 2019 as follows (with additional meetings being planned for 2020):

 

PLEASE NOTE: More meeting locations will be confirmed soon; check the CPAN website at https://cpan.us/ for more information.

 

We naturally invite you to be a part of these meetings as your schedule allows, but more importantly…we strongly urge you to invite six of your friends or relatives who currently have no connection to the health care side of this issue, but who will be (or have been already) directly impacted via the increased rates they will pay for their auto insurance.

 

Our long-term goal in conducting these Town Hall Meetings is to motivate the attendees, especially those OUTSIDE of our survivor/caregiver/provider community, to 1) contact their legislative representative; 2) contact the Governor’s Office; 3) contact the Dept. of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS); and finally (primarily for those within our community), 4) to notify CPAN.

The immediate message? “My insurance rates aren’t going down – they’re going up. My liability just doubled.”

As written about in this week’s Crain’s Detroit Business (https://www.crainsdetroit.com/other-voices/insurance-companies-are-making-michigan-drivers-pay-savings?fbclid=IwAR1v1X1RqmylL1DcBaaPZLLsSYFezSlI7ACyV331Np078i7C2pW27wqZmp4), this is EXACTLY what is happening across the state. Remember that reducing the cost of auto insurance was the legislative leadership’s ONLY goal at the outset of 2019. “Significant savings” was the core objective, and if not achieved would represent colossal failure. Accordingly, auto insurance rate increases – not loss of care –will be the ONLY motivational impetus for them to revisit and revise their new No Fault Law.

 

SUMMARY: WHAT CAN YOU DO?

 

1. Encourage six of your friends/relativesoutside of our brain and spinal cord injury community to attend a Town Hall Meeting with you;  

2. Write your legislator and the Governor’s Officeand tell them your insurance premiums are going up. Provide your declaration sheet as evidence. NOTE: Form letters will not be effective. Your own story; your own words; handwritten, if possible; no longer than one page; will be what gets noticed and acted upon.

3. Write DIFS with the same message. DIFS is the government agency tasked to enforce prohibitive measures against auto insurance companies employing this practice: Ask them to “do their job.”

4. Notify CPANof your actions (provide them with copies of your letters)

 

There is “buyer’s remorse” among many rank-and-file legislators and Governors’ Office staffers

who are realizing they made the wrong decision to vote this into law. Your collective actions as outlined above represent the true grassroots effort needed to push these legislators and the Governor into remedial action.

 

Thank you, as always, for your continuing efforts.

Tom Constand

President and CEO

Brain Injury Association of Michigan

Flu Vaccine Information for Medicare Recipients

 

Older adults are at higher risk for severe flu illness and complications, but they often face barriers to accessing preventive health services, including the annual flu vaccination. In a campaign to increase awareness about flu vaccinations for low-income Medicare recipients, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have compiled educational resources for consumers, providers, and advocates, including customizable postcards, brochures, posters, and toolkits. There are postcards and posters available in several languages, including: Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Dzongkha, English, Farsi, Hmong, Karen, Kirundi, Korean, Japanese, Nepali, Oromo, Polish, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. We encourage you to use these materials to raise awareness and promote education this flu season through your existing educational and regular communications. On December 4, you can join CMS on social media to promote flu vaccinations using the hashtags #FightFlu! To encourage vaccination and emphasize the seriousness of the flu, CMS is coordinating social media education and outreach with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during National Influenza Vaccination Week December 1-7. All of these materials are available on the CalDuals website.

 

Explore Our New Website! We've launched an updated website, featuring new tools to help you access the information you need to serve older adults in your community. Share the news!   Request a Free Case Consultation Case consultation assistance is available for attorneys and professionals seeking more information to help older adults. Contact NCLER at [email protected].

 

 

Attorneys need to know about people-first language

Jessica Markham - November 4, 2019

 

I recently attended a fantastic event hosted by the Washington DC Economic Partnership about fostering a disability-friendly workplace. The speakers were inspiring, and I learned a lot of useful information about how to support employees and clients with all kinds of disabilities, or at least how to reduce my chances of offending them. It is critical that attorneys, being the wordsmiths we are, use the correct and most respectful words in addressing our coworkers and clients.

I learned that D.C., unlike Maryland, passed the People-First Language Modernization Act, which requires the use of respectful language when referring to people with disabilities in all new and revised District laws, regulations, rules and publications. People-first language has been around since 1988 but is only now gaining in popularity. People-first language, or PFL, puts the person before the disability and describes what a person has and not what a person is. PFL uses phrases such as “person with a vision impairment” as opposed to “blind person.”

When addressing clients with a disability, it’s important to separate the person from the medical diagnosis and put the person first. Rather than referring to someone by his/her/their disability (a handicapped person or a disabled person), acknowledge the person first (a person with a disability).

If you find yourself uncertain about what words to use in an interaction with someone who has a disability, it is appropriate to ask, rather than make an assumption. Everyone is different and some people do prefer “identity-first” language.

In many instances, it’s best to focus on your client’s abilities. For example, rather than referring to a client as non-verbal, you may communicate the client’s need by saying that they communicate using their eyes/device/etc. A person is not “wheelchair bound” but rather “uses a wheelchair.”

If you would like to read further about people-first language, you can refer to the Maryland Department of Health Developmental Disabilities Administration here.

Jessica Markham is the owner of Markham Law Firm, a family law firm in Bethesda.

 

CLICK HERE FOR THE ARTICLE

 

 

 

 

 

Medicare Can Be Confusing: 6 of Your Top Questions, Answered

By Mark Miller  -  Published Nov. 1, 2019Updated Nov. 3, 2019

 

Most people on Medicare report that they are very satisfied with their health care coverage — but the program is complicated. Medicare features an alphabet soup of plans, coverage choices, premium levels and enrollment rules.

The New York Times recently invited readers to submit their questions about Medicare. Today, we’re responding to some of the most frequent ones.

What kind of monthly premiums for either original Medicare or Advantage can I realistically plan on budgeting, especially considering inflation?

Health care inflation has been running about double the rate of general inflation. HealthView Services, a research and consulting firm, expects annual health care inflation to run an average of 5 percent to 5.5 percent through most of the coming decade.

 

The standard monthly premium for Part B (outpatient services) this year is $135.50; Medicare’s trustees forecast annual increases averaging 5.9 percent through 2028. Enrollees in traditional Medicare can expect inflation of 6 percent if inflation for Medigap premiums is included.

Among Medicare Advantage plans (Part C), 49 percent of plans that include drug coverage will charge no additional premium beyond Part B next year, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Plans that do have additional premiums for drugs will charge an average of $36 next year, Kaiser says.

According to HealthView, a 65-year-old couple using original Medicare this year will spend around $10,300 on premiums for prescription drugs and Medigap, and various out-of-pocket costs. In 20 years, their costs are projected to be around $33,000 annually (future dollars).

“The compounding effect of inflation is significant,” said Ron Mastrogiovanni, HealthView’s chief executive.

How can I get insurance for dental care? I am 78 years old and this is my largest uncovered medical expense.

 

Dental care is a critical component of preventive health care; research has shown clear links between poor oral health and chronic diseases like diabetes, as well as pain, chronic infection and reduced quality of life. Yet over all, nearly two-thirds of Medicare enrollees have no dental insurance, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. That means a majority pay for their care out of pocket or go without.

 

 

CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING

 

 

 

MiABLE's Three Year Anniversary

 

The Michigan Department of Treasury is pleased to announce that the MiABLE 529 Disability Saving/Investment Program has surpassed $12 million in assets. Over 3400 accounts have been opened since MiABLE first began enrollment November 1st, 2016 as the fifth ABLE program in the United States.

The ABLE Act allows certain individuals with disabilities to save/invest without jeopardizing eligibility for public benefits like SSI, Medicaid, and SNAP.  Assets in an ABLE account can be used for qualified disability expenses (QDE) including:

• education  
• housing  
• transportation
• employment training and support
• assistive technology
• personal support services
• health care, illness prevention, medical equipment, and overall wellness
• financial management and administrative services
• legal fees
• expenses for oversight and monitoring
• end of life expenses

MiABLE account holders can request debit cards to pay for Qualified Disability Expenses.

MiABLE staff have been educating parent groups, disability advocacy organizations, employee resource groups, and other potential MiABLE account holders throughout the state. 

Request for events can be directed to [email protected] 

Details on MiABLE events can be found at https://www.miable.org/Events.php

 

Check out the MiABLE commercials at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewhWhilXw1Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAhH7pYD3og

 

Questions about the MiABLE program can be directed to Customer Service at 844-656-7225

Open an account or Contribute/Donate to an opened account at www.miable.org

 

Michigan Department of Treasury Lansing, Michigan 48922 | 517-373-3200 | Contact Us Online here

 

 

This might surprise you. Seniors are not more susceptible to scams; younger adults are.

By Michelle Singletary  -  Oct. 28, 2019 at 7:01 a.m. EDT

 

When you think of a victim of financial fraud, you probably imagine an aging woman or man home alone, giving out their credit card information to a stranger on the phone.

But according to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission, in 2018, people 60 and older were 20 percent less likely than younger adults to report losing money to fraud.

However, when seniors fall victim to a scam, their losses were higher. People 80 and older lost the most, reporting a median individual loss of $1,700, which was more than four times the median losses of consumers in their 20s and 30s, and more than two to three times higher than in other age groups.

The FTC collects and analyzes consumer report information through an online database called the Consumer Sentinel Network. Law enforcement agencies and other organizations contribute consumer reports to the database, which is searchable by criteria such as the type of fraud. Last year, consumers reported nearly 3.1 million cases of fraud, according to the FTC.

Here are the median individual losses to fraud last year by age, according to the FTC report:

Ages 20-29: $400

Ages 30-39: $385

Ages 40-49: $455

Ages 50-59: $508

Ages 60-69: $600

Ages 70-79: $769

Ages 80 and older: $1,700

Seniors were scammed the most by tech support scams. Online fraud came in second. Older adults were 371 percent more likely to report losing money on this type of scam than younger consumers, the FTC said. The aggregate amount older consumers reported losing on tech support scams in 2018 was nearly $21 million.

The FTC provides advice in this guide: How to Spot, Avoid and Report Tech Support Scams.

Fraudsters are getting to older adults most often by calling them. In fact, seniors were four times more likely than other consumers to be contacted by phone.

 

CLICK HERE TO KEEP READING

 

 

Justice Department Resolves Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against the Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport, CT

Department of Justice

Office of Public Affairs

---

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, November 4, 2019

Justice Department Resolves Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against the Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with the Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut (HACB), doing business as Park City Communities, to resolve allegations that the housing authority discriminated against persons with disabilities in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Fair Housing Act. 

The Consent Order, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, requires HACB to institute broad reforms to safeguard the rights of individuals with disabilities, including revising its policies and processes for handling reasonable accommodation requests and developing an inventory of accessible units for tenants with mobility, vision, and hearing-related disabilities. The settlement also requires HACB to pay $1,500,000 to those hurt by its discriminatory practices and a $25,000 civil penalty to the United States.

“This settlement will ensure that tenants with disabilities have the same opportunity to use and enjoy their homes as everyone else,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “Individuals who seek reasonable accommodations from the Housing Authority of Bridgeport will now have access to a process that is easier to navigate, provides timely responses, and includes all of the protections afforded by federal civil rights laws. In addition, by bringing its housing inventory into compliance with accessibility requirements for tenants with mobility, vision, and hearing-related impairments, the Housing Authority will be better able to meet the needs of its residents and community.”

“Our public housing authorities should be in the business of making life easier for people with disabilities, not harder,” said U.S. Attorney John H. Durham of the District of Connecticut.  “We are pleased with this settlement and consent order, and we remain committed to pursuing violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Fair Housing Act in Connecticut.”

HACB owns and manages more than 2,500 units of public housing and administers more than 2,800 vouchers under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program. The lawsuit arose from a compliance review initiated by HUD. After issuing a determination of noncompliance and attempting resolution, HUD referred the case to the Justice Department.

The complaint, filed on Nov. 15, 2017, alleged that HACB failed to properly process, decide, and fulfill requests for reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities. Federal law requires HACB to provide reasonable accommodations, such as physical modifications to public housing units, changes to program rules, or transfers to appropriate housing, when requested to meet a tenant or applicant’s disability-related needs. The complaint also alleged that HACB failed to provide a sufficient number of public housing units that are accessible to tenants with mobility, vision, or hearing-related disabilities.

Individuals who may have been victims of discrimination by HACB or who have information relevant to this case are encouraged to contact the Civil Rights Division at 1-800-896-7743 (for English, press 1, then mailbox 992; for Spanish, press 2, then mailbox 2) or by email at [email protected]. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the civil rights laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt

Topic(s): 

Civil Rights

Component(s): 

Civil Rights Division

Civil Rights - Housing and Civil Enforcement Section

USAO - Connecticut

Press Release Number: 

19-1185