Month: January 2021

Michigan Governor Calls for Permanent Pay Increase for Direct Care Workers

PR from Governor Whitmer: For Complete Post, Click Here…

Whitmer’s State of the State Message Includes Proposal to Make $2.00 Hourly Wage Increase Permanent, Showing Value of Direct Care Worker Services.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer tonight unveiled a plan to make permanent a temporary $2.00/hour wage increase for Direct Care Workers, currently set to expire on Feb. 28.

Residential and vocational Direct Care Workers provide much-needed personal care, training, emotional support and respite to vulnerable people and their families.

“The Governor understands well what we’ve been saying for many months now—when this increase ultimately expires, our state’s historically-underpaid Direct Care Workers are going to take a huge financial hit,” said Sherri Boyd, executive director of The Arc—Michigan.

“The 100,000-plus families that rely on these workers for daily care will be left facing a critical gap in staffing and support if this temporary increase goes away four weeks from now, as it’s currently set to do.”

A strong coalition of organizations has come together to support the need for permanent changes to the way Michigan’s Direct Care Workers are supported.

Anita Cameron: A Renewed Call for Black Folks: Join Us!

By Anita Cameron: For Complete Post, Click Here…

Some years ago, I wrote why Black folks should join the movement against physician assisted suicide. I spoke of racial disparities in healthcare, the tendency for us to be poor and our lives devalued and the efforts of Compassion and Choices to convince us that we’re being deprived of a basic right.

I spoke about why many Black folks feel that this is a privileged white folks issue that shouldn’t concern us because that isn’t our culture. Many of us are fighting against systemic racism, white supremacy and police violence and don’t have the energy to devote to something they feel doesn’t affect our community.

But, that was before COVID-19. Now we see that it is ravaging communities of color, particularly Black, Indigenous and Latine communities. We’re witnessing and hearing stories of rampant medical discrimination against disabled people and Blacks, in particular.

By now, many of us have heard Michael Hickson’s story. He was the 46 year old Black disabled Texas man who was refused treatment for COVID-19 due to disability, placed in hospice and allowed to die. 

Dr. Susan Moore, a doctor in Indiana, contracted COVID-19 and suffered racist treatment while in the hospital. She made a video describing her treatment. She later died.

They are just the tip of the iceberg. There are many, many more Dr. Moores and Michael Hicksons. What does this have to do with doctor assisted suicide?

Updated: 25 Common Nursing Home Problems—How to Resolve Them

From Justice in Againg: For Complete Post, Click Here…

USING THIS GUIDE

Beware: these 25 problems occur across the country. They happen in cities, suburbs, and rural
communities. They also happen both in “good” and “bad” nursing homes. Even the better nursing
homes tend to follow standard procedures that violate federal law and harm residents.

The best way to receive high quality care is to settle for nothing else, each and every day. This
guide gives you the tools to do exactly that.

This guide is an updated and expanded version of 20 Common Nursing Home Problems – and
How to Resolve Them, which was written with financial support from the Commonwealth Fund. This
revision, like the original edition, introduces each common problem by identifying a false statement
commonly made by nursing home staff, along with a clear statement of the relevant law.

This new edition addresses additional problems, discusses issues in more detail, and includes
recent revisions to federal regulations and guidance.

This edition emphasizes strategies to prevent evictions, as described in the discussion of Problems #7 through #14.

Whether you are a nursing home resident, a family member, or a supportive friend, this guide
gives you the tools you need to identify and then resolve the problems that residents most
frequently face. Your determined advocacy can be the difference between going-through-the- motions, nursing, home care, and the high quality, person-centered care that residents are promised
by federal law.

Webinar: Judges Are Locking Up Children for Noncriminal Offenses Like Repeatedly Disobeying Their Parents and Skipping School

From Propublica: For Complete Post, Click Here…

Last summer, ProPublica, the Detroit Free Press and Bridge Michigan co-published the story of Grace (her middle name, used to protect her identity), a 15-year-old girl who had been sent to a detention center in suburban Detroit. Her offense: failing to complete online schoolwork.

Our reporting spurred calls from politicians for her release and a #FreeGrace social media campaign. Less than three weeks after we broke news of the case, the Michigan Court of Appeals ordered her release.

But there was more to the story. A recent ProPublica analysis of Michigan’s juvenile justice system found that judges routinely lock children up for noncriminal offenses like disobeying their parents or skipping school. Please join us for a live virtual event:

The Flawed Juvenile Justice System That Sparked a National Outrage
Thursday, Feb. 4 | 7 – 8:30 p.m. EST
Register Here

2020 FULL YEAR REPORT: ADA DIGITAL ACCESSIBILITY LAWSUITS Websites, Mobile, Apps, Video

From Usablenet: For Complete Post, Click Here…

The UsableNet research team monitors and documents all digital accessibility related lawsuits
where a website, mobile app or video content is the subject of a claim in federal court under the ADA
or in California state court under the Unruh Act.

The following report outlines key trends found during 2020 in these types of cases. Data and
Images can be shared when referencing UsableNet as a source and linking to our website.

YEARLY TREND OF ADA RELATED DIGITAL LAWSUITS
23% increase in 2020.
Almost 10 lawsuits every business day.

2018 2314 cases
2019 2890 cases
2020 3550 cases
ADA related cases in 2020 increased 23% over 2019.


This includes cases filed in federal court and those filed in California state court under the Unruh Act
with a direct reference to violation of the ADA.

Disabled Americans Are Losing a Lifeline

By Jonathan Stein and David Weaver: For Complete Post, Click Here…

Biden can help.

At a time when the pandemic has hit the disabled and elderly the hardest, they also face the erosion of a critical income lifeline, Supplemental Security Income (S.S.I.). The program has collapsed during the pandemic: From July to November 2020, the Social Security Administration awarded benefits to about 100,000 fewer individuals compared with the same period in 2019. In July 2020 the agency distributed just 38,318 new awards — the fewest in 20 years of available data.

At this rate, more than 230,000 low-income disabled and elderly Americans will miss out on vital cash benefits and access to health care (via Medicaid, which S.S.I. recipients generally qualify for) in one year.

President-elect Joe Biden has proposed a number of policies to improve the lives of the impoverished and disabled. Notably, he would raise, for the first time in the half-century of the program, its payments to meet the poverty level in the United States. But he won’t be able to successfully implement them without addressing challenges that the pandemic and the Social Security Administration’s recent policy priorities have presented in recent months.

The immediate cause of this ongoing crisis is the closure of Social Security’s network of 1,200 field offices during the Covid-19 pandemic. Generally, the agency does not take online applications for S.S.I. benefits, leaving these disabled and elderly people with one primary service option: calling its overburdened general phone line. Further, the field offices were a source of information and assistance for millions of Americans, many challenged by cognitive, learning, language and poverty-related issues. More than 43 million individuals visited field offices in 2019. In short, it is now much more difficult for eligible disabled and elderly people to get the assistance they need to obtain S.S.I. payments, which average around $560 a month.

165. Ten things to know about pressure ulcers

From The Nursing Home Abuse Podcast: For Complete Post, Click Here…

Pressure ulcers are a common killer in nursing homes. Causing infection and disease, these injuries are a painful scourge that needs to be reduced and eliminated.

In this week’s episode, we talk about the top ten things that you might not know about pressure ulcers.

Executive Director, National Council on Independent Living (Washington, DC)

From NCIL: For Complete Post, Click Here…

The National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) is currently seeking an Executive Director to succeed Kelly Buckland upon his retirement in May of 2021. NCIL encourages all qualified applicants to apply for this exciting opportunity to lead one of the nation’s premiere organizations for disability rights and independent living.

COVID Bill Could Finally Fix Wage Discrimination for People With Disabilities

By Scott Bixby: For Complete Post, Click Here…

“It is well past time to ensure all American employees with disabilities are protected from discriminatory pay policies,” said National Council on Disability’s Andrés Gallegos.

President Joe Biden has framed his pandemic “rescue plan” as critical to addressing the enormous public health and economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but disability advocates hope that one provision in the legislation will finally solve a problem they have fought since far before the crisis.

Buried within the mammoth plan, set to be introduced in Congress this week, is the elimination of a little-known provision in labor law that allows some employers to pay employees with disabilities less than the minimum wage—sometimes pennies on the dollar. Advocates say that with its inclusion in Biden’s pandemic relief plan, the carveout, which dates back to the 1930s, may soon be history. But as both Republican and Democratic members of Congress voice growing sticker shock over the bill’s $1.9 trillion price tag, some fear that their best chance to end the practice could be thwarted.

“If we’re going to make any advancement in civil rights for disabled people, abolishing the sub-minimum wage would be a tremendous step,” said Jaipreet Virdi, a historian of medicine, technology, and disability at the University of Delaware. (There is disagreement among advocates about the use of the identity-first term “disabled people” versus the person-first “people with disabilities,” although the latter is more commonly used). “It would eliminate the notion of disabled people being less valuable or less productive than their able-bodied counterparts—it would mean companies could no longer legally exploit their disabled workers and allow disabled people to achieve their full potential.”

“The minimum wage should apply to all of us,” said Ari Ne’eman, a senior research associate with the Harvard Law School Project on Disability, “including people with disabilities.”

Registration: Behavior is Communication

From MAF: For Complete Post, Click Here…

This webinar meets 2 times.

  1. Fri, Feb 12, 2021 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST
  2. Fri, Feb 19, 2021 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST

Show in My Time Zone

Join Michigan Alliance for Families for a two part “Behavior is Communication” virtual workshop with Dr. Sally Burton-Hoyle, Ed.D; Professor, ASD Area, Department of Special Education, College Supports Program Faculty Advisor. . Part 1- Friday, February 12 1pm-2pm Part 2- Friday, February 19 1pm-2pm A child’s problematic or inappropriate behavior is a sign that something is not right. The child needs support, not punishment. This workshop will help you determine what the child is saying with their behavior and how to substitute a more acceptable way to communicate that message. If you need an accommodation to attend this event, please send your request to info@michiganallianceforfamilies.org two weeks prior to the event.