National Council on Disability Issues Latest Edition of NCD Bulletin

6/26/2003

From: Mark S. Quigley of the National Council on Disability, 202- 272-2004 or mquigley@ncd.gov

WASHINGTON, June 26 -- Following is the latest edition of the NCD Bulletin, a monthly publication of the National Council on Disability (NCD):

Section 508 Update:

On June 16, NCD released an excerpt on Section 508 and electronic and information technology (E&IT) from its soon-to-be-released report, "National Disability Policy: A Progress Report for December 2001-2002" (Release date July 26, 2003). Among other recommendations, NCD suggests that the 108th Congress act promptly to apply Section 508 to itself.

On June 21, 2001, the day Section 508 regulations went into effect, NCD held a news conference to highlight the release of its report, "The Accessible Future" (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/ accessiblefuture.html). One of the report's findings is that access to E&IT is a civil right and there is a need for a national accessibility policy.

Juvenile Justice:

On May 1, NCD released a research study entitled "Addressing the Needs of Youth with Disabilities in the Juvenile Justice System: The Status of Evidence-Based Research" (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/juvenile.html). The report evaluates the emerging status of key policies and programs that affect children and youth with disabilities, who have often been overlooked by service and research programs.

Among other things, NCD recommends the following: (1) Identify a range of strategies to enforce and promote compliance with federal disability law as it relates to children and youth with disabilities who are at risk of delinquency. The strategies should include those that increase effective programming for youth with disabilities in schools and in juvenile justice settings. (2) Increase funding and other resources to schools and the juvenile justice system to ensure that youth with disabilities receive appropriate services. (3) Designate a single federal entity whose sole focus is to ensure that the rights and needs of youth with disabilities entering or in the juvenile justice system are addressed. The Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and the President's Task Force on Disadvantaged Youth may be well suited to provide the direction and leadership to address this gap by helping to create a national commission focused explicitly on youth with disabilities at risk of entering or already in the juvenile justice system.

IDEA Reauthorization Update:

On June 12, Senator Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), ranking member of the HELP Committee, introduced legislation to reform and reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This bill is known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2003 (S. 1248). The House version, H.R. 1350, was passed on April 30.

International Update:

On June 12, the House of Representatives passed by unanimous consent H. Con. Res. 169, a resolution expressing the sense of Congress that the U.S. government should play a leading role in drafting a United Nations (UN) convention that affirms the rights of people with disabilities.

On June 16, the first day of the UN's ad hoc meeting on disability, NCD chairperson Lex Frieden and former NCD member John D. Kemp were guests on Voice of America's "Talk to America," a daily international call-in talk show. The show focused on the importance of a UN convention on the human rights of people with disabilities. On June 24, Frieden conducted a news conference at the UN to focus attention on such a convention.

For more information on the convention, please see NCD's Understanding the Role of an International Convention on the Human Rights of People with Disabilities: An Analysis of the Legal, Social, and Practical Implications for Policy Makers and Disability and Human Rights Advocates in the United States (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/unwhitepaper_05-23-0 2.html).

NCD's Cultural Diversity Initiative:

On June 28, NCD will conduct a forum in Washington, to develop concrete actions the Federal Government can take to improve its ability to reach and meaningfully engage people with disabilities from diverse cultures. For more information, please contact Theda Zawaiza at 202- 272-0117 or tzawaiza@ncd.gov.

MiCassa:

On May 1, the Senate introduced the Medicaid Community Attendant Services and Supports Act (MiCASSA) (S. 971), which will establish a national program of community-based attendant services and supports for people with disabilities, regardless of age or disability. This bill, which was referred to the Senate Committee on Finance, would allow the dollars to follow the person and would allow eligible individuals or their representatives to choose where they will receive services and supports. Any person who is entitled to nursing home or other institutional services will now have the choice of where and how these services are provided. Approximately two million Americans currently reside in nursing homes and other institutions.

On May 8, a companion House bill was introduced as H.R. 2032. It was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health.

-- The Bulletin, which is free of charge and available at NCD's award-winning web site (http://www.ncd.gov), brings the latest issues and news affecting people with disabilities. To subscribe or unsubscribe to the NCD listserv, send a blank e-mail to add- bulletin@list.ncd.gov or remove-bulletin@list.ncd.gov. No need to write anything in the subject line or body. To change your current e-mail address, first unsubscribe in one e-mail and then subscribe in another. Please send your editorial comments to Bulletin editor Mark S. Quigley (mquigley@ncd.gov).