TO: NDSC Members and Affiliated Parent Groups
FROM: Susan Goodman, Director, Governmental Affairs
DATE: June 30, 2006

Supreme Court Deals Another Blow to Families

The U.S. Supreme Court has dealt another setback to parents in a ruling issued on Monday, June 26, 2006. This ruling stated that parents who are prevailing parties in a lawsuit against the school district cannot recover fees for services by experts. The name of the case is Arlington Central School District Bd of Education v. Pearl Murphy, et. al.

The parents won their lawsuit against the school district requesting reimbursement for private school tuition for their son. The school district appealed the award of $28 thousand dollars in expert fees to the Supreme Court. Judge Alito wrote the majority opinion denying the award of expert fees. To read more about the ruling, go to www.wrightslaw.com and click on Breaking News.

Citizenship Requirements For Medicaid Will Hurt Some Adults With Disabilities

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 reduces spending on Medicaid services by 4.7 billion in the years 2006-2010, mainly through provisions that make some individuals with disabilities ineligible to receive Medicaid, or limit benefits that are available to them. The law also allows states to impose cost-sharing requirements and requires documentation of citizenship for Medicaid beneficiaries (e.g., birth certificate, passport). This has important implications for individuals with disabilities because many children's services and most funding for adult services such as community living support services that enable individuals to live independently are funded by Medicaid.

A class-action lawsuit was filed Wednesday over the new provision in the law requiring Medicaid beneficiaries and applicants to provide proof of citizenship to receive benefits beginning July 1, 2006. Advocates fear that many Medicaid beneficiaries will be denied and others will become ineligible because documentation of citizenship, such as a birth certificate cannot be found.

Hold the Date
A National Teleconference on Medicaid Documentation Requirements sponsored by the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities in Washington, D.C. will be held on JULY 13th, 2006 from 2:00 - 3:00 pm EDT. A national expert will be speaking on the issue and there will be an opportunity to ask questions.

More information on the call will be available next week. The call is free and no reservation is needed. We will pass the information along as it becomes available.

The Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation
Parent Public Policy Fellowship Program 2007

The Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation is seeking parents of persons with mental retardation, intellectual and developmental disabilities for an intensive one-year Public Policy Fellowship in Washington, D.C. During this one year Fellowship, the successful applicant will learn how legislation is initiated, developed, and passed by the Congress, or how programs are administered and regulations promulgated by federal agencies.

Each year the Foundation brings a parent or close family member of a person with a disability to Washington for a full year, where they actively participate in public policy development through work on the staff of a congressional committee, or a federal agency. Former Parent Fellows describe the Fellowship as a major turning point in their lives. The coming year offers exciting opportunities to be involved in policy and legislative development in key areas such as special education, health and mental health care for persons with mental retardation, child care, housing, justice, child welfare and other areas related to improving the quality of life for individuals with mental retardation/intellectual disabilities.

Since its founding in 1946, the Foundation has supported the creation of practical programs to benefit persons with mental retardation, their families and their communities. The Foundation has always worked with national leaders who understand the realities of government. The need for skilled leadership in government and public policy has never been greater. In response to this need, the Foundation initiated the Public Policy Fellowship Program in 1980. Fellows receive first-hand knowledge and experience in the development of public policy and the opportunity to participate in an advocacy training workshop, national disability policy seminars the intensive week-long Bioethics course at Georgetown University's Kennedy Institute of Ethics.

We seek parents or other family members with outstanding experience in:

1. State-level advocacy for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families, beyond the level of advocacy to benefit solely the candidate's own child;
2. vocational rehabilitation, education, child care, child welfare, law, employment, community organizing, housing or development of inclusive community supports and services;
3. health or mental health care for people with mental retardation; or
4. development of family training or family support services.