TO: NDSC Members and Affiliated Parent Groups
FROM: Susan Goodman, Director, Governmental Affairs
DATE: December 14, 2005

Final Medicaid Budget Vote Approaching

The fate of Medicaid funding for services for people with disabilities is not yet certain as the House and Senate staff are working to reach an agreement on a final budget reconciliation bill. After a final agreement is reached by the conferees (as yet, unnamed), the committee's recommendation will go to both the Senate and House for a vote.

Although both bills cut Medicaid benefits, the Senate bill would not result in harm to individuals with disabilities. The House bill would, however, hurt Medicaid beneficiaries with disabilities by requiring co-payments for Medicaid services, allowing states to charge premiums for coverage and allowing states to replace the current federal Medicaid benefit packages with plans equivalent to other programs offered in the state (e.g., one of the standard plans offered to federal employees).

NDSC is closely monitoring developments and will send out an alert when our voices need to be loudly heard.

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New Rules for Testing Students with Disabilities

At a press conference on December 14, 2005, U.S. Department of Education (DOE) Secretary Margaret Spellings announced the release of draft regulations for implementing provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act relating to setting standards for and assessment of students with disabilities. According to the NCLB, these regulations authorize school districts to develop "modified achievement standards" for an additional two percent of students with disabilities. Currently, the DOE allows school districts to test one percent of students with significant disabilities according to "alternate achievement standards."

These "modified achievement standards," according to DOE, allow states to "use assessments aligned with those modified standards for a group of students who can make progress toward, but may not reach, grade-level achievement standards…". "Specifically, the proposed regulation would permit States to develop modified achievement standards (and assessments that measure achievement based on those standards) that are modified in such a manner that they reflect reduced breadth or depth of grade level content."

This proposed regulation reflects the policy announced in April 2005 by the Department of Education in response to pressure from states and school districts to relax the accountability standards for students with disabilities.

We will be reviewing these proposed regulations in the upcoming weeks.

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NDSC Member Wins Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Public Policy Fellow Competition

Tonia Ferguson, mother of a four-year-old son with Down syndrome and board member of Chesapeake (MD) Down Syndrome Parent Group has been named a 2006 Kennedy Public Policy fellow. Each year, the Foundation awards fellowships to bring talented individuals to Washington to work for a staff member of Congress, a congressional committee or a federal agency.

Ms. Ferguson, an attorney, is Director of Education & Legal Advocacy for the ARC of Maryland. She participated in the NDSC Parent Group Leadership Seminar at the 2005 NDSC conference in Anaheim, California. NDSC congratulates Ms. Ferguson for this important achievement!

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Scholarship Opportunity

NDSC has received information about the following scholarship. The International Inflight Food Service Association is proud to offer the Sophia Cardoso Scholarship through the IFSA Educational Foundation.

This is an annual scholarship award, underwritten by Duty Free World, Inc., in the amount of $4,500, that provides the opportunity for students with Down syndrome to further their education. Individuals are selected to receive this award based on scholastic merit and dedication to pursuing a vocation that may be in the hospitality industry, including food service and catering. The scholarship application is due February 1, 2006 and the recipient of the scholarship will be notified by March 1, 2006. The application, along with complete details, can be found on the IFSA web site at www.ifsanet.com/ifsafoundation.html.

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If you have questions or comments about the Newsline, please contact Susan Goodman at Susang1961@aol.com.