1. Announcements
Family Support Services Committee
Tuesday, November 12, 2013, 10:00 am – noon
YAI, 460 West 34th Street, 11th floor
Information: Amy Bittinger (718) 859-5420 x 234; Abittinger@ucpnyc.org
Transition Committee
Wednesday, November 13, 2013, 9:30 am – noon
Metro DDRO, 75 Morton Street, 1st floor conference room
Information: Kathy Kelly (212) 780-2724; Kathy.kelly@ahrcnyc.org
DD Council
Thursday, November 14, 2013, 9:30 am
FEGS, 315 Hudson Street, 9th floor
Information: Marco Damiani (212) 273-6188; Marco.damiani@yai.org
Legislative Committee
To Be Announced
Information: Jim Malley (212) 928-5810 x 101; Jmalley@esperanzacenter.net
Children’s Committee
To Be Announced
Information: Christina Muccioli (212) 780-2532; Christina.muccioli@ahrcnyc.org
Service Coordination Committee
Tuesday, November 5, 2013, 2:30-4:00 pm
Liz Cambra, Deputy Director, Region 4 DDRO, on the Front Door
UCP/NYC, 80 Maiden Lane, 2nd floor
Information: Carol Lincoln (718) 859-5420 x 225; Clincoln@ucpnyc.org
OPWDD Statewide People First Waiver and Transformation Agreement Videoconference
Monday, November 18, 2013, 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Metro NY DDRO, 75 Morton Street, 1st floor Activities Center
R.S.V.P. Required to Nancy.Rodriguez@opwdd.ny.gov
Powerpoint will be posted on OPWDD website Nov. 17; video of presentation will be posted after Nov. 18
OPWDD 5.07 Plan Hearing on Transformation Agreement
Friday, November 22, 2013, 9:30 am – 1:00 pm
Metro NY DDRO, 75 Morton Street
Registration required on web (not yet posted)
2. Update on Important Issues
Governor Cuomo signed into law Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg’s “restoration” bill, discussed at our September meeting. The bill does not provide new money. It simply forgives the debt if OPWDD is not able to realize the full $90 million in savings that is required in the current state budget.
NYS Division of the Budget issued instructions to state agencies, including OPWDD, that they must submit a budget request with zero growth. The exceptions are the Department of Education and Medicaid, which will be capped at 4% growth. We will need strong advocacy to make clear that it is not sufficient for OPWDD to take no cuts; instead, we need increased funding to support the new people coming in to the system each year; aging people with increased needs; people with developmental disabilities who are living longer; the Transformation Agenda, including the cost of infrastructure for the new People First waiver; and Olmstead obligations.
OPWDD is trying to resolve delays getting people through the Front Door. OPWDD wants to be alerted if there are particularly difficult problems. Manhattan has added staff to the Front Door in order to decrease processing time.
On October 1, OPWDD submitted a draft plan to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to increase competitive employment of people with developmental disabilities. CMS and OPWDD have agreed to employment quotas: 700 additional people must be employed by March 31, 2014. Employment must be in an integrated setting, at least at minimum wage; no minimum number of hours/week is required. The employment plan is available on the OPWDD web.
In September, OPWDD held a series of “dialogues” on employment and “meaningful community activities. OPWDD released a summary of stakeholder feedback.
• One huge theme was families’ distress over the eventual closing of workshops due to Olmstead requirements that people with disabilities work together with nondisabled people. OPWDD stopped workshop admissions in July and is planning to transition workshop participants to other types of work and also to transform workshops into businesses that are integrated. Parents testified that their adult children love the workshops, find the work meaningful, it is their social outlet, and they have done it for years. Parents believe other options will fall short. They worry about the emotional and psychological stress that could accompany this change. Parents, as well as some self-advocates, also expressed the need for individuals to have real choice of where they want to work, and they pointed out that workshops might be the most integrated setting for some individuals.
• Some parents expressed concern about the lack of a safety net if employment fails.
• Concerns were raised over whether state and federal expectations regarding transition to competitive employment are realistic, especially given the still high unemployment rate.
• Some people pointed out that not everyone is able to work, due to cognitive, medical, behavioral, or aging issues.
• Self-advocates regard the lack of transportation as an obstacle to employment.
• Several people suggested that incentives be created for businesses to hire people with developmental disabilities.
• Many promoted Consolidated Supports and Services as a viable path to employment.
The Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs (JC) opened July 1, 2013. With jurisdiction over OPWDD, OMH, OASAS, OCFS, DOH, SED, Its mission is “to protect people with special needs from abuse, neglect, and mistreatment by ensuring that state programs serving them maintain the highest standards of health, safety, and dignity.” If you see or suspect abuse or neglect, call the Vulnerable Persons Central Register: 1-855-373-2122. Staff and mandated reporters are required to call in any incident of abuse or neglect they witness. The JC also is creating a Staff Exclusion List (SEL) which will contain the names of individuals found responsible for serious or repeated acts of abuse and neglect. Individuals on the SEL are prohibited from being hired by most state operated, certified or licensed agencies or providers that serve people with special needs. All job applicants for positions that involve unsupervised contact with people with special needs must be checked against the SEL list and then must be fingerprinted and checked with the Child Abuse Registry. There is a backlog now at the JC but they have hired more people. Information is available at www.justicecenter.ny.gov.
3. Speaker: Richard Cohen, Psychologist, Chief of Mental Health Services, YAI Premier HealthCare, on Anger Management
We were fortunate that Richard Cohen was able to present this important topic in the absence of our scheduled speaker, Grazyna Kusmierska, who became ill the night before the meeting. Richard used Grazyna’s powerpoint, which is attached, and illustrated the points with powerful anecdotes. Please see the powerpoint for more information.
Attachments: Sign-in sheets, PPT Anger Mgmt, Attachments fssac Oct 13