The National Advisory Board advocates for the rights of older adults and people with disablities to live healthy, independent lives at home.
LATEST UPDATE
This week: The nation is still reeling from Pro-Trump rioters breaching the U.S Capitol on Wednesday AND states consider how they will be dispensing the COVID-19 Vaccine PLUS National ADAPT says goodbye to Spitfire Sable in What We’re Reading.
Happy New Year! This week we welcome in 2021, we review some of the best blogs and top 10 disabitly events of 2020 and aging in the media PLUS Disability in Australia and we recognize the passing of Dick Thornburgh in What We’re Reading
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/01/13/disabled-coronavirus-vaccine-states/
People with disabilities desperately need the vaccine. But states disagree on when they’ll get it.
www.washingtonpost.com
Tens of thousands of Americans with intellectual and developmental disabilities are 2 to 3 times more likely to die from covid-19. Their parents, guardians and caregivers are struggling to get them vaccinated.The end of an era . They were the The Daily Show before the Daily Show.
Comedy Group Capitol Steps To Shut Down After Four Decades | DCist dcist.com/story/21/01/13/comedy-group-capitol-steps-shut-down-pandemic/
Comedy Group Capitol Steps To Shut Down After Four Decades | DCist
dcist.com
This year marks 39 years since the comedy group's first performance at an office holiday party.www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/what-bidens-pick-for-ed-secretary-discussed-with-disability-righ...
What Biden's Pick for Ed. Secretary Discussed With Disability Rights Advocates
www.edweek.org
Advocates for students with disabilities want Biden to address discipline and the effects of COVID-19 on special education.This week: The nation is still reeling from Pro-Trump rioters breaching the U.S Capitol on Wednesday AND states consider how they will be dispensing the COVID-19 Vaccine PLUS National ADAPT says goodbye to Spitfire Sable in What We’re Reading. declarationforindependence.org/what-were-reading-january-11-2021/
What We’re Reading: January 11, 2021 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
This week: The nation is still reeling from Pro-Trump rioters breaching the U.S Capitol on Wednesday AND states consider how they will be dispensing the COVID-19 Vaccine PLUS National ADAPT says goodbye to Spitfire Sable in What We’re Reading.www.theguardian.com/media/2021/jan/03/lived-experience-finally-a-disability-reporter-who-has-a-di...
'Lived experience': finally, a disability reporter who has a disability
www.theguardian.com
Nas Campanella says her blindness brings empathy to the job. The ABC hopes its diversity push makes the stories better toowww.baltimoresun.com/opinion/columnists/zurawik/bs-ed-zontv-elizabeth-jackson-pbs-20201231-rp2wtt...
Why American TV doesn’t like death and aging | COMMENTARY
www.baltimoresun.com
This is what dementia can sometimes look like ― no prime-time, American TV whitewashing here. And that level of truth, as unpleasant as it can be, makes “Elizabeth Is Missing” that much deeper and rewarding a TV experience in this horrible age of plague.www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aarp-bulletin-details-how-older-americans-can-help-defeat-covid-...
AARP Bulletin Details How Older Americans Can Help Defeat COVID
www.prnewswire.com
/PRNewswire/ -- With permission granted in late December to start deploying two coronavirus vaccines, the arrival of 2021 should mark the beginning of the end...www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/australia-amends-national-anthem-acknowledge-indigenous-history
Australia Amends National Anthem to Acknowledge Indigenous History
www.voanews.com
More than 140 years after it was first composed, Australia's national anthem is being changed in a move the government says reflects a "spirit of unity." There have been calls for Advance Australia Fair to better reflect the long history of Indigenous peoples. Australia shared a national anthem, God...ctmirror.org/2021/01/05/inmates-and-homeless-should-be-included-in-next-covid-vaccination-phase-a...
Inmates and homeless should be included in next COVID vaccination phase, advisory group recommends
ctmirror.org
Inmates and others in congregate settings such as homeless shelters, group homes and psychiatric facilities should be included in the next wave of those eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine, members of an advisory subcommittee recommended Tuesday.www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/01/social-depression-america-failed-its-elderly/617496/
www.theatlantic.com
Isolation has taken a tremendous emotional toll on many older Americans.www.nytimes.com/2020/12/31/health/vaccine-distribution-delays.html
Here’s Why Distribution of the Vaccine Is Taking Longer Than Expected
www.nytimes.com
Health officials and hospitals are struggling with a lack of resources. Holiday staffing and saving doses for nursing homes are also contributing to delays.Happy New Year! This week we welcome in 2021, we review some of the best blogs and Top 10 Disability events of 2020 and aging in the media PLUS Disability in Australia and we recognize the passing of Dick Thornburgh declarationforindependence.org/what-were-reading-january-4-2021/
What We’re Reading: January 4, 2021 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
Happy New Year! This week we welcome in 2021, we review some of the best blogs and top 10 disabitly events of 2020 and aging in the media PLUS Disability in Australia and we recognize the passing of Dick Thornburgh in What We're ReadingIt is with profound sorrow that the National Advisory Board (NAB) on Improving Health Care Services for Older Adults and People with Disabilities recognizes the passing of Richard “Dick” Thornburgh. A giant in his field, he served as the 41st governor of Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1987, and then as the U.S. Attorney General from 1988 to 1991. As the Attorney General under George H.W Bush, Governor Thornburgh was part of the executive Branch professionals that helped to usher in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and ensure that the landmark legislation would stand as a touchstone for civil rights.
declarationforindependence.org/nab-statement-on-the-passing-of-richard-thornburgh-former-governor...
declarationforindependence.org
It is with a profound sorrow that the National Advisory Board (NAB) on Improving Health Care Services for Older Adults and People with Disabilities recognizes the passing of Richard “Dick” Thornburgh.www.salon.com/2020/12/27/on-screen-and-on-stage-disability-continues-to-be-depicted-in-outdated-c...
On screen and on stage, disability continues to be depicted in outdated, cliched ways
www.salon.com
Writers should reimagine roles for characters with disabilities, who have been limited to four tropes for yearswww.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/government-proposes-to-set-up-university-of-disability-studies-a...
Government proposes to set up University of Disability Studies and Rehabilitation Sciences
www.tribuneindia.com
Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities has invited comments from stakeholders on a draft bill to set up the university The government has proposed to set up a "first of its kind" university covering the entire gamut of disability studies and rehabilitation sciences in an accessible e...Are you reflecting on 2020? Take a tour of our blogs of 2020 and see what our talented contributors had us thinking about during a year that we will not soon forget! Happy New Year declarationforindependence.org/2020-blog-round-up/
www.nytimes.com/2020/12/25/health/covid-vaccine-polio.html
Vaccine Memories of Another Time and Place
www.nytimes.com
Many older Americans, shut in during this year’s pandemic, share haunting recollections from the polio era of their childhood.Got some extra time as we countdown to the New Year? Take a tour of our blogs of 2020 and see what our talented contributors had us thinking about during a year that we will not soon forget! declarationforindependence.org/2020-blog-round-up/
2020 Blog Round-Up - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
Got some extra time as we countdown to the New Year? Take a tour of our blogs of 2020 and see what our talented contributors had us thinking about during a year that we will not soon forget!www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/25/world/covid-updates-coronavirus
Dreading the Next ‘Code Blue’ as California Hospitals Fill to Overflowing
www.nytimes.com
New England governors appeal for caution over the holidays. The U.S. will require all airline passengers arriving from Britain to test negative for the coronavirus.www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2020/covid-vaccine-experience.html
Older Adults Share Their COVID-19 Vaccine Stories
www.aarp.org
Here are first-hand accounts of what it's like to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, from older health care workers among the first to receive vaccinations.www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/12/24/covid-vaccine-eligibility-how-when-americans-notifi...
How will you be told when it's your turn for a COVID-19 vaccine? It's complicated
www.usatoday.com
Informing people that they're eligible to receive their COVID-19 vaccine won't be a clear system as supplies remain limited and rollout expands.www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/12/23/covid-vaccine-priority-congress/
Politicians get vaccinated early to build public trust, while furious health workers wait
www.washingtonpost.com
Disputes about vaccine distribution have been playing out nationwide in the week-and-a-half since officials began distributing the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine following emergency authorization.This week: We count down to New Year 2021, Hear what is it like to get the COVID-19 Vaccine and how you’ll know when it’s your turn AND Disability in Film PLUS Reflections on another time when vaccines were important in What We’re Reading!
declarationforindependence.org/what-were-reading-december-28-2020/
What We’re Reading: December 28, 2020 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
This week: We count down to New Year 2021, Hear what is it like to get the COVID-19 Vaccine and how you’ll know when it’s your turn AND Disability in Film PLUS Reflections on another time when vaccines were important in What We’re Reading!www.npr.org/2020/12/21/948697808/oregon-hospitals-told-not-to-withhold-care-because-of-a-persons-...
Oregon Hospitals Told Not To Withhold Care Because Of A Person's Disability
www.npr.org
During a pandemic, doctors make hard choices about who gets care. Federal law says they can't rule out someone based on disability or age. But some worry the decisions are made behind closed doors.Protecting the elders and traditions of Navajo Nation as deaths spike from Covid-19 - CNN
apple.news/AI9s77FElRSudL2liouI5ow
Protecting the elders and traditions of Navajo Nation as deaths spike from Covid-19 — CNN
apple.news
Native Americans have one of the highest Covid-19 death tolls in the nation. Tribes have experienced detrimental loss, especially with the deaths of their elders, who are some of the last knowledge and language keepers. Go There follows three generations within one Navajo family as they work to pres...www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/20/the-guardian-view-on-disability-rights-a-deficit-of...
The Guardian view on disability rights: a deficit of attention | Editorial
www.theguardian.com
Editorial: Twenty-five years after discrimination was outlawed, progress towards inclusion and equality has gone into reversewww.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/12/18/covid-vaccine-racial-equity/
Covid-19 is devastating communities of color. Can vaccines counter racial inequity?
www.washingtonpost.com
Public health officials are endeavoring to make sure inoculation against a virus that has ravaged communities of color — killing 1 in 1,000 Black Americans by the fall — gets to the people at greatest risk.www.cnbc.com/2020/12/18/cvs-health-walgreens-start-providing-covid-vaccines-at-thousands-of-hard-...
CVS Health, Walgreens start to provide Covid vaccines at thousands of hard-hit nursing homes
www.cnbc.com
Nursing home and assisted living facility residents are among the first to get the shots because they have been particularly hard-hit by the coronavirus.This week: Everything you didn’t know about Helen Keller, Can the COVID-19 vaccine can counter health disparities in communities of color, and how do we continue to support kids with disabilities all in What We’re Reading! declarationforindependence.org/what-were-reading-december-21-2020/
What We’re Reading: December 21, 2020 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
This week: Everything you didn’t know about Helen Keller, Can the COVID-19 vaccine can counter health disparties in communities of color, and how do we continue to support kids with disabilities all in What We’re Reading!www.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/well/live/covid-vaccine-questions.html
Answers to Your Questions About the New Covid Vaccines in the U.S.
www.nytimes.com
Vaccines are rolling out to health workers now and will reach the arms of the rest of us by spring. Here’s what you need to know.Direct support professionals, like the people with disabilities they support, face a high risk of infection during the coronavirus pandemic. They also face financial hardship, exhaustion, and challenges in supporting their families.
The Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, in partnership with the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals, is conducting a survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on direct support professionals. After more than eight months since a national emergency was declared, we want to know how DSPs are doing and identify the most effective ways to protect DSPs and the people they support.
If you are a direct service professions, please consider filling out this survey or sharing it with other direct support professionals in your network. You may find the survey at umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dmnJGZGYArpMrwp
The answers you provide will be anonymous If you previously took this survey back in April or May 2020, please help by completing it again. It will help to see how these issues have changed over time.
. National and state-specific results from the survey will be shared widely in March 2021.
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals Survey
umn.qualtrics.com
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals Surveywww.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/health/coronavirus-vaccine-elderly.html
The Next Vaccine Challenge: Reassuring Older Americans
www.nytimes.com
The two leading coronavirus vaccines seemed to work well in elderly trial volunteers. “I just can’t understand why people are afraid,” one 95-year-old said.Direct support professionals, like the people with disabilities they support, face a high risk of infection during the coronavirus pandemic. They also face financial hardship, exhaustion, and challenges in supporting their families.
The Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, in partnership with the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals, is conducting a survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on direct support professionals. After more than eight months since a national emergency was declared, we want to know how DSPs are doing and identify the most effective ways to protect DSPs and the people they support.
If you are a direct service professions, please consider filling out this survey or sharing it with other direct support professionals in your network. You may find the survey at umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dmnJGZGYArpMrwp
The answers you provide will be anonymous If you previously took this survey back in April or May 2020, please help by completing it again. It will help to see how these issues have changed over time.
. National and state-specific results from the survey will be shared widely in March 2021.
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals Survey
umn.qualtrics.com
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals SurveyWe are heading into peak holiday season, but it might not feel as festive with COVID as a possible unwanted houseguest. In this week's blog we give you some ideas of how to celebrate and stay safe during the pandemic.
declarationforindependence.org/holiday-celebrations-with-an-uninvited-house-guest-covid-19/
Holiday Celebrations with an Uninvited House Guest: COVID-19 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
The winter holidays are here and while we are all looking to some much needed rest, how will we celebrate and stay safe during the pandemic? This week we offer you some ideas to keep festive and stay healthy and safe!www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-55288656
Covid and disability: 'I've lost two stone because I can't get food'
www.bbc.com
Caroline Gould says people with disabilities in rural areas have been given little consideration during the pandemic.Direct support professionals, like the people with disabilities they support, face a high risk of infection during the coronavirus pandemic. They also face financial hardship, exhaustion, and challenges in supporting their families.
The Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, in partnership with the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals, is conducting a survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on direct support professionals. After more than eight months since a national emergency was declared, we want to know how DSPs are doing and identify the most effective ways to protect DSPs and the people they support.
If you are a direct service professions, please consider filling out this survey or sharing it with other direct support professionals in your network. You may find the survey at umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dmnJGZGYArpMrwp
The answers you provide will be anonymous If you previously took this survey back in April or May 2020, please help by completing it again. It will help to see how these issues have changed over time.
. National and state-specific results from the survey will be shared widely in March 2021.
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals Survey
umn.qualtrics.com
Providing Direct Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic Direct Support Professionals Surveywww.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/12/17/deb-haaland-interior-secretary-biden/?fbcli...
Biden picks Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) to be first Native American interior secretary
www.washingtonpost.com
President-elect Joe Biden has tapped Democratic Rep. Deb Haaland, a Native American congresswoman from New Mexico, to serve as interior secretary in a historic pick for a department that oversees the country's vast natural resources, including tribal lands.www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/profitable-death-trap-sequel-youth-facilities-raked-millions-while-a...
They make millions by operating youth facilities. But children allege rampant abuse.
www.nbcnews.com
Sequel Youth & Family Services collected hundreds of millions in tax dollars to care for vulnerable children, despite abuse and negligence allegations.time.com/5918660/helen-keller-disability-history/?fbclid=IwAR2mKKoGg3U89Kba1xINt7jfzO43oKhD3odEUM...
The Helen Keller You Didn't Learn About in School
time.com
Limited education on Keller's life has implications for how students perceive people with disabilitieswww.forbes.com/sites/gusalexiou/2020/12/15/accessible-and-representative-toys-key-for-development...
Accessible And Representative Toys Key For Development Of Kids With Disabilities
www.forbes.com
A lack of disability depiction in children’s toys in addition to the fact that they are rarely designed with accessibility in mind can leave kids with disabilities feeling excluded. What can retailers and designers do to give kids with disabilities equal opportunities to learn through play?This week, the COVID-19 vaccine gets the green light and makes its way out for use, Senator Tom Harkin speaks On The Future Of Disability Inclusion AND aging parents and the holidays all in What we’re Reading declarationforindependence.org/what-were-reading-december-14-2020/
What We’re Reading: December 14, 2020 - Declaration for Independence
declarationforindependence.org
This week, the COVID-19 vaccine gets the green light and makes its way out for use, Senator Tom Harkin speaks On The Future Of Disability Inclusion AND aging parents and the holidays all in What we’re Readingwww.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/11/world/covid-19-coronavirus
Covid-19: F.D.A. Clears Pfizer Vaccine and Millions of Doses Will Be Shipped Right Away
www.nytimes.com
The accelerated timeline comes after President Trump’s chief of staff threatened the F.D.A. head’s job if he didn’t get it done on Friday. The Trump Administration will buy another 100 million doses of Moderna vaccine.www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2020/12/10/covid-19-and-the-future-of-aging-housing-prospects/?sh...
Covid-19 And The Future Of Aging: Housing Prospects
www.forbes.com
The key lessons that policy makers must learn from the pandemicwww.cnn.com/2020/12/08/health/seniors-vaccine-rollout-wellness-partner/index.html
What seniors can expect when Covid-19 vaccines become available
www.cnn.com
At least two vaccines could get federal emergency use authorizations in December. Nursing home and assisted living residents will be among the first to receive inoculations. Here's a guide on how that rollout may proceed.www.tribuneindia.com/news/jalandhar/new-normal-for-disability-sector-everything-is-different-but-...
New normal for disability sector: Everything is different, but nothing has changed for them
www.tribuneindia.com
Financial constraints, immobility, transport problems mar villagers nine months after the Covid lockdown was implemented, and the members of the disability sector are yet to come out of the impact. While some have been rendered jobless, others have had their incomes hit strongly. Even as the sectorwww.theregreview.org/2020/12/08/harris-next-wave-disability-law/
The Next Wave of Disability Law | The Regulatory Review
www.theregreview.org
The future of disability antidiscrimination efforts should account for pervasive and normative biases.Your Stories
“Disability doesn’t make you exceptional, but questioning what you think you know about it does.”
-Stella Young
Join us and declare your independence!
Together we can make a difference in health – our care, supports and services, and how we access and navigate between them. Join the movement for independence, and the ability to choose our own health solutions so that we and the ones we love can age gracefully and healthfully.
Join the National Advisory Board (NAB) on Improving Health Care Services for Older Adults and People with Disabilities in its effort to modernize the health care infrastructure in America and drive long-term supports and services to the forefront of health care transformation. Declare your independence!
Sign our Declaration to give older adults and people living with disabilities the right to health independence at home.
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Declaration for Independence
Six Principles to Modernize the Health Care Infrastructure
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Enhanced Self-Care, Improved Coordination
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Encourage Community Integration and Involvement
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Expand Accessibility of Services and Supports
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Uphold Personal Preference
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Empower People to Participate in the Economic Mainstream
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Investment in Improved Technology
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to give older adults and people living with disabilities the right to health independence at home.