Declaration for Independence

A Call to Transform Health and Long Term Services for Seniors and People with Disabilities



Technology and Medicare: Congress Passes, Obama Signs Steve Gleason Act

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Posted Aug. 4, 2015 | On July 30, the president signed the Steve Gleason Act (S. 984) into law, a bill to amend Title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide Medicare beneficiaries access to eye tracking accessories for speech generating devices and to remove the rental cap for durable medical equipment under the Medicare Program [...]

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Employment: Labor Secretary Perez, Govs. Markell and Daugaard Promote Employment First

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Posted Aug. 6, 2015 | U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Tom Perez is partnering with governors across the political spectrum to urge their peers and state governments to adopt Employment First policy. Secretary Perez, Governor Jack Markell (D-DE) and Governor Dennis Daugaard (R-SD) penned a letter encouraging all states to focus on the alignment of policies, [...]

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New House rule creates uncertainty for Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund

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Posted Jan. 13, 2015 | Last week, the House of Representatives adopted a sweeping rules package for the 114th Congress including a provision that would stop House lawmakers  from transferring money from Social Security’s Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund to the program’s Disability Insurance (DI) Trust Fund unless lawmakers took steps to “improve the actuarial [...]

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Say Hello to “Declarations”!

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Posted Dec. 30, 2014 | Declarations, our new Blog, is live at http://www.declarationforindependence.org/blog. We’ve retooled the blog from the ground up to feature fresh, monthly content directly from the NAB and other leaders in the Independent Living movement. On the blog this month is NAB member and AAPD President and CEO Mark Perriello sharing the five reasons [...]

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Congress gives final approval to ABLE Act

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Posted Dec. 16, 2014 | Congress gave final approval to the most sweeping legislation in support of Americans with disabilities in a quarter century, allowing these individuals and their families to open tax-free bank accounts to pay for long-term needs, such as education, housing, transportation and health care. The move paves the way for creation [...]

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House passes ABLE Act

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Posted Dec. 4, 2014 | The House passed the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act, by a vote of 404 to 17, yesterday evening that would establish tax-exempt savings accounts for individuals born with disabilities. The broadly supported bipartisan bill, which is expected to pass in the Senate, exempts savings, up to certain levels, [...]

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Medicaid Expansion after the Midterms

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Medicaid Expansion after the Midterms: State Stances Unlikely to Change, or New Room for Compromise between the Administration, GOP Governors? Posted Dec. 2, 2014 | Following a strong Republican showing at the midterm elections and in many gubernatorial races, commentators and experts alike have suggested the states’ stances on Medicaid expansion are firm and unlikely [...]

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HUD Issues Draft Regulation on Reforms to Section 202, 811 Programs

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Posted Nov. 20, 2014 | The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on supportive housing and services for older adults and individuals with disabilities. This draft regulation proposes to implement certain reforms to HUD’s Section 202 and Section 811 programs made by statutory changes to the programs in [...]

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