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Disability Week of Action

2025-04-20T21:39:20+00:00April 20, 2025|Advocacy Updates|

Orange County Rally to Save Medicaid! Right now, there’s a lot of talk in Congress about cutting Medicaid (which is called MediCal in California) —and that could hit people with developmental disabilities especially hard. If Medicaid gets cut, people with developmental disabilities could lose access to the healthcare they depend on every single day. We're talking about things like doctor visits, medications, therapy, and even basic preventive care. Without Medicaid, ...

California’s Master Plan for Developmental Services

2025-04-20T21:18:31+00:00April 20, 2025|Advocacy Updates|

California released a comprehensive plan last month aimed at reducing service barriers and enhancing support in employment, education, transportation, and health for individuals with developmental disabilities. The Master Plan is all about making life better and more independent for people with developmental disabilities in California. It aims to improve access to services like housing, healthcare, education, and jobs — and make those services more person-centered and easier to navigate. It ...

New Rate Model Launched in January with Mixed Results

2025-04-20T21:11:17+00:00April 20, 2025|Advocacy Updates|

Beginning in 2022, the state of California started implementing a new rate reform plan for developmental disability service providers, rolling it out in phases. The new reform system is essentially a guide that tells the state how much to pay disability service providers for the work they do. The rate reform plan was designed to gradually increase what the state pays disability service providers, which is great in theory because ...

AAPD and Disability Advocates Sue Social Security Administration and DOGE

2025-04-20T21:06:31+00:00April 20, 2025|Advocacy Updates|

If you’ve been hearing about budget cuts happening in the Social Security Administration and feeling worried, take a deep breath—advocates are stepping up to protect your rights. Groups like AAPD and Justice in Aging are fighting back because they know how critical these services are for people with  disabilities and their families. The goal of the lawsuit is to make sure the Social Security system stays accessible, fair, and fully ...

Keeping the Promise

2025-03-13T10:45:00+00:00March 5, 2020|Advocacy Updates|

Help Save Critical Services for Californians with Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities by signing this petition / letter to Governor Newsom: Dear Governor Newsom; I am a Californian who truly cares about the wellbeing of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  Which is why it’s unacceptable that Californians with intellectual and developmental disabilities are losing their services, families are struggling, direct support staff are leaving because of low wages and service ...

ADA Anniversary

2025-03-13T10:39:03+00:00July 26, 2018|Advocacy Updates, From Deb's Desk|

Today is the 28th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) - please join us in keeping the spirit of the law alive by advocating for the ABLE Age Adjustment Act (S.817/HR 1874)! The Ask: Today, ask your Members of Congress to support this legislation by: Emailing them directly. Calling their Washington, D.C. offices. The Details: In 2014 Congress passed the ABLE Act, which authorized the creation of savings ...

Health Matters: Workforce diversity includes people with disabilities

2025-03-13T10:26:48+00:00October 28, 2016|Advocacy Updates, In the News|

For 20 years, Marcell Bassett has worked a full-time job in the Recovery Department at IKEA in Orange County.  IKEA, the world’s largest home furnishing company, was founded more than 60 years ago in Sweden. It may not seem remarkable to hold a job for two decades; however, for a person with a disability, it is quite an accomplishment for both the employer and the employee. To encourage employers to ...

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