July 25, 2003
Report: State Budget Cuts Hurting Disabled
JONATHAN D. SALANT
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - People with disabilities face more than architectural barriers
impeding their progress as fiscally troubled states cut Medicaid funding and the
Supreme Court rolls back the landmark Americans With Disabilities Act, a new
report by a government advisory panel says.
"Many challenges remain for our citizens who are living with disabilities and
who wish to be more independent, more productive and more engaged in their
families and communities," said Lex Frieden, chairman of the National Council on
Disability, in its annual report to be released Friday.
The council, whose 15-member board is presidentially appointed, says states'
financial troubles are forcing sharp cuts in Medicaid, the health care program
for the poor. Most of the cuts are falling on optional programs, such as
home-based care that removes people with disabilities from institutions, the
council said.
"As states face budgetary shortfalls unknown since the Great Depression, they
look to cut large items in their budgets," the report said. "As one of the
largest and fastest-growing items in many states, Medicaid is an attractive
source of savings."
The council called for congressional hearings into the impact of cuts on the
disabled, and for lawmakers to provide funding to keep them out of institutions.
Andrew Imparato, president of the American Association of People with
Disabilities, blames part of the problem on President Bush's tax cuts, which
mostly go to higher-income taxpayers.
"His tax cuts basically took a lot of money that could have been used to move
the ball forward for the disability community and took it off the table,"
Imparato said. "To get somebody the home-based community services they need,
that is going to cost money and it's mostly going to come from Medicaid."
White House officials had no immediate comment. Bush has proposed a "New Freedom
Initiative" to give people with disabilities more access to technology,
educational opportunities, jobs and community life.
The council also said that the Supreme Court continues to narrow the scope of
the 1990 ADA law, which was signed by Bush's father.
The court last year issued four decisions against the disabled. The rulings said
government agencies do not have to pay punitive damages for violating the ADA,
companies' seniority policies almost always trump the demands of disabled
employees, disabled people cannot demand jobs that would threaten their lives or
health and workers may not be able to demand special treatment because of
partial physical disabilities.
Ohio lawyer Jeffrey Sutton, nominated by Bush to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals and later confirmed by the Senate, argued before the Supreme Court in
2000 that the ADA "was not needed" in a case in which he represented the state
of Alabama. Bush also nominated the state's attorney general, Bill Pryor, for a
federal appeals court judgeship. The court sided with Alabama and ruled in 2001
that disabled state workers cannot sue for damages under ADA.
The council said the federal government needed to aggressively publicize the
ADA, provide technical assistance to help meet its provisions, and enforce the
law when necessary.
On the plus side, the council praised the new election law designed to correct
the problems that surfaced during the 2000 presidential election. The bill
requires that by 2006, at least one machine at each polling place be fully
accessible to the disabled, including allowing the blind to vote without needing
to ask someone for help. The council called the bill the "greatest achievement
of the year."
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On the Net:
National Council on Disability: http://www.ncd.gov
American Association of People with Disabilities:
http://www.aapd-dc.org
Fred Fay
Guest Justice-For-All Moderator
jfa@jfanow.org
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Last Updated on
04/14/04
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