From the DD Coalition:
This morning, the Emergency Board voted to restore some of the reductions scheduled to occur in the Developmental Disabilities Program. The restoration is coming from funding currently being held in the Emergency Board Fund. Many self advocates, families, service providers, and others wrote letters, sent emails and talked with legislators and the press about the devastating impact the reductions would have on people with developmental disabilities and their families. Thank you!!! Your voices were heard!!!
In a press release from the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate:
“Some of the restorations will protect services through the remainder of the biennium, ending June 30, 2011. Others will be protected until March 1, 2011. For the latter, restoring these services into next year will allow the Legislature to get at least three more revenue forecasts, determine the level of federal aid that may be available, and immediately ensure the safety of thousands of Oregonians receiving assistance.
“By restoring these cuts now, we’re avoiding higher costs down the road and retaining federal dollars. As we move ahead, we’ll continue to look at these factors along with our priority of protecting the most vulnerable amongst us,” said President Courtney.
“From the moment we received the last forecast and learned of the $577 million deficit, we said we would approach these cuts thoughtfully and carefully; that we would act when we had plans in place to protect Oregonians and that we would be guided by a set of principles that protected the most vulnerable Oregonians and protected our long term investments in the future of Oregon. Thursday’s E-board action is the next step along that path,” said Speaker Hunt.
Restorations specific to developmental disabilities include:
- Medicaid Personal Care 20 through June 2011
- In-Home Supports for Children / Long Term Care through June 2011
- Case Management for Children through February 2011
- Targeted Case Management in counties and brokerages through February 2011
- DD Family Support Program through February 2011
Reductions that were not restored include:
- Reduce county DD Program and brokerage administration by 10%
- Eliminate county and brokerage quality assurance staff
- Reduce comprehensive services rates by 6%
- Reduce DD special projects and training
- Reduce DD crisis diversion
- Reduce county Regional Programs by 10%
- Reduce housing extended maintenance
For a full listing of the reductions and restorations please go to the DD Coalition website at www.oregonddcoalition.org