On August 10, 2010, the American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates approved resolution 106A creating a policy in support of the P&A/CAP programs at the ABA annual conference... A D O P T E D
AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION
COMMISSION ON LAW AND AGING
COMMISSION ON MENTAL AND PHYSICAL DISABILITY LAW
REPORT TO THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES
RECOMMENDATION
RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association urges Congress to reauthorize the Protection and Advocacy System and related programs of legally based advocacy services protecting the rights of persons with disabilities in the states and territories.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association opposes legislation that includes more restrictive requirements for class actions on behalf of individuals with disabilities seeking relief through the Protection and Advocacy System than class action requirements under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association urges Congress to provide adequate funding for the Protection and Advocacy System and related programs, and to preserve its authority to protect, represent, and fully investigate on behalf of persons with disabilities in institutions, facilities and the community.
The U. S. Department of Health & Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), has rejected a Missouri proposal to ammend that state's Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities (MR/DD) Comprehensive Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver that would fund segregated "group homes" on an institution campus. Click here to read the CMS rejection letter.
DRC is asking for Public Input regarding our proposed goals and objectives for the fiscal year 2011. Make you voice heard! Visit our online public input form and tell us what you think.
The DISABILITY RIGHTS CENTER (DRC) is a private non-profit agency with offices in Little Rock, Arkansas. Since 1977 the Governor of Arkansas has designated DRC the independent rights protection and advocacy system for persons with disabilities in Arkansas. DRC operates under authority outlined in Federal law and is funded primarily by the Federal government.
PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEMS (P&A) like DRC are established in every state and U.S. territory. We carry out activities under several federal programs to provide a range of services to advocate for and protect the rights of persons with disabilities throughout the state. To learn more about the Protection & Advocacy/Client Assistance Program system, and to locate a P&A/CAP office in any state then visit the National Disability Rights Network website.
|
DRC Priorities
Our Priority issue areas focus on subjects of importance to Arkansans, including:
• Community Integration
• Institutions
• Housing and Homeless Issues
• Juvenile Justice (A New Vision for Youth)
• Abuse and Neglect
• Education
• Employment
• Voting Access
• ADA Access
• Public Policy
• Restraint, Seclusion, & Corporal Punishment in Schools
|
Federal Programs
Our Federal Programs offer a wide range of advocacy opportunities, including:
• PADD - Developmental Disabilities
• PAIMI - Mental Illness
• PAIR - Individual Rights
• CAP - Client Assistance
• PAAT - Assistive Technology
• PABSS - Social Security
• PATBI - Traumatic Brain Injury
• HAVA - Help America Vote Act
|
DRC Services Available
Disability Rights Center makes a wide range of advocacy-related services available to our clients at no charge. There are a few things the P&A system is not authorized to do, so we encourage you to review our list of services available to see if your issue is something we can help you with.
|
|
|
|---|
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) turned 20 on July 26, 2010
ADA celebrations took place throughout Arkansas and the rest of the United States.
Click here to see more. |
|
|---|
|
|---|
| Read the highlights of our advocacy work for our first thirty years. |
|
|
Developmental Disabilities NetworkThree federally-funded "sister" agencies – the Arkansas Governor's Developmental Disabilities Council, Partners for Inclusive Communities and the Disability Rights Center work closely together to improve the lives of individuals with disabilities and their families.
Read about the DD Network and each partner agency.
Download the DD Council Newsletter (includes a feature on the DD Conference, Register Now for September 23-24).
|
|
Did You Know?
The number of individuals with disabilities not residing in an institution who are below the poverty line improved very slightly between 2006 and 2007, while the employment rate of individuals with disabilities declined slightly between these years according to statistics compiled by Cornell University released November 2008. Based on the annual U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, which asks respondents to self-report on disability, Cornell reports:
- 14.9% of individuals age 5 and up have a disability nationwide representing approximately 41.3 million people. This is essentially the same as in 2006.
- 36.9% of individuals with disabilities ages 21 to 64 were employed in 2007 while the percentage of individuals without disabilities employed was 79.7%. This represents a 0.8% decrease in the employment rate for individuals with disabilities from 2006, while the employment rate for individuals without a reported disability remained unchanged.
- 24.7% of individuals with disabilities ages 21 to 64 were at or below the poverty line in 2007, compared with 9% for individuals without a reported disability. This represents a 0.6% statistical improvement in the poverty rate for individuals with disabilities as compared to 2006.
The 2007 Disability Status Report for the nation contains many more statistics, or go to the Cornell University Disability Statistics Website for detailed disability reports for 2007 for each State, as well as D.C. and Puerto Rico.
|
|
DRC Grievance Procedure
If you have a grievance with the services you receive from Disability Rights Center you have the right to resolve your complaint utilizing the grievance procedure.
|
Thanks for visiting!
Please let us know if there are things we can do to make this site more useful to you.
|
|
Donate to DRC
Please help us fight against Disability Discrimination by donating to the Disability Rights Center. Together we can make a difference!
Disability Rights Center is a registered 501(c)(3) charitable organization, and your donations are tax deductable.
|
|
|
A Note About "PDF" Files
Many of the documents available on our website are in Portable Document Format ("pdf") which uses the freely available Adobe Acrobat Reader software to view. If you need it, you can download Acrobat reader from the Adobe website.
|
|
