On March 24, 2009 Representative Danny Davis (D-IL) [H.R. 1670] and Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) [S. 683] reintroduced the Community Choice Act (CCA) in Congress. This bill would provide people with disabilities and seniors with the option of receiving home support services rather than having to go into nursing homes and institutions.

Our long-term service system must change. Created over forty years ago, it is funded mainly by Medicare and Medicaid dollars; medical dollars not originally meant to meet people's long-term care needs. We must think out of the box to empower people and allow REAL choices.

Our country needs to give people with disabilities and seniors the real choice of living in their community, and the Community Choice Act would do that. Community choice would also create jobs for people who can work as personal care attendants.

People with disabilities - both old and young - even those with severe mental and/or physical disabilities want services in the most integrated setting possible. Overwhelmingly, people prefer community services so they can stay in their own home.

The Community Choice Act would guarantee individual choice as well as provide a real savings in economically troubled times. The CCA will protect the human right of people with disabilities to live in their own homes, instead of being forced into institutions or nursing homes. It will also save America money because community based supports cost far less than what it takes to live in a nursing home. We can no longer deny our citizens the right to live where they choose.

Let your federal representatives know that you support the Community Choice Act. If they've already sponsored the bill, thank them and ask them to make sure it included in health care reform. If they haven't sponsered it, let them know you would like them to sign on to the Community Choice Act and make it part of health care reform this year.

For more information visit Disability Options Network.

On March 24, 2009 Representative Danny Davis (D-IL) [H.R. 1670] and Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) [S. 683] reintroduced the Community Choice Act (CCA) in Congress. This bill would provide people with disabilities and seniors with the option of receiving home support services rather than having to go into nursing homes and institutions.

In the United States, it's your entitlement to live in a nursing home and have the costs paid for by Medicaid. It's not your right to choose to live at home. Because of this disparity, the disabled are more or less being incarcerated without ever committing a crime.

People with disabilities - both old and young - even those with severe mental and/or physical disabilities want services in the most integrated setting possible. Overwhelmingly, people prefer community services so they can stay in their own home.

During his campaign last year, President Obama promised the disability community that if elected, he would work for prompt passage of the CCA. Instead of working to accomplish prompt passage of the CCA, however, the Obama administration has indicated that it wants to address health care reform first.

This is not just another political issue that can be pushed aside. It is a matter of basic human rights and needs to be treated as such. Health care reform cannot be complete without addressing the institutional bias that currently exists.

Contact the White House [link opens in new window] and tell the President to free our people.

Members from ADAPT Chapters in Western Pennsylvania and advocates from West Virginia visited Senator Jay Rockefeller's main district office in Charleston, WV on August 25, 2009 to demand real choice in health care reform. Senator Rockefeller is a member of the Senate Committee on Finance, and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health Care.

The Senator was not present at his office, but the activists were able to meet with two of his top aides regarding health care reform. The message conveyed was that any health care reform package would be incomplete without including real choice for people with disabilities to live in their own homes, rather than having to live in a nursing home or other institution.

The vehicle for enabling this choice already exists in the Community Choice Act (CCA). On March 24, 2009 Representative Danny Davis (D-IL) [H.R. 1670] and Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) [S. 683] introduced the Community Choice Act in Congress. The Community Choice Act would mandate that states offer people with disabilities the option to use Medicaid funding to pay for community-based rather than institutional care.

President Obama wants to "make health care more affordable by increasing competition, providing more choices and keeping insurance companies honest." It is a fact that home and community-based services cost about 1/3 of what it costs to keep someone in a nursing home for a year and provide "choice" for our most vulnerable citizens.

Senator Rockefeller's staff members were educated on the facts about CCA. They were asked to set up a meeting between Senator Rockefeller and concerned constituents. His staff members said that they would make sure that the Senator received information about CCA and would be told about the meeting request.

The ADAPT members requested that they be given a signed letter stating that a meeting with the Senator and/or his health care aide(s) would be scheduled within 30 days. The staff members said that they could not do this. After some negotiation, the ADAPT members were able to get a memo style document, with no signature, stating that a meeting might be set up after possible scheduling dates were provided by the West Virginia constituents.

Western PA ADAPT feels that the Senator's staff members were being noncommittal and should have been forced to set up a meeting while the ADAPT members were there. Unfortunately, several factors worked against accomplishing this goal. 

Some redemption was realized when a TV crew from the Charleston ABC/Fox affiliate accepted an invitation to cover the action. This coverage at least enabled the message about CCA to get out to constituents in the Senator's home district. This report was later broadcast to the local audience.
 
Currently, the Community Choice Act is not included in any of the various versions of the health care reform bill.  Also, Senator Rockefeller is currently not a cosponsor of the Community Choice Act.

YOU CAN HELP! Contact Senator Rockefeller and demand that the Community Choice Act be included in health care reform. Also request that he sign onto the bill as a cosponsor immediately:

http://rockefeller.senate.gov/contact/

You can view pictures of this action in the Western PA ADAPT Facebook Group:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=99551317361#/photo_search.php?oid=99551317361&view=all

Note: More local ADAPT actions will be commenced in the coming weeks.

Disability Options Network strongly supports inclusion of the Community Choice Act in any plan for health care reform, and are greatly disappointed by the lack of leadership from the Obama administration on this issue.  Ending the institutional bias in the systems that provide Long Term Services and Supports is certainly change that we can all believe in.

Antiquated federal policy requires states to pay for institutional placement, but leaves community based services as optional.  Even though seniors and people with disabilities would prefer to live in the community with services and supports, they are often forced into institutional placement because states have chosen not to offer a community-based alternative that meets their needs or have cut these programs.

Simply put, the Community Choice Act gives persons who would be eligible for institutional placement the choice to receive assistance in the community.  It creates a "floor" for the provision of long term services and supports, so that there is at least a base level of service available throughout the country.

This issue affects virtually every family in America.  Many are supporting a senior who wants to remain in their own home.  Others have an adult family member with a disability who is seeking to be independent, and some are caring for a child with a disability.  All are struggling with a system that fails to provide the supports they need.

Contact our leaders in Washington to include the Community Choice Act in health care reform.  It's time to pass the Community Choice Act (S 683/ HR 1670).  This is the change we need.

President Obama says that rising health care costs are an imminent threat to our economy and that any reform must reduce these long-term costs. Rapidly escalating health care costs are crushing family, business, and government budgets.

Obama wants to "make health care more affordable by increasing competition, providing more choices and keeping insurance companies honest."

"Choice" is a big part of the proposed health care reform plan. It just so happens that an important bill that has been introduced in both Congress and Senate also includes that word. On March 24, 2009 Representative Danny Davis and Senator Tom Harkin introduced the Community Choice Act (CCA) in Congress. The Community Choice Act would allow Medicaid-eligible Americans with significant disabilities the choice of living in their community, rather than having to live in a nursing home or other institution.

Chances of the CCA bills successfully making their way through Congress on their own are slim. Chances of including CCA in health care reform are probably even slimmer. The Obama administration has refused to even consider including it in any health care reform plan.

According to Obama, health care reform is about improving choice and lowering costs. Why can't Obama and Congress see the trees through the forest?

About 1.7 million elderly and disabled people receive care in approximately 17,000 nursing homes across the United States. Anywhere from 10-40% of these people do not need to live there according to the 2006 book "Aging" by Harry R. Moody.

It costs approximately $67,000 per year to keep a person in a nursing home. On the other hand, home and community based services only costs about $21,000 per year. If 10% of 1.7 million nursing home residents could choose to live at home, it would save taxpayers approximately $8 billion a year. If 40% of these people could choose to live at home it would save about $31 billion a year.

You'd have to be foolish to not see that any health care reform package is incomplete if it does not include the Community Choice Act.

Lost until recently in the current debate about health care reform was the disabled community's movement to include the Community Choice Act (CCA) in health care reform.

The Community Choice Act would provide people with disabilities and seniors with the option of receiving home support services rather than having to go into nursing homes and institutions. On March 24, 2009 Representative Danny Davis and Senator Tom Harkin introduced the CCA bills in Congress.

President Obama wants to "make health care more affordable by increasing competition, providing more choices and keeping insurance companies honest." It is a fact that home and community-based services cost about 1/3 of what it costs to keep someone in a nursing home for a year and provides "choice" for our most vulnerable citizens.

Western PA ADAPT activists have been fighting for CCA in the last few months, undertaking numerous actions to let our legislatures know that any health care reform package is incomplete if it does not include elements of CCA.

On Friday, September 18, 2009, New York Senator Schumer introduced the Community First Choice amendment to the Senate Finance Committee's health care reform. If enacted, the Community First Choice Option would be an optional program that gives states an enhanced federal Medicaid match for providing attendant services and supports as an alternative to placement in a nursing facility or other institution.

On Tuesday, September 22, 2009, the Community First Choice Option was incorporated into the Senate Finance Committee bill. This is the closest we've ever been to getting the language of the Community Choice Act into federal law.

Please contact your Senators and let them know that you support the Community First Choice Option and that it is critical they keep it in the final version they approve. You can call using this toll-free number: 866-324-0787. A switchboard operator will connect you directly with the Senate office you request.

REPRESENTATIVE GLENN THOMPSON SIGNS ON

PA ADAPT attended a meeting with US Representative Glenn Thompson at his DC office in early September to ask him to sign on to the Community Choice Act (CCA). The Community Choice Act would provide people with disabilities and seniors with the option of receiving home support services rather than having to go into nursing homes and institutions. Representative Thompson was one of two Pennsylvania Legislators who had not signed onto the bill (HR 1670).

Representative Thompson promised to read the bill, and said he believes that all 50 states should have a mandate to provide community care instead of institutionalized care.

Representative Thompson has joined 116 other Representatives as a cosponsor of CCA on Wednesday, October 21, 2009. Please call his DC office at (202) 225-5121 and thank him for supporting real choice for people with disabilities to live in their own homes.

A CRITICAL MOMENT IN HEALTH CARE REFORM

With chances of the CCA successfully being passed being slim, ADAPT has been working to have the Community First Choice (CFC) Option included in health reform legislation. The CFC Option would get the key provisions of the CCA into health reform. The option would encourage states to provide Medicaid home and community based attendant services (rather than require them as the original CCA would do).

On Tuesday, September 22, 2009, the CFC Option was incorporated into the Senate Finance Committee bill.

Senators are meeting NOW to merge the Finance and HELP Committee health reform bills. They will be making decisions on whether to keep the CFC Option in the combined bill. The merged bill may go to the Senate floor to be debated as early as next week.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW! THIS IS URGENT!

Contact both of your Senators' offices today and ask for their support. You may call toll-free (thanks to Families USA): 1-800-828-0498 or use the Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121.