KCDC Disability News Message

Here is today's Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns (KCDC) Disability News message. I hope you have a wonderful day.?

Martha K. Gabehart | Executive Director
Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns (KCDC)
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly
900 SW Jackson, Suite 100 | Topeka, Kansas 66612
(785) 296-6525 (direct) | (785) 260-4027 (cell)

We wanted to share the Press Release issued by the Kansas State Treasurer?s Office regarding a historic partnership and press conference and roundtable held yesterday.

BIPARTISAN COALITION LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO HELP INDIVIDUALS WITH INTELLECTUAL & DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES ON KANSAS WAITLIST

Kansas Department for Aging & Disability Services, the Kansas State Treasurer and the Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities will team up to promote Kansas ABLE Accounts to IDD waitlist.

LAWRENCE?Kansas State Treasurer Steven Johnson, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) Secretary Laura Howard and Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities (KCDD) Executive Director Sara Hart Weir announced a formal partnership among their agencies to enhance awareness of the Kansas ABLE Savings Program for those individuals within the intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) community who are impacted by the IDD waitlist in Kansas.

Through the partnership, KDADS, the State Treasurer?s Office and KCDD will spearhead new educational resources for self-advocates, family members and caregivers; and host a series of webinars for disability stakeholders, including Kansas providers, Community Developmental Disability Organizations, managed care organizations and disability organizations. The group will also conduct a Kansas ABLE Roadshow across the state in 2024. KCDD is supporting these outreach efforts with a grant to the State Treasurer?s Office.

More than 5,100 individuals with IDD are currently on the waitlist, waiting approximately 10 years for services, in Kansas. Working together, the coalition members recognized that these individuals with IDD as well as their family members and caregivers, need resources, support and services while they wait for a Home and Community Based Service (HCBS) waiver.

The Stephen Beck Jr., Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 created a savings and spending tool designed specifically for people with disabilities. Under the ABLE Act, ?ABLE accounts? allow individuals to spend on disability qualified expenses, save, and invest money while helping them to protect benefits like Medicaid and SSI. The Kansas ABLE program currently has 1,821 open accounts with a total of $16.9 million in assets under management.

The announcement was made today at the Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas, in recognition of the late Senator Bob Dole?s legacy and service to families in the IDD community. In addition to the press conference announcing the partnership, Johnson, Howard and Weir also facilitated a roundtable discussion with legislators, community organizations and stakeholders in the IDD community.

Video of the press conference is available at: https://www.facebook.com/kcdd.org/videos/880323160084484

###

About KDADS
KDADS administers services to older adults; administers behavioral health, addiction and prevention programs; manages the four state hospitals and institutions; administers the state?s home- and community-based services waiver programs under KanCare, the state's Medicaid program; and directs health occupations credentialing. The agency?s mission is to Protect Kansans. Promote Recovery. Support Self-Sufficiency.

About State Treasurer's Office (STO)
The Office of the Kansas State Treasurer ensures safe and efficient operation of state government through effective banking, investment and cash management. As the administrator of the Kansas ABLE Savings program, the office serves the disability community by assisting in removing limits from what people living with a disability can do. ABLE savings accounts allow Kansans the opportunity to save for their future without losing their eligibility for certain assistance programs, like SSI and Medicaid. More information on ABLE accounts is available at http://kansascash.ks.gov/able_savings.html.

About KCDD
KCDD?s mission is to empower individuals with I/DD and their families to lead systems change, build capacity, and advocate for inclusive, integrated, accessible communities where everyone belongs and thrives. KCDD serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through advocacy, public policy, and education. You can learn more by visiting www.kcdd.org.

The Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities (KCDD) is looking for personal stories on how you (or your loved one) are using your Kansas ABLE Account! Your story may inspire others to explore the life-changing potential that ABLE Accounts have for people with disabilities.

We know there's no limit to what people with disabilities can do. Now, because of the ABLE program, people with IDD can save money, too. The ABLE Savings Program allows Kansans living with a disability the opportunity to save for future disability-related expenses without losing eligibility for certain assistance programs, like SSI and Medicaid.

Please take two minutes to complete this brief survey and share YOUR Kansas ABLE success story with us.

Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities? (KCDD) mission is to empower individuals with I/DD and their families to lead systems change, build capacity, and advocate for inclusive, integrated, accessible communities where everyone belongs and thrives. KCDD serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) through advocacy, public policy, and education.

Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities 900 SW Jackson, Ste. 569 Topeka, Ks 66612 USA

This message is from the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS), Home and Community Based Services (HCBS).

Registration for the January 16 KDADS HCBS Update Meeting is now open. These meetings are your opportunity to hear updates and information from the KDADS HCBS team and ask any related questions.

We hope to see you at the update meeting on January 16, from 12 ? 1 p.m.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
?How do I join the meeting?
? ? We?ll send email reminders for each meeting that will include the registration link. After you register, you?ll receive an email with the link to join.

Do I have to register?
? ?Yes, you will have to register using the link provided to get the meeting connection link.

Do I have to register for every meeting?
? Yes, each meeting will have its own registration link and you?ll need to register for each meeting you plan to attend.

How will I know what topics will be covered?
? ?Agendas for each meeting will be sent the morning of the meeting.

What if I can?t attend but want to hear the information?
? ?Recordings will be posted on the KDADS website.
? ?We will continue to share updates in all the ways we do now, this is an ADDITIONAL way to hear them, not a replacement.

What if I need special accommodation to participate?
? ? ASL and Spanish interpretation provided.
? ? If you require other accommodation to participate, please reach out to Carri McMahon at [email protected] by January 9.

Who do I contact if I have more questions about these meetings?
? ?Please email [email protected]

Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services ? 503 S. Kansas Ave. ? Topeka, KS 66603-3404 ? USA

The LEAD Center recently released a blog titled ?Helping Disabled Veterans with Spending and Saving Habits.? Written by a disabled Navy Veteran, this blog explains the obstacles disabled people may face when deciding to pursue employment. The blog also explains how the ?Secure Your Financial Future: A toolkit for Individuals with Disabilities,? jointly developed by ODEP and the Employee Benefits Security Administration, helped the author take a hard look at his financial decisions and learn how to best plan for retirement.?

Read the newest issue of the LEAD On Newsletter titled ?Customized Employment and Guided Group Discovery: Strategies for Success.? Guided Group Discovery (GGD) is the first step in the Customized Employment (CE) process for people who work well in a group. By using CE and GGD, jobseekers with disabilities can achieve competitive integrated employment and/or self-employment. Explore how CE and GGD can be used by workforce professionals to empower jobseekers with disabilities and support businesses to diversify and strengthen workplaces in any industry.?

A new resource from the ODEP-funded Job Accommodation Network (JAN) explores disability in the context of broader diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives. It also discusses the critical role accommodations play in fostering a disability-inclusive workplace culture and centralizes resources available to help employers create a more equitable and accessible work environment.

In partnership with ODEP, the Department of Transportation?s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) invites you to participate in an ePolicyWorks national online dialogue, ?Exploring the Future of Public Transportation Research.? Now through January 5, 2024, FTA and ODEP seeks your insights, experiences and suggestions on ways research, technology and innovation can help make public transit safer, cleaner, greener, more resilient and more equitable.? This important virtual conversation is gathering ideas from the public in the areas of safety, equity, climate, economic growth and connecting communities.

ODEP and its State Exchange on Employment & Disability (SEED) participated in the National League of Cities (NLC) City Summit in Atlanta, GA. ODEP Chief of Staff Anupa Iyer Geevarghese moderated a panel discussion on inclusive mental health policies in the workplace with Councilman Keith Blocker of Tacoma, Washington; Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia of San Antonio, Texas; and Debbie Plotnick of Mental Health America. Ms. Iyer Geevarghese shared examples with city leaders of DOL?s efforts to address workplace mental health and highlighted the recently published Mental Health Matters: Policy Framework on Workforce Mental Health. The framework outlines the preliminary findings of SEED?s Mental Health Matters: National Task Force on Workforce Mental Health Policy, including policy themes, principles and options for policymakers to ensure they are effectively addressing all workers? mental health needs.

ODEP and its State Exchange on Employment & Disability (SEED) participated in the Board of Latino Legislative Leaders 17th Annual Conference in San Diago, CA. During a Fireside Chat with New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera, ODEP?s Assistant Secretary Taryn Williams highlighted federal and state resources available to support states in their efforts to use state policies as a catalyst to foster inclusive workplaces for employees with mental health conditions. These tools include the recently published Mental Health Matters: Policy Framework on Workforce Mental Health (attached below), the preliminary findings of SEED?s Mental Health Matters National Task Force on Workforce Mental Health Policy.

During the holiday season, many companies gather employees and friends to celebrate the year past and toast to success in the one ahead. Whether around the holidays or any time of year, it is important to plan such festivities with inclusivity and accessibility in mind. Learn more in the latest issue of Business Sense, ODEP?s monthly newsletter for small businesses.


This email was sent to [email protected] using govDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: Kansas Office of the Governor ? Capitol, 300 SW 10th Ave., Ste. 241S ? Topeka, KS 66612-1590