Dear ED and DD Council Leaders:
I’m looking forward to seeing many of you in Santa Fe next week! Please come up to me and introduce yourself so I can put a name to all the awesome ED’s out there who have helped me so much during the first few weeks on the job. I’ll be
looking for you Steve, Patrick, Sherry, Eric, Aaron, Brian, Beth, Wanda…. Well, you all know who you are! Hope to see you there.
Here are my notes for the week. But, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about NACDD policy efforts, current affairs, or my disappointment in the Nationals losing in the first round of the playoffs (again).
Trump and ways to kill ACA protection without Congress
A few of you have asked about President Trump’s executive order which was signed Thursday morning. It that directs
federal agencies to consider ways for more people to buy health coverage that’s exempt from requirements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — such as the requirement that health plans cover a package of “essential health benefits” including maternity care and
mental health treatment and the prohibition against charging people different premiums based on their health status (including pre-existing conditions). The same day, Trump
announced he would stop making scheduled payments to insurance companies that help them lower deductibles for low-income customers.
These actions could destabilize the health insurance markets and undermine protections for people
with pre-existing health conditions and severely impact persons with DD because many believe it will result in allowing insurers to sell junk coverage that doesn’t cover critical services and won’t protect consumers from soaring health care costs. The decision
to stop scheduled payments to insurance companies (Cost Sharing Reductions) will raise costs for everyone, but especially persons with low-income. The Congressional Budget Office has
projected that eliminating the payments will increase taxpayer costs by $6 billion in 2018 because federal subsidies for many Americans covered under the ACA rise when their premiums increase.
NACDD will be working in coalition with groups opposed to these actions as the agencies develop rules to implement the executive order.
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization / CHAMPION Act
Congress continues to struggle with “pay-fors” for the CHIP reauthorization. The House bill extends CHIP by five years. The bill has passed out of committee but the floor
vote may be delayed to allow time for further negotiation with Democrats. The sticking point is the House proposal slashes the Prevention and Public Health Fund by $6.35 billion – a move opposed by most health policy groups. Take a look at the projects funded
by PPHF here and how much each state stands to lose
here.
The Senate proposal, which does not require pay-fors, is similar to the House except it does not slash the PPHF. The issue will need to be addressed when the bills are conferenced. NACDD will be working with coalition partners to argue
reauthorization of CHIP without harmful cuts to PPHF.
Disaster Relief and Public Health
The House passed a $36.5 billion disaster aid supplemental (HR 4008), which is being offered as a House amendment to the Senate
amendment to an unrelated bill (HR 2266). If this bill passes in the Senate, the total amount of emergency relief funding passed since September would be almost $42 billion. Lawmakers are already saying the next round of emergency funding will need to identify
offsets.
NACDD has signed on to a letter asking for additional emergency funding for public health needs in disaster areas. I’ll circulate the letter once it is sent next week.
New Resource
2017 Kessler Foundation National Employment and Disability Survey: Supervisor Perspectives.
Kessler Foundation released the results of a new national
survey
that shows that employers are striving to recruit, hire, train, and retain people with disabilities, and reveals areas of opportunity for even greater successes in the workplace. “Many companies are having difficulty finding qualified candidates,”
said Rodger DeRose, President and CEO of Kessler Foundation, “but are underutilizing practices that can help them achieve these goals. Companies that partner with a disability organization,
for example, find this practice overwhelmingly effective for meeting their recruitment needs. Only 27%, however, engage in this practice, although the majority of supervisors see this practice as feasible.” Visit
www.KesslerFoundation.org/kfsurvey17 for the Executive Summary, Survey Results, presentation slides, and survey questions.
Erin Prangley
Director, Public Policy
National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities
1825 K Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20006
202.506.5813 Ext. 104 (Phone)
202.506.5846 (Fax)