The fight to get New York’s direct support professionals a living wage, Biden calls for investment in disability services, and more news for the week ending March 16, 2024.
New York
Podcast: Making the Case to Boost the Pay of DSPs Assembly Member Karen McMahon, a Buffalo Democrat, and Anne McCaffrey, president/CEO of People Inc., talk a living wage. (Capitol Pressroom)
Rally cry to Hochul: Boost wages for workers who aid NYers with developmental disabilities More than 1,200 showed up to “Rally in the Valley” in Stony Point. (lohud.com)
National Dance Institute marks 10 years of Dream Project performances The program, which gives dancers of all abilities the chance to perform, is part of the curriculum of 50 schools throughout New York City. (westchester.news12.com)
Outside of New York
Thousands of Philadelphia students are owed special ed services from the pandemic Some were still unaware their children were entitled to extra help. (Chalkbeat)
It shouldn’t take a lawsuit for D.C. to do right by disabled students Unreliable school bus service is disrupting families and keeping children from arriving at school on time or at all. (Washington Post)
Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services offers new waiver for developmental disabled children While not as much coverage as the full DD waiver, it gets help to many families earlier, needed in a state with a 2,000 person waitlist. (ketv.com, first seen in the Medical Motherhood newsletter)
Education
Some Teachers Less Likely To Refer Kids For Special Ed Research suggests that a child’s likelihood of being referred for special ed services is greatly influenced by the race of their teacher. (Disability Scoop)
Where graduation rates for students with disabilities are improving The for-profit company Marker Learning crunches the data from the National Center for Education Statistics. (Marker Learning)
State of the Union
Biden Calls For Investment In Disability Services Biden used his State of the Union address to urge Congress to add funding for Medicaid home and community-based services. (Disability Scoop)
Healthcare
Health groups aim to improve care for people with intellectual disabilities The nonprofit Institute for Exceptional Care convened health care providers, professional organizations and patient advocates to outline steps the health care system can take. (Axios)
Autism
A new understanding: how research into autism is evolving In England, a pilot therapy aims to support and maximize the babies’ communication and brain function by focusing on the one-to-one social interaction they receive in their first year with parents or carers. (The Guardian)
A firm that serves kids with autism grew until it had 265 clinics. Then private equity took over. Blackstone bought CARD, which specializes in the controversial therapy Applied Behavior Analysis, in 2018. By 2023, CARD had shuttered 100 locations and declared bankruptcy. (nbc.com)
Essay
Dog Day Afternoon “My autistic son, the unleashed dogs of Manhattan and me.” (Nytimes.com)
Play
The Toy Association Is Honoring Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month with This New Guidebook The Playbook features nine play ideas that can be “adapted to children’s varying interests and abilities.” (giftsanddec.com)
Tech
How we can make AI less biased against disabled people A study published last year found that trained AI models exhibit significant disability bias. (Fast Company)
Advertising
Fresh Campaigns Urge Ad Creatives To Portray Disability Realistically U.K.-based Business Disability Forum has published guidelines on the responsible use of disability-related imagery as part of its Changing the image of disability” campaign. (Forbes.com)
