People With Disabilities Powered Radio

practice sound files, "The Simpsons"

2008-06-06T09:28:00.000-07:00

http://www.clayloomis.com/simsong.html

username 1password 1

This is a pretty thorough collection of songs from "The Simpsons" TV show. I've chosen them because, with the possible exception of "Canyonero" (a personal favorite of mine), none of them is extremely popular nor a "favorite" song.

You really don't want to practice audio on a favorite song; you have to listen to it so many times, you'll get sick of it.

Anyway, right click on a song; select "save target as" and put it in a folder. I'd suggest setting up a new folder, labeled "Audio."

Also, remember you can rename files, too. "Mediocre Presidents" saved as "simsg268." I'll never remember later what the hell that meant, so I'm renaming it, "MediocrePresidents" and saving it as a .wav file.

Audacity User's Manual

2008-06-06T07:46:00.000-07:00

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/documentation
You can either view it online or save it into your Audacity folder, once you've loaded Audacity on your computer.

For those of you who don't know anything about audio, please skim over the first tutorial:
"Tutorial − I.BasicsPart 1 − Digital Audio − Part 1"

I don't expect you to memorize the technical aspects of sound. Just get an idea of what we're working with.

Also, look over the second tutorial:
"Tutorial − I.BasicsPart 2 − Rules of Audacity − Part 2"

"If you'd like to get straight playing an imported file or recording something, you can skip this section and come back later.Whenever you work with Audacity, there are some rules you should remember:

1. One clip per track
A clip is simply a piece of audio material. Imported, recorded, split or duplicated from another track,one track can only carry one piece of audio at a time. You can extend it by pasting material or inserting silence in to it, or cut a piece away, but it will always be one continuous piece of audio.

2. Audacity always records to a new track
This new track is opened at the bottom. You'll have to zoom out and then resize the track view of the bottom most track to see what is recorded. You can actually use the window sliders at the bottom and right to do this after starting to record, but this way no performance will be lost to the windowing system.I suggest hitting CTRL+F to get an overview of the entire project as well. This only affects the horizontal zoom by the way(left−right zoom). There is no way to zoom out vertically without using the mouse yet.

3. Edit/Duplicate will not create a new audio file
This may not seem a big deal, but it is if you're editing a large live recording.

What Audacity does is reference the original audio material until you actually perform some kind of edit on it, such as cutting a piece away, or using any effect on it. One thing to remember is the UNDO function. You can undo/redo stuff as many times as you like, and yes, even after you have saved your project.

You may ask what happens if you do, for example, cut away a piece or mark off a 30 minute piece and split it to a new track. It only writes changed data to disk. Since Audacity works with chunk of audio data of around one megabyte in size, this happens quite fast. Rest assured that the only big waiting period might be the importing of large audio files."

-- Rogi Riverstone

Audacity audio editing

2008-06-06T06:55:00.000-07:00

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

This is a free download. It's easy to operate. It looks like a big tape recorder.

There are several versions. I couldn't get 1.2...version to work on my computer, so I uninstalled that and downloaded the 1.3..... version, instead.

I'm suggesting this because the Production dept. at KUNM recommended it over SAW32, as it's free and it's going to become the standard for the journalism & communications dept. at UNM. Both Elaine Bomgartle and Tristan Clum will be teaching universtity classes on Audacity in the fall.

It has an excellent tutorial & help menu and is user friendly.

This is the audio editing program I first suggested PWD Radio use.

Download it and fool around with it.

Don't "Save As." just open it. It'll put a shortcut icon on your desktop.

Find a .wav format sound file you can fool with.

After Audacity opens, go to "file" and press "open"

Load your sound file and play around with it.

Make it a small sound file -- not an hour or so -- so it'll load quickly.
--
Rogi Riverstone

Audio Editing Workshop

2008-06-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I believe it's important for us to begin learning to write, edit and
voice audio as soon as possible. We need to build our confidence &
enthusiasm for PWD radio. As I said in our last meeting, I KNOW we can
do this. We can't afford to psyche ourselves out. The ONLY obstacle
we're facing is lack of confidence. That will come with practice. So,
let's start practicing, OK?

True, participants in PWD radio must be certified through training
classes (each Saturday in July & August -- contact operations at kunm.org
for info) before handling equipment.

But I can tutor participants, right now, in how to edit audio. I can
guide you, step by step, through recording an interview, editing it,
writing "copy" for it and producing it. We can do a group project, to
test it out, ok?

Since I'll be moving to Ft. Sumner in late August, we need to work
while we can. I doubt I'll be able to afford gas $ to come to
Albuquerque more than one weekend a month after that.

Classes will be held on Saturday mornings from 9 -11 am in Studio C at KUNMfm.

I'll also provide a copy of SAW32 to anyone who wants one, so you can
load it onto your computers at home. The great news is that, because
it's an old audio program, nobody cares anymore who uses it.

While it produces perfect radio, SAW32 is no longer "state of the
art." Adobe Audition is; it's even used by the film industry. I highly
recommend, at whatever point you're feeling confident about your
editing abilities on SAW32, that you begin learning Audition. KUNM's
production dept. knows about us & what we're doing, and is offering to
teach us Audition.

I don't use Audition because it costs several hundred dollars, I
mostly work from home and I don't have much opportunity to use it at
the station. I can't retain how to operate it. Doesn't mean it's
difficult; it means my memory doesn't work very well.

I can put you in touch with the Production Dept., once you've been
through the training, if you'd prefer to only learn Audition.

Just remember: studio production space at KUNM is at a premium; it's
difficult to schedule times for individual projects there. That's one
reason I work from home as much as possible. So, if you choose Adobe
Audition, you'll have to figure out scheduling studio time. And I
won't be able to tutor you on it very much, technically, although I
can help you with editorial & production decisions.

If you are interested in attending the Saturday morning tutorials,
please RSVP me, Rogi. Space is limited. Please be
willing to commit to at least a month

We have permission to use SAW32 audio editing

2008-06-05T12:15:00.000-07:00

Someone at KUNM questioned my right to give PWD radio people copies of SAW32 audio editing software. Here's my reply:

SAW32 & Bob, the guy who made it
Thursday, June 5, 2008 12:57 PM
From:
"Rogi Riverstone"
To:
KUNMIDEAS-L@LIST

Well, I just telephoned

RML Labs
2550 E Desert Inn Rd #438
Las Vegas NV 89121

That's Bob, the SAW guy.

I explained everything to him, personally. (I'd already sent an email
& received a reply, but didn't save it, so could't publish it to the
list.)

He said we have full permission to use it, and thought the People With
Disabilities radio group was an interesting idea.

I told Bob how grateful I am for SAW32, how I'm clawing my way out of
poverty by independently producing radio, how I always use SAW, cuz I
can use it so easily.

He's happy to know I can link him to some of my productions, so he can
hear them.

He says he's pretty busy, working on his current products, and doesn't
mind who uses any of the old SAW stuff. He even gave me some tips on
how to copy it!

So, unless someone feels the need to contact Bob, long distance, in
Las Vegas NV, his or her self, I think I've pretty much proven I get
to copy SAW32 to the members of PWD radio.

I KNOW it's "outdated," but I can use it so easily. And the audio
quality is indistinguishable from Audition or anything else fancier.

Look, I still own & operate a webtv. I'm not exactly a luddite, but
I'm not very fast or fierce with software/hardware or underwear.

I just want to get these people trained and producing, so they can
experience the thrilling satisfaction, like I have, of knowing you
don't have to be UNable, just cuz you're DISabled.

I KNOW these people can produce radio; I just have to give them a
chance, before they lose confidence.

"Brainstorm" feedback

2008-05-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

You are reading http://rriverstoneradio.blogspot.com/

Rogi's radio documentary, "Brainstorm," aired on KUNMfm yesterday. To read some email feedback, please go to Rogi's Radio blog http://rriverstoneradio.blogspot.com/.

"Brainstorm" radio documentary on brain injury

2008-04-28T12:09:00.000-07:00

"Brainstorm" is an experience of brain injury, produced by Rogi Riverstone of People with Disabilities Powered Radio

It will be airing on KUNMfm http://kunm.org on Sunday, May 4 at 11am. Tune in! Different frequencies in different parts of New Mexico, and you can listen online.

Aging centers grant money

2008-04-27T20:59:00.000-07:00

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/newfreedominitiative/emailupdates/ItemDetail.asp?ItemID=CMS120903

You may have to paste above URL into your browser; for some reason, blog software won't post it correctly. Moderator corrected manually.

FY 2008 Real Choice Systems Change and Aging and Disability ResourceCenter/Area Aging Grant RFPFri, 18 Apr 2008 09:11:00 -0500

Date: 04/18/2008

Subject: FY 2008 Real Choice Systems Change and Aging and DisabilityResource Center/Area Aging Grant RFP

Content: CMS has available approximately thirteen million dollars inavailable funding to continue to support States' efforts to addresscomplexissues in long-term care reform. In addition to approximately eightmilliondollars in Real Choice Systems Change Grant funding, CMS was alsoawardedfive million dollars for Aging and Disability Resource Center/AreaAgencieson Aging grants. The FY 2008 Grant Category: Development andImplementationof a Person-centered Hospital Discharge Planning Model.

The new grant solicitation will build upon the successes and directionofearlier Real Choice Systems Change and Aging and Disability ResourceCentergrant opportunities by providing targeted assistance to States' in theirefforts to improve hospital discharge planning through collaborationwith,Aging and Disability Resource Centers(ADRCs), Area Agency on Aging andCenters for Independent Living. Specifically, this grant opportunityfor FY2008 is designed to:

1. Promote the development and implementation of enhancedhospital discharge planning models that meaningfully engageMedicaid-eligible individuals with disabilities (and their informalcaregivers);

2. Increase the capacity of existing , and develop new,singleentry points (including ADRCs) to provide critical linkages to availablelong-term care services in the community and much needed supports forinformal caregivers themselves;

3. Inform CMS, other Federal agencies and Congress onnationalpolicy related to hospital discharge planning, person-centered planning,andcaregiver assessment.

States, territories and the District of Columbia are eligible to applyforfunding under this solicitation. Applications are due no later thanJuly17, 2008 and must be submitted electronically on the grants websitefoundbelow in the links outside of CMS. The full solicitation can also befoundin the links inside CMS above.

Cuts in

2008-04-27T20:42:00.000-07:00

Sorry, but this piece is too long for the moderate the edits. Forgive strung-together words; it's a fault of the blog software, not of the publishers.

-- Coalition Has Health Plan Idea

By Winthrop Quigley
April 7, 2008 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Staff Writer

Business opponents of Gov. Bill Richardson's health coverage plan have this advice for legislators attending the special session planned for this summer: Spread the pain around. Instead of taxing employers to create a healthy workforce fund, as originally proposed, consider a broad-based tax to expand existing coverage programs, said two members of a state business coalition that opposed universal healthcare coverage legislation the Richardson administration crafted.

"The main thing we were against was the expense was all on the backs of employers," said New Mexico Restaurant Association CEO Carol Wight. "We understand there needs to be employer participation, but all of us need to participate," said Association of Commerce and Industry President BeverleeMcClure.

"It may be if we find a way for all of us to participate through the gross receipts tax or other mechanism, you might find ACI would participate in looking at those options," McClure said.

Richardson announced in February, after what he called a "productive"meeting with state Senate leaders, that he will call a special session some time this summer to enact a program to bring health care coverage to New Mexico's 400,000 uninsured residents. In its regular 30-day session that ended Feb. 14, the Legislature first gutted then killed a Richardson plan that, among other things, would have taxed employers who didn't offer health insurance to workers. Richardson said at the end of the session that he would propose the identical bill in a special session. Thursday, he said legislators and members of his administration would look for consensus before the special session convenes. Aside from the burden on employers, Wight and McClure said, their groups are skeptical the original plan would have got that many more people insured. The bill said individuals had to find some coverage, but nothing in the bill, had it become law, would have forced anyone to get it, McClure said. She said that about half of the state's uninsured already qualify for some kind of coverage or public program, and they still don't sign up. Wight said her members have tried to get their employees to sign up for State Coverage Insurance, a low-cost, state-subsidized health insurance product that requires both employers and employees to pay some of the cost.

"They refuse it," she said. "They want to pay their cable bill. They want to pay their cell phone bill." A place to begin, McClure said, is improving recruitment of qualified peoplei nto existing public programs, especially Medicaid. Under the governor's plan, the employer tax would feed a fund that could have been used for pretty much anything, McClure said.

A better idea would be to create a fund dedicated to expanding existing public programs, she said.

Pegging coverage to employment won't work, Wight said. "I'm going to say over half of those (400,000) people are not employed," Wight said. "They're students, children and retirees, possibly, who don't fit into Medicare yet. If we're counting on employers to pick up that tab, we're approaching it incorrectly because so many of them are not employed. A better solution would be a broader tax and make it the responsibility of all New Mexicans."

The Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce broke with other business organizations and supported Richardson's plan, saying that while the plan had its flaws, the cost of doing nothing was too great. The chamber took heat from some Republican lawmakers at committee hearings for supporting the bill, and the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce blasted its Albuquerque counterpart for "consistently" backing legislation "contrary to the interests of New Mexico businesses and in direct opposition to the welfare of small businesses in the state." In a letter it provided to the Journal, the Las Cruces chamber called the Albuquerque chamber's support of Richardson's bill "unfathomable." Referring to the chamber's board, the Las Cruces group said, "We do not believethat a small group of 18 individuals representing big business interests, heavily state regulated industries and a few of your chosen suppliers have the right to represent yourselves as the business community. We resent andrejectyour on-going claims that you make to the public and legislators thatyou arethe voice of business, especially small businesses which you clearly donotrepresent." Albuquerque chamber President Terri Cole said in an e-mail to theJournal thatbusiness pays for uncompensated health care already, through higherpremiums andtaxes, so providing universal coverage ultimately reduces costs tobusiness. "The bill represented a solution we support- universal coveragewithoutover-burdening those businesses who provide coverage and those who donot," Colesaid. "The bill provided an incentive for businesses that don't providecoverage toseek out existing, low-cost, under-utilized programs," she said. "Webelievethat approach was a win-win for everyone."

Medicaid Budget Short

By Winthrop Quigley
April 7, 2008 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Staff Writer

Weeks after asking legislators to provide health care coverage foreveryone, the Richardson administration is trying to overcome amultimillion-dollar Medicaidbudget deficit by slowing enrollment growth.The state legislative session that ended in February added $14.5 millionto the Medicaid budget to offset what the Human Services Department saidwould be a $24.5 million shortfall in the fiscal year that ends June 30,leaving a $10 million deficit. The Medicaid budget for the followingfiscal year is $25.8 million less than the department requested.State Medicaid officials will try to overcome the current fiscal year'sdeficit by slowing Medicaid enrollment from 299,000 children by June,which is the number of children the state could afford to cover hadlegislators approved the entire HSD requires, to 294,000. About 275,000low-income children and 143,000 low-income adults- most of them disabledor elderly- were enrolled in November 2007, the last month for which HSDhas complete data."In 2009, we have a much bigger problem," said state Medicaid directorCarolyn Ingram. "What we're looking at is trying to flatten outenrollmentgrowth of kids so it's not so steep."That's an about-face from the department's goal at the beginning of thefiscal year, when the state intended to enroll as many eligible childrenas possible. The belief was that getting children access to consistenthealth care reduces costs in the long term.Instead, efforts to reach families of Medicaid-eligible children to getthe kids enrolled will be curtailed.HSD will also slow growth in State Coverage Insurance, which targetslow-income adults.The department wants to reduce spending on personal in-home careprovidedto elderly and disabled Medicaid recipients. HSD will try to limit newMedicaid enrollment by disabled and elderly people to emergency cases.If that does not reduce spending enough, HSD will consider reducingpayments to medical providers, Ingram said. "That is not the mostfavoredoption," she said."We just spent two years increasing provider rates."

Finally, HSD will consider reducing Medicaid benefits. One potentialtarget is expenses incurred by a caregiver who accompanies a Medicaidrecipient whoreceives treatment out of state. Gov. Bill Richardson had asked the 2008 Legislature to enact severalprovisions designed to expand public programs to cover New Mexicanswho could not obtain private coverage. The governor's universal healthcoverage package failed. "It is clear from the funding of the Medicaid program that was notanarea (the Legislature) could put money toward at this time," Ingramsaid. "There were other priorities." One advocacy organization said the most vulnerable group is takingtheworst hit. "The bottom line here is that kids will suffer," said Bill Jordan,policy director of New Mexico Voices for Children. "Their health carewill be interrupted. Kids shouldn't be the ones caught in the middlewhen lawmakers cannot agree on a dollar amount." Much of the state Medicaid budget of more than $3 billion isprovidedby the federal government. However, the state general fund willprovide $711.2 million this fiscal year and $787.4 million next fiscalyear to support Medicaid. State officials have estimated that 50,000 children who are eligiblefor Medicaid are not enrolled. HSD has sponsored several efforts toincrease enrollment in the past several months. "We'll definitely be slowing our outreach initiatives," Ingram said.

"We won't be running television commercials. We won't be running radioads." Enrollment efforts instead will focus on finding eligiblechildren at small, low-income school districts, she said. HSD will continue to support efforts by insurance brokers to sellState Coverage Insurance to employers and their low-income employees,but state officials will stop promoting enrollment through speechesand other events.

Charlotte Roybal
Health Care for All Campaign
Health Action NM
roybalhanm@aol.com www.healthactionnm.org
505-867-1095 (o)

Administrtion restricts access to Medicaid services

2008-04-27T20:35:00.000-07:00

Administrative Actions Would Restrict Access to Critical Medicaid Services

Background

Medicaid is a lifeline for people with disabilities. It is the nation’s primary way of financing and delivering community-based health and long-term services to children and adults with disabilities. Medicaid serves nearly 60 million low-income Americans, including an estimated 9.9 million people with disabilities and accounts for an estimated 86% of public spending on developmental disabilities services.

Over the past year, the Bush Administration’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued six Medicaid rules, in either proposed or final form, which together would have a devastating impact on Medicaid beneficiaries or the safety net providers that serve them. Taken together, these rules will reduce federal financing for Medicaid by $15 billion over five years. The President’s FY 2009 budget proposes $17.4 billion in legislative changes to Medicaid over five years and additional administrative rules are likely pending. These regulatory changes will shift significant Medicaid costs to states at a time when the economy is in a downturn and many states are either experiencing declining revenues—or bracing for revenues to start falling. Preventing implementation of these regulations is the top priority for all Medicaid stakeholders, including the disability community.

Three of the six rules will be particularly harmful to Medicaid beneficiaries with disabilities and their providers. If implemented, these regulations will result in the loss of critical services for Medicaid eligible children and adults with developmental disabilities. Rehabilitation Services

Option

CMS issued a proposed rule on 8/13/07 which would generate $2.3 billion in savings over 5 years by restricting the scope of eligible rehabilitation services and eliminate coverage for day habilitation services for individuals with developmental disabilities. The proposed rule appears to prohibit people with “mental retardation and related conditions” from receiving nearly all services through the rehabilitation option. In particular, longstanding day habilitation programs for persons with developmental disabilities would be eliminated (these programs enable an individual to maximize independent living skills) under the rehabilitation and clinic options. The only way that Medicaid could pay for habilitation services would be through waiver programs or ICF/MR programs. Since waiver programs are capped with waiting lists, this would reduce the number of individuals who can access these critical services. In addition, since eligibility criteria for the rehab option differs from eligibility for the waiver, there will be some people who will lose services if habilitation is covered only through the waiver.

2) School-Based Administrative and Transportation

CMS issued a final rule on 12/28/07 that would generate $2.8 billion in cuts over 5 years by prohibiting Medicaid payments for administrative activities (including outreach, enrollment and support in gaining access to Medicaid’s Early, Periodic, Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) benefits services) performed by schools and transportation of school-age children. School districts believe that this rule, if implemented, would force them to significantly reduce related services (e.g. physical, occupational and speech and language therapies) and classroom aides provided to students with disabilities in special education.

3) Case Management

CMS issued an interim final rule on 12/04/07 that becomes effective on 03/03/08 that would generate $1.3 billion in cuts over five years by restricting the scope of case management services and targeted case management (TCM). The TCM rule makes it significantly more difficult for individuals transitioning from institutions to the community by limiting federal reimbursement for transitional case management from the last 180 days of an individual’s institutional stay to the last 60 days. In many cases, due to the lack of affordable and accessible housing and challenges in securing support services, it is difficult to impossible to transition to the community in 60 days.

Action Taken by Congress

The Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-173) contains a six month moratorium (until June 30, 2008) for CMS’ rehabilitative services and school based administration/transportation rules. Rep. John Boozman (R-AR) has introduced a one year moratorium bill (H.R.4355).

Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN) and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) have introduced legislation (S. 2578/H.R. 5173) to impose a one year moratorium on the Medicaid interim final case management rule.

Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Reps. John Dingell (D-MI) and Ed Whitfield (R-KY) introduced the Protecting Children’s Health in Schools Act of 2007 (S. 578/ H.R. 1017), which clarifies that schools can use Medicaid funding for certain transportation and administrative claims, and tightens reporting and documentation requirements to avoid abuse.

RecommendationsExtend the six month moratoria on the CMS rehabilitative services and school based administration/transportation rules through H.R. 4355 or other legislative vehicles;Co-sponsor legislation (S. 2578/H.R. 5173) to impose a one year moratorium on the CMS case management rule; and Co-sponsor the Protecting Children’s Health in Schools Act of 2007 (S. 578/H.R. 1017).

Relevant Committees

Senate Finance Committee
House Energy and Commerce Committee

For more information, please contact The Arc and United Cerebral Palsy Disability Policy Collaboration (202-783-2229), Association of University Centers on Disabilities (301-588-8252), American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (202-387-1968), or National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (703-739-4400).

SSA employment incentive guidelines

2008-04-27T20:30:00.000-07:00

NYAPRS

Note: The Social Security Administration has released the 2008 Red Book: A Summary Guide to Employment Supports for Individuals with Disabilities under the SSD and SSI Programs. Keeping with the NYAPRS mission of highlighting and providing information on the many incentives there are for people to become employed we want to share this guide with you. A complete copy of the guide in English and Spanish can be found at:
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/redbook/

The Red Book is a general reference tool designed to provide a working knowledge of SSD/SSI work incentives. The Red Book is written for educators, advocates, rehabilitation professionals, counselors, and individuals with disabilities.

Brief Summary of changes in SSA work incentives as outlined by the guide:

SSA increased the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) amount for individuals with disabilities, other than blindness, from $900 to $940 for 2008. SSA increased the SGA amount for individuals who are blind from $1,500 to $1,570 for 2008. SSA increased the monthly earnings amount that is used to determine if a month counts for the Trial Work Period (TWP) from $640 to $670 for 2008. For 2008, SSA increased the Supplemental Security Income Federal Benefit Rates (FBR) from $623 to $637 for an eligible individual and from $934 to $956 for an eligible couple. SSA increased the income amounts that will have no effect on eligibility or benefits for SSI beneficiaries who are students. For 2008, SSA increased the monthly amount from $1,510 to $1,550 and the yearly maximum from $6,100 to $6,240. For 2008, the monthly Medicare Part A Hospital Insurance Base Premium is $423, and the 45 percent Reduced Premium is $233. The Part B Supplementary Medical Insurance monthly Base Premium is $96.40.

For more information contact Mat Mathai at mathewm@nyaprs.org.

Campaign to reverse "sneaky" Medicare cuts

2008-04-27T20:20:00.000-07:00

PDF of study sited: http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/bad-medicine/new-mexico.pdf

When families are already struggling, the last thing they need is to be told that their jobs are in jeopardy.

Yet that is exactly what may happen in New Mexico , unless Congress does something.

Very sneakily and without asking Congress, President Bush last summer proposed major changes in the rules for how states could receive federal funding for Medicaid – threatening massive cuts in the program and having a ripple effect through the State’s economy.

In New Mexico alone, these cuts will eliminate 4,000 jobs and cost the state $134.6 million in wages, not to mention an 364.7 million in lost business activity, according to a new study by Families USA .

Just this week, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation to put a hold on these harmful regulations. Now it's time for the Senate to act.

Tell your Senator to put a stop to the Administration's harmful Medicaid Regulations. Click here to send an email or call 1-800-828-0498.

This legislation will protect New Mexico 's economy and health care.

The regulation changes issued by the Bush Administration restrict funding for a variety of Medicaid services, including rehabilitation services, school-based transportation, as well as Medicaid administrative services, such as outreach, enrollment, and case management.

At this time, the rule changes can either be halted or implemented.

Tell your representative to stop the rule changes. Act now.

Congress didn't get to review or debate these changes last summer because of the President's tricky tactics. Now they have that chance.

Thank you,
Julia EismaneAdvocacy Coordinator

Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. Tell-a-friend!

If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for Families USA.
--------Families USA 1201 New York Ave., NW, Suite 1100 , Washington , DC 20005
www.familiesusa.org info@familiesusa.org

ALS Campaign Features Edgewood Resident

2008-04-27T20:12:00.000-07:00

Edgewood Resident Featured in National

NOTE TO EDITORS: The MDA Web page featuring Deborah Basile will go live on May 5, 2008. Please contact MDA if you want to view the page in advance.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Bob Mackle
Vice President - Public Information
(520) 529-5317
bobmackle@mdausa.org

MDA NATIONAL ALS AWARENESS CAMPAIGN FEATURES EDGEWOOD RESIDENT

TUCSON, Ariz., April 25, 2008 — The Muscular Dystrophy Association has included Deborah Basile of Edgewood in its national campaign promoting awareness of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease), a devastating neuromuscular disease. May marks the 17th annual national ALS Awareness Month.
During May, Basile will be one of 31 people featured (one per day) in the MDA online series “ALS: Anyone’s Life Story.” The series highlights how people have learned to live with ALS, gaining new perspectives on life even as the disease progressively steals their ability to move, eat and breathe.

Basile, 54, learned she had ALS in 2005. Her photo and a brief biographical profile will appear Monday, May 5, on MDA’s ALS Division Web site (www.als-mda.org) and the Association’s main site (www.mda.org).
Prior to ALS, Basile was active as a physician substitute, volunteer emergency medical technician and horse trainer. These days, she says she has learned to be more tolerant and appreciative of the little things in life. She works daily on compiling her family’s genealogy so she can pass it on to her children.
Average life expectancy of people with ALS is three to five years after diagnosis. The disease attacks the nerve cells that control muscles, ultimately resulting in paralysis of all voluntary muscles, including those used for breathing and swallowing.

The “Anyone’s Life Story” series grew from the personal saga of fitness pioneer and entrepreneur Augie Nieto, who received a diagnosis of ALS at age 47 in 2005. A leader in the fitness equipment industry, Nieto underwent a dramatic shift in his life’s priorities after his diagnosis, from striving for business success to searching for personal significance and fulfillment. He and his wife, Lynne, are co-chairs of MDA’s ALS Division, and the driving force behind MDA’s Augie’s Quest research initiative.

MDA is the world leader in providing health care services for people with ALS, and in funding research that seeks treatments and a cure for the disease and some 40 other related diseases. The Association supports 225 hospital-affiliated MDA clinics across the country, of which 38 are designated MDA/ALS centers. The MDA clinic at University of New Mexico Hospital and the MDA/ALS Center at UNM Health Sciences Center – both in Albuquerque – serve residents with ALS, muscular dystrophy and other neuromuscular diseases in the Albuquerque area.

— MDA —
For more information about ALS, including an online MDA Reporter’s Guide to ALS, and a schedule of MDA events being held nationwide to observe the 17th annual ALS Awareness Month, visit www.als-mda.org/media.

QIAT

2008-04-25T08:09:00.000-07:00

http://qiatgrowsup.pbwiki.com/

http://natri.uky.edu/assoc_projects/qiat/

The QIAT Consortium http://www.qiat.org/ (September 24, 2006) Page1 of 2
Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology
The mission of QIAT is to guide the provision of quality AT services to improve educational achievement of students with disabilities.
QIAT activities for improvement of assistive technology services include:

• Developing descriptive indicators of effective practices
• Developing tools to evaluate services for continuous improvement
• Creating resources to guide planning and implementation
• Identifying and sharing information and resources
• Providing opportunities for communication and collaboration

The descriptors of effective assistive technology practices were created to help schooldistricts evaluate and improve or develop their services. They consist of the specificindicators which are descriptive statements, descriptions of common errors that mayoccur, and self-evaluation matrices. They can be found at http://www.qiat.org/.

Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology address:
• Consideration of the need for assistive technology during the IEP meeting
• Assessment of the need for assistive technology• Including assistive technology in the IEP
• Implementing the use of assistive technology
• Evaluating the effectiveness of assistive technology use
• Transitioning with assistive technology
• Administrative support for assistive technology services
• Professional development and training in assistive technology

A brief history of QIAT:
• Quality indicators are a grass roots effort that began in 1998.
• A core group of 14 individuals began the work and since that time hundreds of service providers and consumers have had input into the wording through activities at national conferences and working meetings every year that include interested individuals from across the country.
• A email list was begun in 1999 and now includes over 1000 members. It is accessed through http://www.qiat.org/.
• The indicators were validated by Joy Zabala’s doctoral research in 2004.
• Current work revolves around identifying and developing resources that can help school districts improve their assistive technology services.
• The core group is the Quality Indicators Leadership Team which has national representation from multiple disciplines. See http://www.qiat.org/ for a list.

Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology are being used:
• Arizona, Minnesota and Texas are using the Quality Indicators as a state wide assessment tool to evaluate and guide statewide systems change.
• Florida and Arkansas are using Quality Indicators as an assessment tool to evaluate The QIAT Consortium http://www.qiat.org/ (September 24, 2006) Page2 of 2and guide change on a regional basis.
• Oregon is using the Quality Indicators as the basis for developing district level AT teams.
• Georgia is using Quality Indicators in both teacher and administrator training.
• Iowa has used Quality Indicators as the stimulus to develop a modified set of quality indicators to guide systems change.
• Numerous districts across the country are using Quality Indicators to assess their AT services and move forward.

Assistive Tech. Conference

2008-04-08T05:06:00.000-07:00

Please be advised that this conference is coming up in Albuquerque, If your not in the Albuquerque area and would still like to attend or donate unwanted hardware for recycling please call the Pat Gulino, Administrative Secretary for more information (505) 954-8536 or email them at the address below.

Their mission is to help persons with disabilities enhance their quality of life through the use of assistive technology.

2008 Assistive Technology Conference
April 24-25, 2008
CNM Workforce Training Center
Albuquerque, NM

Conference information and Registration is available
on-line at www.nmtap.com

April 24-25 Assistive Tech Conference

Don’t forget to Register

2008 Assistive Technology Conference
April 24-25, 2008
CNM Workforce Training Center
Albuquerque, NM

Conference information and Registration is available
on-line at www.nmtap.com

Recycle your
Assistive Technology Day
Friday, April 25th

If you or someone you know has un-used but useable equipment sitting in their garage or storage shed. Bring it on over to the conference to donate it. We are looking for wheelchairs, walkers, scooters, bathroom equipment, communication devices, alternative computer access equipment, and computers.
Put your un-used equipment BACK TO USE!

See you soon

edit audio

2008-04-08T04:56:00.000-07:00

First, you'll need to read the post about Audacity audio editing software:

http://pwdradio.blogspot.com/2008/04/audacity-transom-dot-org.html

Once you're pretty sure you've downloaded the program into your computer, and that you THINK it might work, you can find free sounds to edit at the FreeSound Project here:

http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/searchText.php

You should probably build a folder in your computer for SFX. That's shorthand for "Sound Effects." You can download a few sound files there.

Now, go back to your Audacity program. Open one of those sound files. Read the Audacity tutorial. The Transom.org tutorial can be a big help, and Audacity has help & tutorials, too.

Try cutting the soud file up. Maybe you can put a 2nd sound file on another track.

Follow the instructions on how to save the file. Again, you might want to create a special folder for your audio work. You can call it, "Radio" or "Audio," etc. Imagine the future. You'll want to create seperate folders for each radio piece you'll make. It's easier to keep individual sound files seperated into folders, within folders. That way, you won't be hunting all over your computer to find the sounds you've downloaded and saved.

Practice. Just practice.

Cancer Fundraiser

2008-04-04T08:38:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

People Living Through Cancer. Please join us at our Cookies N' Chocolate Fundraiser on Saturday, April 12, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., 2260 Q Street N.E., Suite E (ABQ Uptown Center, between Ann Taylor Loft and BCBG). All proceeds will go to our agency. For more information please contact Jennifer Seis, 505-550-3988.

Senior Volunteers

2008-04-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

City of Albuquerque Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). We are in search of volunteers age 55+ to join our program. We have scores of fun volunteer opportunities available, some of which include: docents, mentors, tutors, office work, gift shop attendants, greeters, patient transport, information desk, wellness technical assistant, parking attendants, etc.

Benefits include meal & mileage reimbursement, supplemental accident and liability coverage while on duty. To learn more about us, please go to <http://www.cabq.gov/seniors/volunteer-opportunities/volunteer> http://www.cabq.gov/seniors/volunteer-opportunities/volunteer. Contact: Josie Lucero, jklucero@cabq.gov , 505-764-1612

Hospice Volunteers

2008-04-04T08:31:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

Harmony Home Health & Hospice. We provide excellent care to both medical and hospice clients. To learn more about us, please visit our website at <http://www.harmonyhomehealth.com> http://www.harmonyhomehealth.com.Contact: Kathy Thibodaux, kbthibodaux@gmail.com, 505-828-2273. We have thefollowing volunteer opportunities available:
* Compassionate volunteers are needed to serve as companions for hospice patients. Volunteers will be asked to serve a minimum of 3-6 hours per week. Duties include: visiting with the patient at his/her home or medical care facility; reading to him/her; etc. Can include minimal patient care, running errands. Appropriate for volunteers age 18+. Must attend a 12-hour training. Flexible schedules available. Background check required for all volunteers and TB test for those who have direct patient contact
* Volunteer needed to help with light office tasks (e.g., filing, answering phones). Experience preferred; but training will be provided. Must be able to volunteer in the office 6-10 hours a week. Our address is 5700 Harper Drive N.E., Suite 450.

Cancer Camp

2008-04-04T08:28:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

American Cancer Society. Ten volunteers needed to serve as camp counselors during a week-long summer camp (June 1-7, 2008). The camp will take place at a location within the Albuquerque area. Volunteers will supervise children ages 7-17 at a week long residential camp. Minimum age is 19.

Must be able to pass a background check (American Cancer Society will cover the cost). Contact: Ariana Vigil, ariana.vigil@cancer.org, 505-559-9423.Our website address is <http://www.cancer.org> http://www.cancer.org.

Susan's Legacy

2008-04-04T08:26:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

Susan's Legacy. We are a not for profit agency that provides services for homeless women with co-occurring disorders. To learn more about us, pleasevisit our website at http://www.susanslegacy.org http://www.susanslegacy.org. Please join us at our second annual "BlockParty". This event will have entertainment, snow cones, and jumper and a giant garage sale. A fun, family friend-raiser. The event will take placeon Saturday, May 3, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Sam's Club parking lot, I-40 and Eubank.

Homeless SleepOut

2008-04-04T08:23:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

Albuquerque Opportunity Center. The Duke City SleepOut is a city-widef undraiser to benefit persons who are homeless in Albuquerque. Participants will secure pledges from family, friends and employers to give up their warm beds on Friday, May 2. A group SleepOut site is at the Albuquerque Opportunity Center shelter, 715 Candelaria, NE. This site will feature music, movie and snacks and a "best box" contest for the biggest, most colorful, most practical, most exquisite, etc. (start looking for LARGE boxes now!). Persons and groups are also invited to gather pledges to sleepout in their own backyards, church parking lots and school yards.

Individual sleepers are asked to contribute a minimum of $30 in pledges; families a minimum of $50. Participants will receive a t-shirt recognizing their participation. All contributions should be made to: Metropolitan Homelessness Project. For more information (and/or if your musical group would like to perform), please contact Shannon O'Keefe, 505-344-2323,shannono@abqaoc.org. To learn more about AOC, please visit our website at http://www.abqaoc.org http://www.abqaoc.org

Lupus Walk

2008-04-04T08:20:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

Lupus Foundation of America N.M. Chapter, Inc. Join us at "Walk for LupusNow" on Saturday, April 19, 2008, Cottonwood Mall. Registration begins at8:00 a.m. and the walk begins at 9:00. Participants can register on ourwebsite at http://www.lfanm.org http://www.lfanm.org. For informationcall 505-881-9081 or 1-800-843-9081.

Freaks, 2008

2008-04-04T04:17:00.001-07:00

This is 999 Eyes, the only modern, traveling Freak Show in the USA. Times have changed -- a LOT! These "freaks" are self-identified; they're people with genetic anomolies, who display their differences in order to educate, raise awareness of disability and differently-abled talents. These days, the Freak Show is run by the Freaks!

They recently performed in Albuquerque, at the Verb Collective. Rogi collected some audio. Anybody want to help edit it?

http://www.999eyes.com/

"Freaks," 1932

2008-04-04T04:09:00.000-07:00

"One of Us"

ADDENDUM: Rogi found this article today, April 29. It's a thorough review of the social impact of the movie, "Freaks." By the way, "Freaks" began with a suggestion by the little person who became the lead actor in the film. It's a good analysis of stereotypes of people with disabilities, especially of women. Very interesting read. Too long to post here:
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-21221638.html

Rogi thinks this was a ground-breaking film: it was the first time genetic anomolies ("freaks") and people with disabilities performed as they were, not as "magical" or mythical creatures. It was an opportunity for these actors to show their acting skills. It was an opportunity to earn a living in films. It was an opportunity to participate in a project that was SYMPATHETIC to their lives, not an exploitation of them.

The story is a melodrama:
Tagline: Can a full grown woman truly love a MIDGET ?
Plot Outline:A circus' beautiful trapeze artist agrees to marry the leader of side-show performers, but his deformed (sic) friends discover she is only marrying him for his inheritance.

Freaks isn't really a horror film, although the horror boom that began in 1931 precipitated Freaks entering production. The script developed out of an earlier one named "Spurs" that had been in MGM's possession since the late 1920s. The success of Universal's horror films of 1931 (Dracula and Frankenstein) had studios scrambling to cash in on the trend. Horror films weren't new, of course, but repeated commercial success of horror films released in quick succession was. A number of factors contributed to the phenomenon, including the Great Depression, the lingering cultural impact from World War I, and the advent of sound films. So even though Freaks wasn't exactly horror, and the protagonists weren't exactly monsters, it was close enough. In the early 1930s, the public had not yet been overexposed to media-sensationalized differences in human appearances and behavior. The effect of the film then, in conjunction with memories of real life horrors, including those of war-mangled veterans, offered the emotional reaction that producers and studios are often seeking from horror films.

But Freaks is really part tragic drama, part character study, and in many ways it is almost a documentary. The modern attraction to the film comes from a few sources. One, the "gawking effect", or the simple fact of watching the freaks in action. Sideshows are an unfortunately dying phenomenon, if they're not already dead (many would say they are), largely because of a combination of medical advances, which often "cure" the physical differences that would have made "victims" sideshow candidates, and political correctness, which mistakenly sees sideshows as negatively exploitative. It's fascinating watching the different kinds of people in the film and their behavior, including not only their social interactions, but how some of them manage to just get around and perform everyday activities such as eating, lighting a cigarette, and so on. This kind of material takes up at least half of the film's short running time (64 minutes; initially it ran closer to 90 minutes, but 26 minutes of cuts were made (and are now apparently lost) to appease the New York State censor board).

You can read more about the film, "Freaks," here:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0022913/

The BEST part of this website is that you can meet & learn about the careers & lives of the "Freak" actors, some of whom went on to some seriously-impressive things, as a result of their participation in the movie.

PodCast: "Brenda's Girls"

2008-04-03T10:55:00.000-07:00

Free Podcast software download:http://juicereceiver.sourceforge.net/

You need to have the above, before you can download the podcast on KUNM's website:http://kunm.org/podcast/

Look under the Sunday specials section.

If the podcast software I suggested, above, doesn't work, try another. Remove the OLD one, before downloading a new one.

You can find podcast software here:http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4SUNA_enUS256US258&q=podcast+software

Thank you for your interest in the radio documentary, "What's a Disability to Brenda's Girls? an Oral History," produced by Rogi Riverstone

W.I.L.D. Women

2008-04-03T10:26:00.000-07:00

I got this late, but follow-up on the results of the conference, who attended, what was discussed, etc. would sure be nice!

4th International Women's Institute on Leadership and Disability (WILD)

APPLICATION DEADLINE: FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 2008

August 12 - September 2, 2008

Eugene, Oregon, USA

MIUSA will bring together 25 women leaders with disabilities from around the world to strengthen leadership skills, create new visions and build international networks of support to explore new leadership opportunities for women and girls with disabilities.

WHO CAN APPLY Emerging and established women leaders with disabilities who are:
* From Africa, Asia, Eurasia, Latin America, the Middle East, andOceania/Pacific
* First time visitors to the USA and have NOT participated in a MIUSAWILD program
* From an organization led by and for people with disabilities, or by and for women, with particular attention to issues of women and girls with disabilities; or employed in a business or program committed to inclusion of women and girls with disabilities

**Women with disabilities who are from rural areas and/or indigenous backgrounds are especially encouraged to apply

** APPLICATION
1. Download application: (Applications in English strongly preferred)http://www.miusa.org/exchange/WILD2008/index_html
2. Return application and two reference forms to:
Mobility International USAWILD 2008132 E. Broadway Suite 343
Eugene, OR, USA 97401
Email: womenleaders@miusa.orgFax: +1-541-343-6812

Social Security Backlog

2008-04-03T10:21:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

News Release
SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Offers Positions to 144 Administrative Law Judges

New Hires a Key Step in Reducing Agency’s Backlog of Disability Cases

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced that the agency has begun making offers to 144 of the 175 new Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) it will hire this fiscal year. Due to litigation and budget cuts, the agency has about 10% fewer ALJs than it did a decade ago. During that same time, the number of cases waiting for a hearing decision has more than doubled.

“The hiring of these new ALJs is a critical step in our plan to reduce the backlog of disability cases,” Commissioner Astrue said. “They represent one of the largest investments in ALJs this agency has ever made. When these ALJs are fully-trained, and combined with the other steps we are taking, we will be able for the first time in this decade to reduce the number of cases waiting for a disability hearing. I can hardly wait for them to start.”

The new ALJs will be brought on board in phases with the first hires reporting for duty in April, when they will begin an intensive orientation and training program. While initially handling a reduced docket, newly hired ALJs should be scheduling a full docket of cases by the end of the year.

“I have been very impressed with the caliber of the candidates eager to take on the challenging role of a Social Security ALJ,” Commissioner Astrue noted. “These new ALJs are top-notch legally and comfortable working in an electronic environment, which is of utmost importance as we strive to increase the efficiency and productivity of our ALJ corps.”

Hiring of additional ALJs is only one component of the plan the agency has put in place to reduce the backlog of disability cases. The agency also continues to make progress in many other areas including opening the National Hearing Center , completing the nationwide roll-out of the Quick Disability Determination process, implementing compassionate allowances and eliminating aged cases. More information about Social Security’s plan is available at www.socialsecurity.gov/disability under the heading What’s New.

“In May of last year, I presented Congress with a detailed plan to reduce the backlog of disability cases,” Commissioner Astrue said. “I am pleased to report that, with the strong support of the President and Members of Congress from both parties, we have been able to move forward with that plan. I urge Congress to continue its support with timely action on the President’s fiscal year 2009 budget request for Social Security. A delay in fully funding the President’s request will undermine the many positive steps we have taken this year.”

###

SSA Press Office 440 Altmeyer Building 6401 Security Blvd. Baltimore , MD 21235 410-965-8904 FAX 410-966-9973

GRANT $ !!!

2008-04-03T10:10:00.001-07:00

Anybody interested in persuing some of these? Know anybody else who might qualify?

Pay It Forward Foundation -- Pay It Forward Mini-Grants

SUMMARY: Pay It Forward Mini-Grants are designed to fund one-time-only service-oriented projects identified by youth as activities they would like to perform to benefit their school, neighborhood, or greater community. Projects must contain a "pay it forward" focus -- that is, they must be based on the concept of one person doing a favor for others, who in turn do favors for others, with the results growing exponentially -- to be considered in the grant making process.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS: Schools, churches, and community youth groups (with an adult sponsor) may apply for funding. Youths or adults may write the application. Groups whose members are all over the age of 18 must include work with youth under the age of 18 as part of their projects.

DUE DATE: April 15, 2008 and October 15, 2008

AWARD AMOUNT: Mini-grants of up to $500 are available for projects on a one-time-only basis.

INFORMATION: Pay It Forward Foundation, P.O. Box 552 , Cambria , CA 93428 . E-mail: info@payitforwardfoundation.org Web: http://payitforwardfoundation.org/educators/grant.html

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Seventh Generation Fund

SUMMARY: The Seventh Generation Fund for Indian Development (SGF) is a nonprofit indigenous peoples' organization that works directly with grass-roots Native American communities and traditional indigenous societies throughout the Americas . SGF supports Native American peoples' community-organizing, issue-advocacy, economic renewal, cultural-revitalization, environmental-justice, and related restorative development efforts.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS: Seventh Generation Fund directs its small grants and/or technical support, financial management, and project facilitation to indigenous communities and organizations.

DUE DATE: June 1, 2008; September 1, 2008; December 1, 2008

AWARD AMOUNT: General Support -- Small grants range from $600 to $10,000 per year in seed money to assist in: seeding the establishment of an emerging organization; covering the general operating costs of an existing organization or a specific project; covering expenses that help an organization accomplish a specific campaign or project. Training & Technical Assistance -- These grants provide financial support of $600 to $5,000 per year to: facilitate project-specific training; pay for experts and special consultants; and/or provide for other organizational capacity building needs to participate in or acquire new skills through regional workshops, national forums and special conferences. Mini-Grants -- These grants are offered to community-based projects. Applications may be submitted at any time as a one or two-page letter with a budget, and do not require a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt certification or fiscal sponsor. Mini-Grants range from $50 to $500. Mini-Grants are not given to individuals.

INFORMATION: Seventh Generation Fund, ATTN: Grant Committee, P.O. Box 4569 , Arcata , CA 95518 , 707-825-7640 or 866-335-7113.Web: http://www.7genfund.org/application2004-05.pdf

Disabled Surfer IT

2008-04-03T09:15:00.000-07:00

INTRODUCTION

Since the computer as we know it was first developed, man has dreamt of systems that can be operated by voice command. Science fiction has portrayed a future where users communicate with computers by voice, and generations have grown up expecting a new dawn whereby we speak and the computer speaks back. The days of communicating naturally with computers by speech, however, are not so far off. Recent technological developments have led to a new way of thinking about how we should interact with computers in general, with the development of the XML specification and the use of XML to develop applications for many types of data. In particular, Voice XML and Speech Application Language Tags (SALT) ( http://www.saltforum.org/ ) are technologies that could revolutionise navigation of computer systems.

Speech technology seems an ideal complement to web appliances. Advances in speech processing have already yielded for users a far more natural sounding voice reading web information. The incorporation of speech recognition can be an important source of user acceptance of any system. Teaching through the use of web pages has provided an alternative way of learning for many people including those who have a disability.

A severely physically disabled student may find it advantageous to study at home, but if the principal teaching medium is the web and the student is unable to independently navigate the pages of the site, then a barrier to learning exists. The provision of services such as audio transcription may depend on the number of students who require the service, and providing 100 students per year with an audio recording of the same course does have advantage in scale compared to a situation where there are only a few students in a course.

This paper reviews the technologies currently available for speech interaction with computers and suggests how the future of web navigation may benefit from these technologies. The paper also discusses the results obtained from evaluation of a voice navigatable website aimed at disabled users.

On A Roll

2008-04-03T08:55:00.001-07:00

Smith started On A Roll as a local AM radio program in Phoenix in 1992, expanding it to include more than 70 national stations in the next 11 years. In 1999, he spoke at the Congressional Black Caucus on disability issues for African Americans and started a Web-based discussion group to discuss unique cultural issues that face this “double minority” community. As seen in ON A ROLL, Smith was the lead torchbearer during the tenth anniversary celebration of the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) in 2000.

A 2002 inductee into the esteemed National Speakers Association, Smith has dedicated his career to increasing disability awareness through the media and public speaking. His work has resulted in significant national media exposure, including profiles on CBS's The Early Show and National Public Radio's All Things Considered, as well as articles in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Essence Magazine, and many others. Smith is currently the host of a new syndicated radio show called The Strength Coach.

NM Legislature Report

2008-04-03T08:33:00.000-07:00

TONS of Story Ideas here!

This message is from Ellen Pinnes and The Disability Coalition.

Jim Jackson's post-session legislative report. The report summarizes the legislation of interest to the disability community that passed, as well as those measures that did not. Memorials are final once passed by the legislature and don't require action by the governor. Bills can be signed or vetoed -- the governor has until March 5 to act.

DISABILITY ISSUES IN THE 2008 LEGISLATURE

END-OF-SESSION REPORT

By Jim Jackson, Executive Director

PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEM

February 18, 2008

Legislators Have Gone Home …. For Now. The 2008 legislative session came to a close last Thursday, having finished its principal work of adopting a state budget but leaving aside many of the other items that consumed so many hours of debate and discussion. The governor’s health care proposal, for instance, was substantially changed as it moved through committees and was ultimately tabled along with a competing health care authority proposal as well as a “single payer” approach. Domestic partnerships, transition to electronic medical records, and political ethics reforms, all sought by the governor, were left undone. So was a proposal to overhaul the funding formula used to allocate money to the public schools. Governor Richardson has already stated that he will call the legislature back into special session to deal with health care, but it is far from clear that this will produce the results he wants.

Good Results. This was a pretty good session for persons with disabilities. Legislators addressed the waiting lists for Medicaid waiver programs by adding $4 million to the DD waiver program and $750,000 to the D&E waiver. They added $1 million for the FIT early intervention program, provided start-up operational funding for the Native American Independent Living program, and added over $90 million in new funding to the basic Medicaid program. They insisted on greater accountability in the managed behavioral health program (Value Options), and called on the state to respond to the disability community’s concerns over plans to move many long-term service programs into a managed care environment.

The state budget has already been signed by the governor, with certain line-item vetoes, but some of the other bills passed are still awaiting action by the governor, who can either sign or veto them. Memorials passed by the legislature are complete and do not require action by the governor.

Here’s a brief review of disability-related legislation that passed in this session, a final accounting of additions to disability programs in the state budget, and a list of the substantive bills and memorials that didn’t pass.

BILLS AND MEMORIALS THAT PASSED IN 2008
H 181 Behavioral Health Collaborative Reforms. Rep. Lucky Varela. This bill requires the state purchasing collaborative to 1) submit a combined behavioral health budget that identifies the part of each participating agency’s budget that flows through the collaborative for behavioral health services, 2) develop and issue regulations on quality standards and performance measures, and 3) provide regular performance reports to the legislature.

H 364 Children’s Mental Health/DD Code. Rep. Rick Miera. This bill makes a number of technical amendments to the Code, which was significantly revised last year. A few minor glitches in the language of the Code were identified and are corrected by this bill.

HM 4 Medicaid Recertification Pilot Project. Rep. Danice Picraux. This memorial calls on the Human Services Department to report data related to its current pilot project to simplify the Medicaid eligibility recertification project, and to refrain from “autoclosure” of cases.

HM 16 Address Concerns in Managed Long-term Services Program (“CLTS”). Rep. Jim Trujillo. The final version of this memorial, based on negotiations with ALTSD and HSD, describes the concerns of advocates and providers about the state’s plan to move most Medicaid long-term services into managed care, and asks the state to address these concerns prior to implementation of the program. The memorial also calls for meaningful consultation with advocates and providers, and for progress reports to interim legislative committees.

HM 34 Anti-depressant Task Force and Study. Rep. Tom Anderson. This memorial calls on the Health Policy Commission to convene a task force to study the possible correlation between certain anti-depressants and suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

S 145 Cap on Due Process Hearing Reimbursements. Sen. Cynthia Nava. This bill reduces the maximum insurance reimbursement a school district can receive to cover the costs of a due process hearing, to $100,000. If there is not enough funding from premiums paid by the schools to cover all reimbursement requests, payments can be reduced proportionally.

S 355 Raising Income Limits for Property Tax Freeze. Sen. John Ryan. This bill provides that homeowners who receive Social Security benefits on the basis of disability, or who are determined “totally disabled” under a Worker’s Compensation claim, are exempt from increases in property taxes on their home if their income does not exceed 235% of the federal poverty level. This is a significantly higher eligibility level for this benefit than in existing law.

SM 9 Anti-depressant Task Force and Study. Sen. Joe Carraro. Same as HM 34.

SM 10 Medicaid Recertification Pilot Project. Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino. Same as HM 4.

SM 17 Address Concerns in Managed Long-term Services Program (“CLTS”). Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino. Same as HM 16.

SJM 9. Monitor Pre-special-education Services. Sen. Cynthia Nava. This memorial calls upon the Public Education Department to monitor the implementation of the “response to intervention” approach by school districts and to evaluate the impact that this approach has on the academic progress of students and on the identification of students as needing special education and related services. This approach requires schools to use specific intervention methods for students with academic delays, and refer for special education assessment and services only if this intervention fails.

SJM 31 Behavioral Health caucus. Sen. Mary Kay Papen. Calls on the legislature itself to form a behavioral health caucus of Senators and Representatives interested in substance abuse and mental health, with the goal of increasing legislators’ knowledge regarding mental health issues and hopefully resulting in increased appropriations for mental health services.

THE FINAL STATE BUDGET
HB 2 General Appropriations Act. This is the bill that funds the main operating budget for all state agencies. The list below focuses on the changes to the state agency budgets that affect programs serving persons with disabilities.

Medicaid. There is over $92 million in additional state money (which will generate another $230 million in federal funding) for the Medicaid program, but this is about $10 million short of the amount requested by the governor and as much as $30 million less than what HSD now thinks may be needed in the coming year. However, there is considerable controversy over these budget projections, because HSD’s estimates are based on projected growth in enrollment that many legislators (and others) believe are too optimistic.
Developmental Disabilities. $4 million more to reduce the waiting list for DD waiver services, and $1 million for FIT early intervention services. Another $750,000 was added to the budget to provide rate increases for agencies providing services through state funds (not Medicaid), but this provision was vetoed by the governor.
Long-Term Services. $750,000 to reduce the waiting list for the D&E waiver program, plus funding to pay for 6 new employees at ALTSD to oversee the new managed long-term services program called CLTS (which is scheduled to begin July 1), and funding for 3 new staff positions to manage Mi Via, the self-directed waiver.
Brain Injury. $600,000 to HSD for outreach and services to veterans with behavioral health issues, including TBI or post-traumatic stress syndrome. HB 2 also includes language allowing any unspent FY 08 funds that were earmarked for persons with brain injuries in the Mi Via waiver to be transferred to the state TBI Trust Fund. A significant portion of the $1.9 million earmarked for TBI/Mi Via will not be spent this year because of slow and limited enrollment.
Mental Health. $500,000 for state-wide mental health services, and $350,000 for a mental health triage center in Dona Ana County.
Independent Living. 1) $105,000 for initial operational expenses of a Native American Independent Living program. 2) Authorization for a full-time position at GCD to provide an adaptive driver-training program. An additional $2,000 for this program was included in SB 165 (see below).
Miscellaneous. 1) $150,000 for additional legal services to low income New Mexicans. 2) $267,000 in additional funding for the DD Planning Council for guardianship services provided by its contractors. 3) Reimbursements to public schools for the cost of certain services provided to home-schooled special education students were funded with an appropriation of $160,000, but this funding was vetoed by the governor. 4) An appropriation of $100,000 to ALTSD for the purpose of studying and promoting the use of “microboards” as an alternative to guardianships was also vetoed.

SB 165 (“HB 2 Junior”). Supplemental Appropriations. This bill provided an opportunity for each legislator as well as Governor Richardson to spend a little money on their favorite programs or local or statewide needs. Several disability programs have received funding in this bill, which has been signed into law by the governor with some line-item vetoes. The bill includes:

$171,700 to NMSU for speech/language pathology and autism outreach services
$50,000 to GCD for community outreach for deaf persons.
$50,000 to the Roswell branch campus of Eastern New Mexico University for counseling and other services for students in the special services program
$40,000 to HSD for behavioral health and support services to Native Americans in northwestern New Mexico.
$30,000 to Santa Fe Community College for a sign language interpreting program
$25,000 for rehabilitation training at the Commission for the Blind
$25,000 to ALTSD for a brain injury clubhouse program
$25,000 to CYFD for a program in Dexter for children and young adults with autism spectrum disorder, including staff training.
$20,000 to DOH for telehealth psychiatry in the Carlsbad area
$20,000 to New Mexico State University to expand the communication disorders (S/LP) training program
$20,000 to DOH for a residential summer camp for children with autism
$20,000 to the General Services Department for a full-time employee to implement the State Use Act.
$20,000 to DFA to develop and implement an early childhood program for hearing-impaired children in Bernalillo County.
$15,000 to HSD for a clubhouse rehabilitation and socialization program for persons with mental illness
$15,000 to DOH for a horseback riding program for special needs children
$15,000 to DOH for Special Olympics in the city of Las Vegas.
$10,000 to the 13th judicial district for mental health court
$10,000 to the School for the Blind and Visually Impaired for the low-vision clinic.
$7,000 to PED for the Fiesta Educativa conference in the Gadsden area
$2,000 to ALTSD for a traumatic brain injury awareness program.
$2,000 to GCD for an adaptive driver’s training program for seniors and persons with disabilities.
$1,000 to DOH for autism spectrum disorder groups and/or diagnostic services
BILLS AND MEMORIALS THAT FAILED TO PASS
(Other than appropriation requests)

Medicaid
H 182 Medicaid application and retention. Rep. Lucky Varela. This bill would have directed HSD to simplify the Medicaid enrollment process, and prohibited HSD from using “autoclosure”, the process through which many Medicaid recipients are automatically dropped from Medicaid if they have not been re-certified by an HSD caseworker by the time their eligibility period ends, regardless of whether they have submitted information that has not yet been processed.

H 268 Medicaid cost-sharing. Rep. Keith Gardner. This bill would have established cost-sharing requirements for Medicaid recipients, including monthly premiums and co-pays for medications and emergency room visits.

Mental Health
HJM 27 Behavioral health legislative caucus. Rep. Ed Sandoval. Same as SJM 31, which did pass.

SJM 15 Crisis residential treatment services. Sen. Steven Komadina. This memorial asked HSD to study a plan to implement a system of response to and short-term treatment of persons suffering psychiatric crises who do not present a danger to themselves or others, and to report the results of the study by the end of the year.

Education/Higher Education

H 23 Definition of related services. Rep Bobby Gonzales. This bill would have added a definition of related services as used to determine special education funding allotments to public schools.

H 241 Public school funding formula changes. Rep. Mimi Stewart. This bill, based on the work of a task force over the past two years, would have made significant changes to the public school funding formula, including setting one fixed payment rate per student regardless of the level of disability, and determining special education funding based on exactly 16% of the overall student population regardless of actual enrollment numbers in special education. The bill also would have made changes to other existing special education law, particularly with respect to students served in residential treatment centers. The bill was amended to provide that implementation of the proposed new formula would not happen until new funding mechanisms are authorized that produce over $300 million per year.

H 414 Special Education in Residential Treatment Centers. Rep. Thomas Garcia. This bill attempted to clarify which school district is responsible for special education services when a child is placed in a residential treatment center.

Health Care Reform
H 62 Health Care Reform Package. Rep. John Heaton. This was the governor’s health care reform proposal, which would establish a health care authority whose members he would appoint, require New Mexico residents to show proof of insurance, assess businesses for part of the cost of insuring employees not covered by the business, require insurance companies to accept applicants without regard to pre-existing conditions (although a six-month waiting period and higher premiums would be allowed), and mandate those companies to spend at least 87.5% of their premium income on health care services. The individual insurance mandate and employer assessment were dropped from the bill as it passed through committees.

H 147 Health Care Authority. Rep. Danice Picraux. This alternate proposal also would have created a health care authority, but its members would be more independent. The authority would be charged with developing a health coverage plan, including financing mechanisms, by January 2009. This bill did not include some of the other features of the governor’s plan.

H 588 Access to Quality Universal Health Insurance. Rep. Moe Maestas. Same as S 377 (see below).

S 3 Health Security Act. Sen. Carlos Cisneros. This proposal, usually referred to as the “single payer” model, would also establish a public health care authority, but would further create a health care system accessible to all residents. Most New Mexicans would be put into a single “pool”, and the authority would determine health benefits to be covered, provider payment rates, etc. The state would be the single payer of bills for services provided, without going through health insurance companies.

S 225 Health Care Authority. Sen. Dede Feldman. Same as H 147.

S 377 Access to Quality Universal Health Insurance. Sen. Michael Sanchez. This alternative proposal would have required that all state residents above 400% of the poverty level have health insurance and that insurers cover everyone who seeks to purchase insurance, and would have prohibited exclusions for pre-existing conditions. Insurers would have to spend at least 90% of premium revenue on direct health care services. A premium assistance program would be developed for residents with income less than 400% FPL.

Miscellaneous
H382 Tax deduction for long-term care premiums. Rep. Gail Chasey. This bill would have allowed state tax payers to deduct from their taxable income the cost of premiums paid for long-term care insurance. This approach subsidizes middle and upper income individuals who can afford such policies and there is some debate as to whether this is the best use of public funds in addressing the increased need for long-term care services.

S 511 License plates for persons with disabilities. Sen. James Taylor. This bill would have authorized a one-time $100 fee for a disability license plate (allowing the car to be parked in handicap-accessible parking spaces). $80 of each fee would go to the Governor’s Commission on Disability to support their programs.

ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS REPORT

State Agencies:

ALTSD Aging and Long Term Services Department

CYFD Children, Youth and Families Department

DDPC Developmental Disabilities Planning Council

DFA Department of Finance and Administration

DOH Department of Health

GCD Governor’s Commission on Disability

HSD Human Services Department

PED Public Education Department

Health Insurance

2008-04-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

The event listed is over, but the program is not.

New 1-888-997-2583
MexiKids
¡Cobertura de Salud
Sin Costo o a Bajo Costo es
Disponible para USTED!
¡Bien salud mañana
comienza HOY!
Apliquen:
Para matricular, usted necesitará traer:
Prueba de la partida del acta nacimiento
(documento original)
Prueba de identificación
Numero de Seguro Social
Prueba de ingresos de las últimas 4
semanas
Prueba de seguro de médico adicional
(si tiene)
Los Programas son para:
NIÑOS (0-19)
ADULTOS (19-64)
EMBARAZO
NEGOCIOS PEQUEÑOS
ORGANIZACIÓN NO LUCRATIVA
1 de abril 2008
4:00pm-7:00pm
Santa Fe
Boys & Girls Club
730 Alto Street Santa Fe, NM

New 1-888-997-2583
MexiKids
No Cost or Low Cost
Health Insurance is
Available to YOU!
A healthy tomorrow
starts TODAY!
Apply:
What you need to bring:
Original Birth Certificate
Proof of Identity
Proof of Past 4 Weeks of
Income
Social Security Number
Proof of other Health Insurance
you may have
Programs available for:
ADULTS (19-64)
CHILDREN (0-18)
MATERNITY
SMALL BUSINESSES
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
April 1st, 2008
4:00pm-7:00pm
Santa Fe
Boys & Girls Club
730 Alto Street Santa Fe, NM

Stories Wanted

2008-04-03T08:05:00.000-07:00

-- Health Action
New Mexico wants to hear from you. If you, a family member, a relative or a friend have suffered serious adverse health consequences caused by a delay in diagnosis or treatment because of a lack of insurance or other health care access issue, please email peterrinn at healthactionnm dot org with your story. Please list a phone number for follow-up purposes if necessary. We will not publish names unless we receive specific permission to use them. We want to build a story bank with, at least, one hundred of your experiences by May 31st. But, we can't do it without your help. Also, we are looking for incidences where people have, unfortunately and unnecessarily, died or suffered life threatening consequences because of a lack of access to health care. Your stories will make a difference -please send in today. Please let us know ASAP if you have such a story. We are looking for 1-2 people that would be willing to participate in a national press teleconference on March 26th and tell their story. Together We Can

Senate Budget

2008-04-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

'09 Budget On Senate Floor Starting March 10, 2008 -

To All Senators to Support Sanders Amendment Here is the link to the letter: http://capwiz.%20com/cek/issues/%20alert/?alertid=

The Senate is beginning debate on the FY'09 Senate Budget Resolution , March 10, 2008. Remember, later this year, Appropriations Committees can only recommend program funding levels based on the amount available in the '09 Budget. Therefore, it is critical that this Budget include necessary funds to ensure adequate funding for IDEA. We are very pleased that Senator Bernard Sanders (I-VT) will be submitting an amendment to the Senate Budget Resolution to add $10 billion to IDEA as part of a $32.5 billion redirection of national priorities.

The amendment will be voted on early this week. ITCA has spoken with the Senator's staff to ask that the language in the amendment specifically mention the importance of the early childhood programs under IDEA (Part C and Preschool). Please take the time today to contact both your Senators and ask them to support Senator Sander's amendment. Note the amendment also includes important funds for Head Start and Child Care. See the fact Sheet from Senator Sander's below. You can easily go to the CEC Legislative Action Center and send a prepared letter directly from you to both your Senators by adding your name and zip code. Here is the link to the letter: http://capwiz.%20com/cek/issues/%20alert/?alertid=

This is a potential benefit to our New Mexico Family, Infant, and Toddler (FIT) Program. The FIT Program is funded through Part C of IDEA. If the federal government paid the 40% of the program that they promised to pay, we would be in better shape. Currently, the feds pay about 17% of the cost and the states pay the balance when the money is available. The New Mexico FIT Program projected a needed increase of $5.5 million for next fiscal year. We received $1 million. This is the money needed to fund the 2003 cost study. If the feds paid their 40%, the state wouldn't need to put up that much money.

FACT SHEET ON SANDERS AMENDMENT TO THE BUDGET RESOLUTION

Senator Sanders will be offering an amendment to the Budget Resolution to put our nation's children ahead of millionaires and billionaires.Specifically, the Sanders amendment would restore the top income tax bracket to 39.6 percent for households earning more than $1 million per year, and use that revenue to begin to address the most urgent unmet needs of our children; job creation; and deficit reduction.According to the Joint Tax Committee, restoring the top income tax bracket for people making more than $1 million to what it was in 2000 would increase revenue by $32.5 billion over the next three years, including $10.8 billion in fiscal year 2009 alone.Instead of giving $32.5 billion in tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires, my amendment would invest this money in the following areas over the next three years:

· $10 billion for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to help about seven million children with disabilities and allow states to reduce property taxes.
· $5 billion for Head Start -- a program which has been cut by over 11% compared to FY 2002. Today, less than half of all eligible children are enrolled in Head Start and only about 3 percent of all eligible children are enrolled in Early Head Start. This amendment would begin to correct this situation.
· $4 billion for the Child Care Development Block Grant. Today, only about one in seven eligible children are able to receive federal child care assistance due to a lack of funding. Already, 250,000 fewer children receive child care assistance today than they did in 2000. This amendment would begin to address this inequity.
· $3 billion for school construction. According to the most recent estimates, schools across the country have a $100 billion backlog in needed school repairs. $3 billion is a small, but important step to help school districts across this country to repair our crumbling schools and create tens of thousands of jobs for painters, carpenters, electricians, and construction workers.
· $4 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) so that low-income families with children, seniors on fixed incomes, and persons with disabilities will be able to stay warm in the winter. After adjusting for energy prices and inflation, LIHEAP has been cut by 34.5 percent or $1.3 billion compared to FY '02. This amendment would begin to reverse this trend
· $3 billion for Food Stamps so that we can begin to reduce the growing number of children and adults that are living with food insecurity; and
$3 billion to reduce the deficit.

Long-Term Care

2008-04-03T07:27:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

This message is from Ellen Pinnes and The Disability Coalition.

This is an update on what's going on with development of the Coordinated Long-Term Services (CLTS) Medicaid managed long-term care program that the state plans to implement later this year. As you know, the Legislature passed House Memorial 16, sponsored by Rep. Jim Trujillo, and Senate Memorial 17, sponsored by Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, which call on the Human Services Department (HSD) and the Aging and Long-Term Services Department (ALTSD) to:

1) address concerns about CLTS before implementing the program,
2) engage in regular and meaningful consultation with provider and consumer representatives regarding design of the program, and
3) report regularly to the Legislative Health and Human Services Committee (LHHS) and the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) on progress in addressing concerns about CLTS, and provide data about the program.

The concerns listed in the memorial include:

1) whether there will be adequate community services waiver slots in CLTS,
2) whether eligibility rules will limit access to community services.
3) how Money Follows the Person will be implemented,
4) whether rates paid to the managed care organizations (MCOs) will be adequate,
5) whether the way the rates are structured will provide incentives for the MCOs to serve people in the community rather than in institutional care, and
6) whether the program will reduce waitlists and waiting times to receive community services.

Representatives of The Disability Coalition met last week with ALTSD secretary Cindy Padilla and members of her staff to begin the "meaningful consultation" process called for in the legislative memorials. We had asked that HSD representatives also participate, but ALTSD didn't invite them so they weren't there. The meeting was very preliminary, and we haven't yet firmed up a process for continuing the consultation. The two agencies will be having a planning meeting on CLTS later this month, and Secretary Padilla seemed reluctant to commit to any particular consultation process until after that happens and she has conferred with HSD. The state agencies have indicated that they still plan to begin implementing CLTS in July, so the consultation needs to move forward soon.

LHHS won't have its first meeting until late June, but we're hoping that the LFC, which starts its meetings earlier, will schedule an oversight hearing on CLTS in May. That will be about three months after the end of the legislative session and less than two months before CLTS is scheduled to begin, so it's an appropriate time to check in and see whether the state is in fact engaging in meaningful consultation and taking steps to address the issues raised in the memorials.

In the meantime, if you haven't already contacted your own senator and representative to let them know that you're concerned about CLTS and want the Legislature to exercise continuing oversight of the program's development and implementation, I encourage you to do so now. Contact information for all members of the Legislature is available on the legislative website at http://www.legis.state.nm.us/ -- click on "Find Your Legislator" on the left side of the homepage, select your senator's or representative's name, and they'll give you addresses and phone numbers. (If you don't know who your legislators are, you can find out through the "Find Your Legislator" section of the site.)

Thanks for making the voice of the disability community heard!

Medicaid Changes

2008-04-03T07:20:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!

Thousands of Medicaid beneficiaries who were previously limited to receiving care in an institutional setting may now be given the option to receive that care in their homes and communities, under a proposed rule published today by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)....

Under the proposed rule, states would no longer have to apply for a waiver to provide HCBS to Medicaid beneficiaries. Under the DRA, states only need an approved state plan amendment (SPA) satisfying the DRA criteria.

Once approved by CMS, the SPA does not need to be renewed nor is it subject to some of the same requirements of waivers such as budget neutrality. ...Proposed rule at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidGenInfo/Downloads/CMS2249P.pdf

PUBLIC COMMENT NEEDED on New Rules from CMS which will allow for greater flexibility in providing community long term services and supports.

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidGenInfo/Downloads/CMS2249P.pdf

You can view the proposed rule at the above website.

Insurance WebCast

2008-04-03T06:51:00.000-07:00

Story Idea! We could record the webcast!

Please join the DBTAC - Southwest ADA Center at ILRU for a webcast on “Insurance Coverage: Issues, Strategies and Solutions”.

Beth Sufian, J.D., will present the webcast on “Insurance Coverage: Issues, Strategies and Solutions” Wednesday, April 9, 2008 at 2:00pm Central.

About the Webcast
Beth's presentation will provide information on options for health insurance coverage or government benefits. The presentation will also provide information on COBRA, FMLA and address issues faced by parents of children with disabilities

About the Presenter
Beth Sufian is an attorney with Sufian & Passamano in Houston , Texas . She has a civil litigation practice focusing on health insurance appeals, long term disability appeals, Medicaid and Medicare appeals, employee benefits, and cases arising under the Social Security Act. She represents employers and healthcare entities with matters related to insurance and employee benefits.
Sufian received her law degree from the University of Texas - Austin and her Bachelor of Arts from Emory University in Atlanta , Georgia . She is the director of the Cystic Fibrosis Legal Information Hotline and Cystic Fibrosis Social Security Project and serves on the boards of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and United States Adult Cystic Fibrosis Association. She has been honored as one of the Top 40 Lawyer under 40 by Texas Monthly and was recognized as a Time Magazine Local Hero.

To link to this webcast and download accompanying materials visit our webcast calendar at http://www.ilru.org/html/training/webcasts/calendar.html

For instructions on how to access a webcast visit: http://www.ilru.org/html/training/webcasts/instructions.html
Please visit this site ahead of time to test and ensure your computer is configured and updated to participate in the webcast.

For technical assistance, please check out our FAQs (frequently asked questions) at: http://www.ilru.org/html/training/webcasts/FAQ.html
or contact a webcast team member at http://us.f335.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=webcast@ilru.org or 713.520.0232 (v/tty).

This webcast is supported through the DBTAC - Southwest ADA Center , a project of ILRU. Southwest ADA Center (http://www.southwestada.org/) is one of ten Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs) funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) to provide training, technical assistance and materials dissemination on the ADA and other disability-related laws. NIDRR is part of the U.S. Department of Education.

The opinions and views expressed are those of the presenters and no endorsement by the funding agency should be inferred.

We hope to see you on Wednesday, April 9, 2008!

Conference on Disability

2008-04-03T06:24:00.000-07:00

Anybody want to participate in the Conference, doing a presentation on PWD Powered Radio?

Anybody want to cover the events?

Call for Participation

The Southwest Conference on Disability, now in its tenth year,
invites you to submit a proposal for the 2008 conference.

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS MAY 30, 2008

For more information or to submit a proposal visit the conference website
http://cdd.unm.edu/swconf/

E-mail: swdisabilityconference at salud.unm.edu Phone: (505) 272-6247 Fax: (505) 272-9594

2008 Conference Themes:

Opening Opportunities

Supporting Wounded Warriors:
Meeting the Needs of Veterans with Disabilities

Support for At-Risk Families when Parents Have Cognitive Disabilities

Session proposals may be one of four types:

􀂋 Traditional breakout sessions highlight new or
emerging research findings or promising new
programs or policies.

􀂋 Roundtables are moderated, semi-structured
sessions that avoid lengthy formal presentations
and focus on moderated discussion and debate.

􀂋 Interactive Workshops are hands-on learning opportunities
focused on a particular topical area or
need.

􀂋 Poster Presentation - on Thursday, October 2nd
there will be a 1½-hour poster session. See the
conference web site for more details.

April Homework

2008-04-03T05:52:00.000-07:00

Homework is to try to access Audacity audio editing freeware & play with it (see post in this blog).

Also, try to write at least 1 page, double spaced, of copy for a news story idea to bring to next month's meeting.

Also, try to bring ONE FRIEND!

Also, we'll have a word doc soon that can be printed as a flier for distribution in the community.

Tell your friends! PWD Powered Radio is here!

May Meeting

2008-04-03T05:47:00.000-07:00

Our next ORGANIZATIONAL meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 6 at 4pm in the Conference Room of KUNM.

Check the homework post, so you know what to bring.

KUNM is located on the 3rd floor of Onate Hall on the UNM Camups, at the southwest corner of Girard and Campus.

Doors on the southwest side of the building are accessible and there is a ramp.

The elevator to the third floor is located in the southeast corner of the building.

The Conference Room is located at the southeast corner of the third floor.

People with "handicapped" placards can park for free in the lot. All others must find parking on the streets in the surrounding neighborhood. It's best to come early; parking is at a premium.

Caregivers' Workshop

2008-04-03T05:23:00.000-07:00

Story Idea!
.---------- Forwarded message ----------From: Liz Thomson
leonliz at comcast dot net

leonliz at comcast dot net

Date: Wed, Apr 2, 2008 at 6:35 PMSubject: [asdNMore] A workshop on aging caregivers of adults with dsabilities

FYI: May 10th Workshop - * ** *_Aging Caregivers of Adults with Disabilities_* The day will focus on elders who care for persons with mental, physical and emotional disabilities and the support services available to them in our community. __._,_.___

FIELD TRIP!

2008-04-03T05:18:00.000-07:00

I'm going to ask Tristan Clum (Production) and Jim Williams (News) if we can borrow some field recording equipment, meet at the event, record some sound and edit it later. If you'd like to attend, please post reply to this blog. I'll need to know how many will come, to justify checking out equipment.

Just in from Glen Ford of the Brain Injury Association of New Mexico:

Rogi,
Someone from the brain injury community needs to be advocating for awareness of the cross over and miss-diagnosis within the two populations: Brain Injury and Mental Health. Now here is an issue that is huge!! Brain Injury is all about Mental Health (not necessarily "Mental Illness"...) linked directly to Behavioral Health.
Know anyone interested? Might also make for a good story or two.
Glenn
~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Hello everyone, UNM Student Health Center is having Mental Health Awareness Day on April 23rd from 10am to 1pm in the SUBPlaza. The main purpose of this event is to increase theawareness of mental disorders and to lessen the stigmacommonly associated with them. Attached is the event flyerand invitation letter. If your organization is interestedin participating or you would like more information,please contact the event coordinator, Christine Tally, at(505)-277-8563 or (505)-450-8402 or by e-mail atctally1@unm.edu. Thank you and we hope to hear from yousoon.
Sarah AbramsPeer EducatorUNM Student Health Center

Blog

2008-04-03T05:16:00.000-07:00

We have a BLOG! http://pwdradio.blogspot.com/

TELL PEOPLE!

It is set up so anyone can make comments, but they'll be moderated to keep the spammers and weirdos out.

Scroll down to see a list of very useful links!

A few great things about the blog:

We're signed up for Google AdSense, an advertising program by which we can generate revenue when visitors surf to our advertisers! May not be much (depending on traffic), but it can't hurt.

Also: Blogger allows for video! It's not complicated, if the videos aren't too long.

We can also PodCast, if we can find a free PodCast hosting site! That means people can hear & see what we produce!

And, of course, we can post photos!

Audacity

2008-04-03T04:48:00.000-07:00

Ok, we have homework!

Let's see, first, if everybody can get to this URL: A review of Audacity & links to everything:http://transom.org/tools/editing_mixing/200404.audacity.html

Now, can you download Audacity to your computer and open it?

If you can, follow the Transom tutorials to get started.

Go find a sound file. It needs to be in wav format.

Can you put it into Audacity?

Can you mess around with it, cut things, rearrange things and put it back together in a new form?

How do you get to Community Radio?

PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE!

post comments

1st Meeting

2008-04-03T04:13:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all who attended our first meeting on April 1! It's a very diverse and talented group. We had 14 attendees.

People With Disabilities Radio Organizational Meeting

April is Public Radio Recognition Month!

The first organizational meeting for PWD (people with disabilities) Powered Radio was held on Tuesday, April 1 from 1-3 pm in the Conference Room of the studios of KUNMfm. We hope to meet once a month, thereafter.

PWD Powered Radio is a cooperative of people with disabilities or those who care about us. We are interested in producing radio and podcast news stories by, for and about people with disabilities. No experience with radio, sound editing or news writing is required. Training will be provided. Our greatest needs are commitment and people with all sorts of talents, not just radio production. The only limit is imagination. Given the new, digital technologies, almost anybody can produce radio, as long as they have a computer, software, a recorder and a microphone. I produce most of my stories in my home, in my pajamas, at my own schedule. This meeting is an opportunity to meet each other, learn each other's interests and commitment, discuss the possibilities for "satellite" production facilities off-campus, discuss story ideas, discuss free audio editing software for computers and brainstorm fundraising for equipment and supplies.

If you have equipment, software, etc., we want to know! Feel free to bring along samples of your: writing, recordings, etc. and also any assistive technologies or assistants you require.

If you cannot attend but are interested in participating, please contact me. We will try to make all materials available to you.

KUNMfm is listener supported and volunteer programmed, serving Central and Northern New Mexico on the air and the whole world on the 'net. Their website is: http://kunm.org/

KUNMfm's fundraiser will take place April 5 -11. If you’d like to help answer phones and take pledges, contact Rachel Kaub, the Operations Manager. You can email her operations at kunm dot org or phone: two seven seven - four five one six for details about becoming a KUNM volunteer, or to ask about attending the next General Orientation on Sunday, July 13, 2008, from 2 until 3:30 p.m. Participation in the fundraiser is not a requirement for participation in PWD Powered Radio activities, but it sure wouldn't make us look bad, either.

The General Orientation is an introduction for anyone interested in volunteering at KUNM. Once you have been selected for particular duties at KUNM, we will provide any training required for you to succeed in your new position. Training classes will be held for six Saturdays, beginning July 19, from 4 - 5:30 pm. You MUST make arrangements with Rachel for these.

KUNM is located on the 3rd floor of Onate Hall on the UNM Camups, at the southwest corner of Girard and Campus. Doors on the southwest side of the building are accessible and there is a ramp.

The elevator to the third floor is located in the southeast corner of the building.

The Conference Room is located at the southeast corner of the third floor. People with "handicapped" placards can park for free in the lot. All others must find parking on the streets in the surrounding neighborhood. It's best to come early; parking is at a premium.

Refreshments weren't provided, this time, but we'll have better luck in the future.

Comment to Blog if you'd like to help with this.