Winter
2003, Volume4
by Susan McCormack,
CDPAP Program Manager/Provider
Relations
LICIL’s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance
Program (CDPAP) recently celebrated its 4th Anniversary. For those of you not familiar with this
program, CDPAP is an alternative home care program that empowers individuals
with disabilities by allowing them increased control over their personal care
assistance. Individuals who are not
self-directing must have someone who will assume this responsibility.
In Nassau County the
Department of Social Services informs Medicaid eligible consumers receiving
home care services of the CDPAP option.
An assessment by the consumer’s doctor is completed, and then an in-home
assessment is done by a DSS Nurse who determines eligibility and hours of
service.
Individuals
who are eligible for CDPAP are able to hire, train and supervise their personal
assistants. LICIL acts as the employer
of record. This means we pay the personal assistants, make sure that all
required payroll taxes, as well as workman’s compensation and disability insurances
are paid. LICIL manages these
administrative issues, but the consumer is actually the employer, who
supervises and directs his/her employee (personal assistant/s).
In July, LICIL moved its CDPAP
offices to suite 500 to accommodate the program’s growth. Many consumers find CDPAP to be just the
ingredient needed to enhance their independence. If this program is of interest to you, please call 516-796-0144
and ask to speak with me, Susan McCormack or Maria Jolly. If you know someone who would be interested
in CDPAP ask them to give us a call.
Social
Security’s Plan for Achieving Self Support (PASS) is a program that can allow
people receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI), to work toward a career
goal, earn income, accrue savings above the normal allowed limits under SSI,
and all it takes is a bit of work and some good old fashioned creativity. As LICIL’s Director of Counseling, I am
available to offer guidance in this area.
PASS Plans require a person with a disability to set up a
budget to show how they are meeting their monthly financial obligation (bills,
food costs, etc.) on a SSI income, while setting earned income, SSDI benefits
or other sources of income into their PASS account. They have to set up a plan that is feasible and realistic for
them to achieve, and that will ultimately help them to live independently. SSI is interested in approving PASS Plans
that ultimately result in people becoming successful through working and
thereby needing SSI’s support less.
If you have a career goal, i.e. I want to be a nurse, or a data
entry worker, or something else, please contact me at 516-796-0144 for more
information and support. PASS application forms can be obtained through the
Internet at
www.SSA.gov/forms. I look
forward to working with you in developing a PASS for your future.
ACTION ALERT! DO NOT DELAY!
Ø Are
you an individual with a disability receiving Medicare and struggling to pay
for prescription drugs?
Ø Have
you heard of a program called Elderly Prescription Insurance Coverage (EPIC)?
Ø Are
you aware that, even if you are a Medicare recipient, you are ineligible for
this valuable coverage if you are under the age of 65?
In an
effort to encourage significant change in the area of healthcare insurance
provision, LICIL is currently supporting a Petition designed to encourage
Governor Pataki and the New York State Legislature to expand EPIC coverage to
include persons with disabilities who are Medicare recipients.
A sample page of the Petition is included as an insert
in this edition of CENTERFOCUS. We
encourage you to make copies of the page and obtain as many signatures as you
can. If our state government is going
to take seriously the issue of citizens with disabilities who deserve better
medical coverage, action must be taken NOW!
You can make a difference by returning completed Petition pages to LICIL
no later than April 30, 2003.
If you are committed to getting this
vital message out to our lawmakers, please return Petition pages to:
LICIL, 3601 Hempstead Turnpike; Suite
500; Levittown, NY 11756.
Please
mark your envelopes ATTN: Therése E.
Aprile, Director of Systems Advocacy.
Any questions may be directed to
Therése at 516/796-0144 (Voice); or
516/796-0135
(TTY).
Your support is essential and appreciated. A special thanks goes out to those consumers who have been part
of the development and execution of this worthwhile initiative.
As
indicated by its subtitle, The Road to Equal Access emphasizes
the critical role of partnership in the successful development of a most
inclusive environment for individuals with disabilities. Indeed, students must work in tandem
with faculty and administrators if the intended goal is to be realized.
University officials require student input, just as much as students with
disabilities deserve support from those who implement policies, teach courses,
and oversee student activities.
For
valuable data on a multitude of useful disability-related services, websites,
suggested reading and much more, the section entitled “Resources for Ready
Reference” is a must-see. As an
extension of the information provided within the booklet’s main text, this
section offers additional direction to tried-and-true sources for further
exploration.
Although The Road to Equal Access is geared
toward educators on the college and university level, it has a tremendous
potential to benefit students who are considering college; high school faculty,
guidance counselors and social workers; and just about anyone with an interest
in the rights and responsibilities of students with disabilities.
Copies of The Road to Equal Access: A Partnership Between Students, Faculty and
Administrators are available for $1 per copy. For further information, or to place an order, please contact
Therése E. Aprile, M.A., Director of Systems Advocacy
at 516/796-0144.