DD Waiver Support Coordinators
ECNV is pleased to announce that they have recently been approved by the Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) to be Medicaid Support Coordinators for the Individual and Family Developmental Disabilities Support (IFDDS) Waiver, also known as the Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver.
The DD Waiver provides an array of services to individuals who are between 6 and 21 years of age and do not have an intellectual disability, but who have been determined to require the level of care provided in an Intermediate Care Facility. This determination is usually made through a screening process by the local Child Development Clinic in the area where one lives. It is noteworthy that an individual may be eligible for the Waiver at an age over 21, as long as the disability occurred before 21.
Layo Osiyemi and Hannah Manila will be the Support Coordinators for the DD Waiver program and will be responsible for the following:
Developing, coordinating, implementing, monitoring and modifying the Plan of Care with the individual and his/her family.
Linking individuals and their families to community resources, and other supports.
Services included under the DD Waiver include:
Assistive Technology, Companion Services (Agency or Consumer Directed), Crisis Stabilization, Crisis Supervision, Day Support, Family and Caregiver Training, Environmental Modifications, In-home Residential Support; Personal Care Services; Personal Emergency Response System (PERS); Prevocational Services; Respite Care (Agency or Consumer Directed); Skilled Nursing Services; Supported Employment; Therapeutic Consultation, and Transition Services.
Please note, ECNV continues to be Medicaid providers for service facilitation activities for the Elderly and Disabled with Consumer Direction (EDCD) waiver program.
For more information on either the IFDDS or EDCD Waiver programs, please contact Layo Osiyemi at (703) 525-3268 ext. 8005; layoo@ecnv.org or Hannah Manila at (703) 525-3268 ext. 8010; hannahm@ecnv.org.
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From the Editor
What’s in a name? The story on this page tells of ECNV’s approval to be Coordinators for the IFDDS Waiver. It’s also known as the DD Waiver so don’t get too confused!
Inside be sure to check out the story about hand controls in Zipcars on page 3. Advocacy cannot be stopped!
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Avoiding Do-Overs
In late August, having nothing better to do, I tuned into the first preseason game played at the Dallas Cowboys’ new stadium. Owner Jerry Jones was proudly showing off his new $1.3 billion dollar stadium with the huge 30 million dollar scoreboard hanging in the middle of the field. In the third quarter of the game, the Titans punter punted a ball to the Cowboys but the refs had to call for a do-over since the ball hit this new scoreboard (the punter had also done so three times in practice). The thought that came immediately to my mind was why didn’t Jerry and the architects check with a few punters before putting up such a monstrosity.
Even in my glee that the Cowboys and Jerry Jones had messed up (I root for the Redskins), the analogy was not to be lost. How often it happens with builders and architects that County Planning Commissions accept (for example, the original design of the Kettler Capitals Iceplex)designs of buildings, sidewalks, curb cuts, bus stops, etc. where the proper access for people with disabilities is dismissed in the designer’s eye because it had been surmised that, “this will work best for ‘them.’” Any wheelchair user, blind or deaf person, can see or hear about the design of any given structure and tell whether or not a person with a disability had been part of the decision-making process.
But not just structural design, we likewise have to be part of the design of laws in our state. As the VA General Assembly again gears up, we in turn will be there and ask others to join in our advocacy efforts in Richmond. Just as punters needs to be part of decisions affecting their part in the game, people with disabilities need to be a part of decisions affecting their lives. Both situations spell out the Independent Living mantra, nothing about us without us.
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News from LEND
At LEND, Fall is coming quickly. We are heavy into the Grant Funding cycle with two pre-grant meetings down and three more coming up. Our doors are opened and people are coming in with new challenges.
Since our Grand Opening in early June, we have received two to four information and referral calls almost daily. We look forward to further collaborations with human service providers as 2009 winds down.
In September we attended a Transition Fair at Loudoun County High School to offer teachers alternatives and options for their students before leaving High School. Both Elise and Bill made good contacts with other providers and lunch was okay, too.
On October 7th, there is a Disability Awareness Event LEND is planning to do at the AOL facility in Sterling. There is much to do out here as ‘we have built it (our satellite), and they (our consumers with disabilities) are coming.’
Loudoun ENDependence (LEND)
44121 Harry Byrd Hwy, Suite 240
Ashburn, VA 20147
571-291-9550 (Voice/Relay)
571-291-9552 (FAX)
billw@lend.ecnv.org
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Zipcar
After witnessing the proliferation of Zipcars on the local streets, advertisements for the 2000 lb. weight loss diet (lose the car) and my wheelchair van dying I thought, “Why not get a Zipcar membership?” It’s the perfect solution for those who need a car only occasionally. In the past I have rented cars with hand controls. Typically, I use a powerchair but I do have a TiLite with quick release wheels that I use when I travel.
I went to the Zipcar website (www.zipcar.com) to get an application but could find nothing about persons with disabilities and also found repeated warnings that animals could only be in the car if crated.
After writing to Zipcar to inquire about a membership for a car with hand controls, I received a written reply stating that this option was not available and was not under consideration for availability; it was, in fact, “not part of their business model.”
With the help of the Disability Rights Project of the Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, people with disabilities are now able to have a membership and have hand controls. Persons with disabilities can also now have a Zipcar membership even if they are not the driver (the designated driver will not be charged for an individual membership) and service animals are allowed in the car without penalty and without being crated.
Having a Zipcar membership, designated drivers, and hand controls has provided me with many opportunities for travel. If there is enough interest from the disability community we could explore the possibility of pursuing the idea of having a Zipcar wheelchair van!
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Travel Training Comes to ECNV!
ECNV is very excited about a two-year grant that they have been awarded to provide travel training on local transit systems (Metrorail, and bus systems).
Something important that has been missing is the ability to get personal one to one training over a longer period of time. The Comprehensive Individualized Level of Travel Training: A Regional Initiative (CIL Project) will give us the ability to fill that gap. The training will start where you begin your day, at your home. A travel trainer will ride with a participant to provide valuable feedback that can only come from being on the bus or at the Metro station with them.
ECNV is partnering with the D.C. Center for Independent Living, Independence Now of Maryland and WMATA to provide travel training for the Washington metropolitan area. Additional project associates will include other disability organizations in the Metro area.
This project is not quite ready to start but we are accepting names of individuals who are interested in going through the program as well as resumes of potential trainers. Contact Kimball Gray at ECNV for the details.
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Meet Our New Faces
Alexa Mavroidis
I'm native to this area, born in Arlington and lived here all my life. I have a Masters degree in Philosophy from Georgetown University.
I am excited to be a part of ECNV's staff. I have really enjoyed volunteering for ECNV in the past and am thrilled to be able to fully devote myself as a Peer Mentor to ECNV's mission of fostering and furthering independence in people's lives.
Tracee Garner
Tracee Garner joins LEND as Outreach Coordinator. Tracee is no stranger to advocacy, systems change and reaching out to others and helping them overcome barriers to employment, healthcare, higher education, transportation and numerous other barriers people with disabilities face.
A long-time Loudoun resident, Tracee has seen the County’s growth in recent years. Now, as a full-time employee, she will head up outreach initiatives and help LEND increase visibility in the community and partnerships with existing agencies and officials.
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