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July 2009, Volume 3 - Number 6 |
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On Saturday, November 7, 2009 Parent to Parent of Miami will host the 5th Annual Journey of Dreams Benefit, and will honor community members whose vision, leadership, and perseverance have significantly contributed to improving lives of children and adults with disabilities and their families. We believe that families are able to sustain their own hope and perseverance - knowing that so many others are working diligently to help transform their dreams for a better future into a reality.
Parent to Parent of Miami Congratulates Our 2009 Journey of Dreams Benefit Honorees!
Modesto E. Abety, Excellence in Family Advocacy Award
Bambi J. Lockman, Education Leadership Award
Patricia Mederos, Community Leadership Award |
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New Support Groups at Parent to Parent of Miami! |
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Starting this August, Parent to Parent of Miami's Executive Director Isabel Garcia will be conducting Support Groups in English and Spanish!
The English Support Group will be held the 3rd Tuesday of each month, from 10-12pm.
The Spanish Support Group will be held the 2nd Tuesday of each month, from 10-12pm.
Our Support Groups are a great way to share feelings and experiences with other parents of children with Special Needs.
We hope to see you there!
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NEWS YOU CAN USE
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Technology for Individuals with Special Needs/ BIG Button IPOD Remote
By R.J. Cooper and Associates
The BIG Button iPod Remote gives accessibility to iPod listening functions. This accessible control for iPods features a large green "play" button that is 1 � " and 4 smaller buttons that are 1 �". The smaller buttons control volume and allow the listener to select the previous or next song listed on the iPod. The buttons are raised and slightly convex.
The BIG Button iPod Remote also has switch inputs on the rear for performing button functions. The entire face of the Remote is angled at about 20 degrees. The BIG Button Remote weighs about 1 pound and the outer dimensions are 8" wide x 5" deep x 3" tall. Inside the Remote is an RF (radio frequency) remote - since it's not IR (InfraRed), it does not have to be lined up with the iPod.
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| MONEY MATTERS |
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New Lawsuit in Response to Medicaid Agency's Failure to Provide Diapers
Florida Legal Serivces (FLS), and Legal Services of Greater Miami (LSGMI) filed a lawsuit regarding the Medicaid Agency's failure to cover medically necessary diapers for incontinent children on Medicaid. Florida will only cover diapers if the person is in the Waiver, and FLS and LSGMI believe that federal Medicaid law requires the state to cover medically necessary diapers for any child on Medicaid.
If you are a parent who has a child with the following characteristics:
1) child is under age 21;
2) child receives Medicaid;
3) child is not in a Medicaid Waiver program
Please call:
Miriam Harmatz
Staff Attorney
Florida Legal Services, Inc.
305.573.0092 ext. 206
Spanish speakers please call Maria at extension 202 |
| LEGISLATION THAT AFFECTS YOU |
| U.S. Supreme Court Special Education Decision |
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The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of parents this week in Forest Grove School District v. T.A., allowing parents to seek reimbursement even when their child has never received special education services from the public school. This ruling exposes a gap in IDEA's reimbursement rules, and places school districts at risk for more unilateral placement lawsuits.
In a largely technical opinion, the court used principals of statutory interpretation to discern the meaning of a phrase Congress added to the reimbursement provisions in the 1997 amendments to IDEA. The portion of the statute at issue states: "[i]f the parents of a child, who previously received special education and related services under the authority of a public agency, enroll the child in a private" school without referral or consent of the public district, they may sue the District for reimbursement. 20 U.S.C. �1412(a)(10)(C)(ii). The majority concluded this language meant that a student need not receive public special education services before suing a district for private placement costs.
This decision raises many concerns for CEC and its members. Unilateral placement lawsuits are expensive and divert much needed resources from classrooms to private schools. Moreover, this ruling may encourage parents to bypass the IEP process entirely. Under one possible scenario, parents could hire private experts to evaluate district programs, determine they are not appropriate, and then enroll their child in a private school and sue the district. CEC believes the law must respect the collaborative IEP process, which is the heart of IDEA and ensures children with disabilities receive an appropriate education.
CEC went on to say:
CEC will push Congress in the next reauthorization of IDEA to better define when parents can seek reimbursement and to clarify that before parents ask public schools to pay for private education, they must first give the public schools a chance.
For further discussion of the ruling, and its potential implications listen to this NPR story featuring a CEC interview, or read the opinion.
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ARRA Update
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Releases Guidance on ARRA Implementation
On June 22, 2009, the OMB published implementing guidance for Reports on Use of Funds Pursuant to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ("Recovery Act"). The Recovery Act provided $12.2 billion for IDEA programs, which more than doubled the federal funding of special education and early intervention programs. This guidance is meant to provide federal agencies, and recipients with the information necessary to implement the reporting requirements included in Section 1512 of the Recovery Act. As recipients of $12.2 billion of the $787 billion Recovery Act, SEAs and LEAs now have the guidance they need in order to properly report how Recovery Act money is spent. These report requirements are part of a larger effort to provide the public with an unprecedented level of transparency into how Federal dollars are being spent and will help drive accountability for the timely, prudent, and effective spending of recovery dollars.
Reports must be submitted by SEAs and LEAs beginning in October 2009 and will answer important questions, such as who is receiving Recovery Act dollars and in what amounts?; what projects or activities are being funded with Recovery Act dollars?; what is the completion status of such projects or activities and what impact have they had on job creation and retention?
Read the guidance, view the recipient reporting data model, and information about the list of programs subject to these requirements.
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Parent to Parent of Miami
7990 SW 117 Ave. Suite 200
Miami, Florida, 33183
Tel: 305-271-9797
Fax: 305-271-6628
newsletter@ptopmiami.org
www.ptopmiami.org
Mission
To empower and support a network of parents of children and adults with disabilities.
Vision
All parents of children and adults with disabilities will have universal access to information, training, support and advocacy skills to ensure their children achieve their fullest potential, while leading the community on the rights of all children.
Above all, we respect your privacy. We will never rent, sell or share your information with anybody.
Changing your email? To update your contact information, email your changes to newsletter@ptopmiami.org
(C) 2008 Parent to Parent of Miami Inc. All rights reserved.
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Please help us help our families! |
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