1) Olmstead: I Did It – An online video about the Olmstead Supreme Court Decision. The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured video segment returns to the plaintiffs of the Olmstead case five years after the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision. It reports on the impact of the decision for individuals with disabilities and some of the challenges that remain in the implementation of the court ruling. http://www.kff.org/medicaid/kcmu062104oth.cfm

From: Reference Points

3) Making Web Sites Accessible for Users with Disabilities – The Do-It Center has developed an excellent resource list of sites and information about developing web sites that are accessible for uses experiencing different disabilities. If you in any way contribute to the development of a web page you will want to bookmark this site. http://www.washington.edu/doit/Resources/web-design.html

4) United Cerebral Palsy Releases National Analysis of Medicaid; Report Reveals Top-Performing States Emphasize Community Inclusion - WASHINGTON, March 1 /U.S. Newswire/ -- United Cerebral Palsy, one of the nation's largest health charities, released a new national analysis of state Medicaid services for people with developmental disabilities and mental retardation on February 28. The report, titled A Case for Inclusion, includes state rankings for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as letter grades in key areas of Medicaid service delivery including Home- and Community-based Services, Small Residential Settings, Reaching Those in Need, Services Self-Directed, and Cost Efficiency. (Full state rankings are available at http://www.ucp.org/medicaid).

Nationwide, Medicaid serves almost 530,000 individuals with developmental disabilities and mental retardation, spending $27.4 billion in fiscal year 2004 or almost $52,000 per person per year. While individuals with developmental disabilities and mental retardation make up just over 1 percent of all Medicaid recipients, services to the population account for nearly 10 percent of all Medicaid expenditures. In addition, people with developmental disabilities and mental retardation are among Medicaid's most vulnerable beneficiaries.

The top ten states include:

1. New Hampshire

2. Maine 

3. Massachusetts 

4. Vermont 

5. Alaska 

6. Nebraska

7. Washington

8. Delaware

9. Wisconsin

10. Wyoming

While indicating states have varied approaches to Medicaid service delivery, the report clearly reveals that top-performing states emphasize community inclusion for people with developmental disabilities and mental retardation. New Hampshire, the top state in the United Cerebral Palsy report, spends over 98 percent of Medicaid dollars to support people living in their communities through home- and community- based services. On the other hand, Texas, which ranked last, only spends about 31 percent.

"States that make community inclusion a priority perform significantly better in our analysis," said Stephen Bennett, President and CEO of United Cerebral Palsy. "The best Medicaid programs produce outcomes that enrich the lives of people with disabilities, while promoting self-sufficiency. And states that focus on individuals and families are often more cost effective than others that promote institutionalized care."

In addition, the report shows that successful states support the smallest possible and most home-like residential settings in communities, assist individuals transition from Medicaid to work, give people the ability to direct their own services, and utilize nationally-recognized quality assurance programs.

Nevertheless, A Case for Inclusion concludes that all states have room for improvement. No state received a top grade in all service categories.

"Many states still direct a major portion of limited Medicaid resources to supporting individuals with disabilities in large, often costly state-run institutions," said Tarren Bragdon, an expert in healthcare policy and author of A Case for Inclusion. "The data is clear. Too many Americans with disabilities are still denied the opportunity to fully participate in and be a part of their communities."

Another key finding was that top- and low-performing states were politically and economically diverse. The political make-up of state government, the state's tax burden and even state Medicaid spending per capita did not dictate performance in the United Cerebral Palsy analysis. New York, for example, had a high overall tax burden of 12 percent, second only to the District of Columbia, yet ranked 36th in the Medicaid analysis.

United Cerebral Palsy will use the report to encourage people with disabilities, advocates and officials at all levels to focus Medicaid debates on the effectiveness of services, rather than just budget numbers. The organization will use the data collected to create state-level action plans for its nationwide network of affiliates to work with state governments to improve Medicaid programs in their regions.