ADAPT! Happening today [View all]

[loyalsister]

They got the Democratic gubernatorial candidate's staff to meet with them and assure them that his administration will implement community choice as part of policy. ADAPT has been there for a couple of days and several have been arrested. I think that the candidate knows they will be back if he goes back on his word.

They have now moved on to the American's for prosperity offices and are demanding meetings. These advocates are SO good! They make their demands and present a well thought out argument.

09/15/2014 PRESS ALERT:

WHO: ADAPT

WHAT: ADAPT DEMANDS THAT AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY STOP SPREADING LIES REGARDING THE COMMUNITY FIRST CHOICE OPTION AND CEASE THEIR OPPOSITION TO ITS IMPLEMENTATION

WHERE: AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY 1400 WEST MARKHAM SUITE 400

WHEN: WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 2104 ADAPT, A NATIONAL GRASSROOTS GROUP OF ACTIVISTS WITH DISABILITIES, IS PRESENTING DEMANDS TO THE ARKANSAS CHAPTER OF THE AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY THAT THEY STOP SPREADING LIES ABOUT THE COMMUNITY FIRST CHOICE OPTION (CFCO) AND CEASE THEIR OPPOSITION TO ITS IMPLEMENTATION.

ADAPT is confronting officials from the Arkansas chapter of the Americans for Prosperity (AFP) regarding their spreading of lies about CFCO. The lies the AFP has been spreading include:

CFCO is an integral part of Obamacare. The truth is that it was not originally included in the Obamacare legislation, but was added after disability rights advocates secured the support of several US Senators.

CFCO will take away local and state control. The fact is that states retain control, as they always have, of determining their own institutional eligibility criteria.

CFCO is a Medicaid option that states can voluntarily adopt. Once adopted it simply requires that individuals who qualify for state institutional care be given the option of funding for community services, if they so choose.

CFCO is a partisan issue. The fact is that it was passed with bipartisan support, as have all disability civil rights laws.

CFCO will be costly for Arkansas.
The fact is Arkansas state officials have used very conservative estimates to project the costs out twelve years and have found that the provision of community supports will actually save the state money. This has been born out by the actual experiences of other states which have implemented strong community services.

CFCO will raise federal taxes because it pays six percent more of the cost of services than for nursing homes. The fact is that community services are so much more cost effective that the federal government is projected to save money even with the additional match.

In summary, CFCO will save the state government money while improving the lives of persons with disabilities who would otherwise be forced into institutional settings – a rare win-win for fiscal conservatives and civil rights activists. It does not create a new mandate – the mandate is already there for nursing home services. “CFCO embraces conservative principles including the use of market forces – allowing individuals to choose the services they want and forcing nursing facilities to compete for their choice,” said Gene Rodgers, an ADAPT member and Republican from Texas.

Rock on ADAPT! This is the group that threw off their wheelchairs and crawled up the Capitol steps to demand passage of the ADA. They are thoughtful, committed, and audacious. When we talk about demonstrating and demanding change, they are some of the best role models for planning actions and advocacy.