- Budget Reconciliation attempts back-door closure of DoED. The GOP proposes to dismantle key programs and change the way IDEA and other special education programming is funded, using “no strings attached” block grants to states, which will be suggested, but not required, for special education use. This is dangerous, as we are already seeing districts pull money from special institutions in light of budget cuts elsewhere.
The budget also leverages “parental rights” rhetoric to funnel money to charter and private schools, which are not required to accept or accommodate disabled students.
Because these changes are incorporated into the budget reconciliation process rather than a separate law, they will only need 51 votes to pass. - House Roils Over Deep Cuts to Medicaid. The proposed budget seeks to slash $715 billion over 10 years, establish work requirements and more red tape for enrollment, and leave 7.5-12 million people without care. This number could increase as states are forced to bear more program costs with fewer overall federal supports.
The Center for American Progress estimates the move will be directly responsible for the deaths of more than 21K Americans annually.
Disabled ADAPT protesters shut down the hearings earlier this week, and the bill failed to pass a vote on Friday, due to 5 Republican NO votes. However, the majority of them want even deeper cuts. Debates/votes continue next week.
Call them, and get in the way when possible. - Budget also takes aim at SNAP, Rent subsidies. The proposed budget will cut $300 billion from SNAP programming, funds that allows families to purchase food at their local grocery stores. The plans also expand work requirements, even for parents and the elderly. 74% (and by some estimates, as high as 89%) of nondisabled, working-age SNAP recipient households already have a job. Approximately 26% of SNAP recipients are disabled.
The budget also proposes a $700 million dollar cut to rent subsidies and homelessness programs that disproportionately serve disabled people and Veterans. - Dr. Oz: “It is Your Patriotic Duty to Be Healthy” Dr. Oz, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said on Fox News last Thursday: “70% of the money we spend is on chronic illness, and we’re not getting our money’s worth. So for folks listening right now, it’s your patriotic duty to be as healthy as you can.”
The assertion that chronically ill and disabled people are a burden on society and their lives “not worth it” is eugenicist rhetoric. Tethering health and patriotism was a frequent move in 1930s Germany, both as propaganda to grow support for the eventual murder of 300,000 disabled people, and as a cover-up for declining standards of living. Strict anti-smoking campaigns and “Healthy Woman Healthy Nation” initiatives were a way to hide the worsening health of Germans under N–i rule by placing the blame back on individuals. - Texas v Kennedy Updates. Thanks in large part to disabled organizers, Count 3 of the original filing, (formerly Texas v. Becerra) “Section 504 is Unconstitutional” has been withdrawn. This is great news! BUT, the lawsuit continues to attack Final Rule, important updates to 504 guidance re: 21st century technology (telehealth, websites), pandemic-era healthcare (ventilator rationing), and protecting disabled people’s rights to live in community.
Kennedy issued a “clarification” weeks ago noting mention of gender dysphoria in the preamble is not an enforceable part of the law, so the transphobic framing against Final Rule is now moot. - Hickson v St David’s Healthcare Partnership poses new threat to 504/ADA. Michael Hickson, a 46-year-old disabled Black man died in Texas in June 2020 after contracting Covid and being denied ventilator care and other ICU services. At the time, Texas and 24 other states had policies about rationing care that explicitly discriminated against disabled people. This is one of the things Final Rule updates seek to rectify.
The case is currently before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, a conservative court. If they rule in favor of the hospital, it would set a precedent that guts disabled people’s ability to file medical facility-related discrimination claims under the ADA or Section 504 - Government Poised to Cut TRIO programs for College Access. Starting in the 1960s, the cluster of programs known as TRIO has supported low-income, first-generation college students, veterans, rural students, and disabled students in accessing higher education. The Administration is now calling it a “relic of the past” and says it should be colleges’ responsibility to recruit and support these populations.
Some of the programs under TRIO are the McNair Scholars Program, Talent Search, Educational Opportunity Centers, Student Support Services and Upward Bound programming. - Deaf Education under fire at local and federal levels. Faculty at Gallaudet released an open letter this week expressing concern for the university due to recent budget cuts, and the handling of the current situation by administration. The open letter will be linked to read in full on the Dis Rights Watch Site. The faculty are urging the community to take action by contacting the Office of the President at GU.
Indiana School for the Deaf and NJ School for the Deaf (MKSD) are threatened with local cuts as their state budgets seek to recall funds to use across public education more broadly. MKSD may lose their remaining residential facility with the cuts. (Per internal sources. This is a developing story.) - Cuts at SSA Eliminate Funds for ASL Interpreters. Previously, pay cards at the Social Security Administration, used by employees for things like paper, printer ink, and work-related travel, had been frozen at a $1 limit to prevent any purchases.
However, those cards were also used to pay ASL interpreters within field offices, who operate on local rather than national contracts. SSA employees have reported having to cancel appointments and turn D/HH clients away after already long wait times. This is a violation of Section 504 and the ADA.
Take Action:
Share this info! Disability is often lost in mainstream coverage.
Call your Representative and tell them to vote NO on this dangerous budget. Choose 1 or 2 programs important to you–Medicaid, SNAP, IDEA, etc.–and mention them by name.
Contact the Gallaudet Office of the President and demand action to prevent the dismantling of the University. Support your local deaf school.
If your state is involved, ask your Attorney General to withdraw from Texas v. Kennedy. If able, donate to organizations like DREDF, ACLU, and NAD who are fighting in the courts.
Contact medical providers requesting they do not share yours or your child’s autism diagnosis or records with the government registry. Letter template in “Take Action” story highlight on Instagram.
Consider how to move toward creative acts of mutual aid, and protest, including offline materials. Make flyers! Call out misinformation. Warn your neighbors in the presence of ICE. If able march, boycott, donate and/or volunteer with your local food pantry or library.
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