The ACL-funded ARCH National Respite Network and Resource Center has released a new online curriculum for community-based organizations to train entry-level respite providers.

Thirty-four years ago today, the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, establishing the right for people with disabilities to live, work, and fully participate in all aspects of community life. The road to the ADA was long and hard-fought, and its passage was a historic victory in the disability rights movement and a crucial milestone in our nation’s civil rights history. But change didn’t happen overnight, and even today, many disabled Americans cannot exercise the rights it guarantees.

The principles of integration and inclusion enumerated in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are at the heart of everything we do at ACL. They are embedded in our culture and reflected in our staff, which includes many people with a wide variety of disabilities — more than a quarter of ACL employees, in fact. Their personal experiences inform their work and help ensure that our programs meet the needs of the people they serve.

On July 26, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law; this landmark civil rights law affirmed the inherent dignity of every person, regardless of disability.

The report illustrates the national impact of the SMP program, based on OIG’s analysis of data collected annually from programs in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Pension Regional Counseling Programs (PRCPs) provide individuals with many pension-related access services, including advice, outreach, referral, location of lost plans, and representation in administrative proceedings. All services are provided regardless of age or income.

With this funding, the Puerto Rico Ombudsman Office for the Elderly will be able to expand their ability to continue to assist older adult survivors by expanding their project from 15 senior centers to up to 51 senior centers, providing these vital community centers with emergency shelf-stable meals and solar panels, as well as cisterns for 19 centers.

In this policy round-up:

ACL is awarding grants to three University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service (UCEDDs) to begin a new five-year cycle to further generate knowledge to support the independence and inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) in all aspects of community life.

Today, we mark the 25th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling in Olmstead v L.C. This historic decision affirmed the value of the lives and contributions of people with disabilities, recognized the importance of participation in the community for everyone, and heralded a change in the way our country approaches providing supports to disabled people of all ages. It has transformed the lives of countless people with disabilities.