Kansans with Disabilities Complaints Prompt Delay in Service Changes

The state said Tuesday that it will delay a major overhaul in the way it provides services for the disabled.

The announcement comes after people with disabilities, their family members, providers and care takers voiced major concerns with the state’s nine-month time line to switch a complex system of care for some of Kansas’ most vulnerable populations.“This is probably the single biggest change this system has seen” in nearly 20 years, said Dee Staudt, director of the Sedgwick County Developmental Disability Organization. In 1995 the state passed a law, guaranteeing certain rights for people with developmental disabilities.

Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/news/local/article38029176.html#storylink=cpy

Mother helps her daughter with cerebral palsy win a triathlon by swimming 500 yards pulling her in a raft

A nine-year-old girl with cerebral palsy came first in a triathlon on Sunday after completing the event with the help of friends and family - especially her mom.
A brain injury after she was born very premature left Cecilia Neimann from Lexexa, Kansas with severe cerebral palsy.
Mom Debbie Neimann vowed to do as much as she could to make her daughter’s life as normal as possible.

Editorial: Ongoing Concern

Leaders of organizations that advocate for people who have developmental disabilities may have won the battle in the Kansas Senate this session, but it’s certain that the war is not over.Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce, R-Hutchinson, stressed as much when he said he has no plans for the Senate to take up the Senate substitute for House Bill 2155 that would limit services a Community Developmental Disability Organization (CDDO) could provide. The issues the bill was attempting to address still need to be faced, he warned.Yes indeed. And the assistance provided to thousands of Kansans remains to be determined.

Editorial: Waiting Lists Loom in Kansas

As the Brownback administration takes pride in fiscal-year-ending reserves, another number looms large and shamefully – the more than 7,000 Kansans with physical or developmental disabilities who are awaiting home- and community-based services.
With such services, individuals can live independently or in homelike residential settings. Without them, they may be forced to move into nursing homes – not only sacrificing quality of life but costing taxpayers far more.

Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2012/08/03/2433175/eagle-editorial-waiting-lists.html#storylink=cpy