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Home / Albomlar 1819
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- ADAPT (1558)
It's in the P-I Seattle Post-Intelligencer THURSDAY, JULY 15, 2004 Too many disabled people, he said, are "warehoused" in nursing homes and institutions, despite a court ruling five years ago that the disabled had a right to community-based care. 'We think our long-term care system is broken," Kafka said. "In almost every state, there's very little being done by the governors to implement (the ruling). They're, in fact, cutting Medicaid and community services. In most states, there are very long waiting lists." If it comes to arrests this weekend, ADAPT members will cooperate with the authorities, Kafka said. 'We are not violent. We are non-destructive," Kafka said. 'We have nothing against the police." Still, the city had better be ready. Many of the protesters need skilled care to use toilets or maintain their catheters; some can eat only through tubes; and some breathe through ventilators. The labor unions and student groups are limiting their demonstrations to Saturday. The Federation of State Employees is calling on the NGA to work with it, spokesman Tim Welch said. In addition, "we're protesting what we view in bad fiscal times what we think are wrongheaded budget priorities . . . like still granting billions in corporate tax breaks and then still cutting vital public services." The group has arranged for 200 "peacekeepers" in orange vests to ensure things stay calm as they march from Westlake Center past the Westin and back, starting at 1:30 p.m. 'We will not have any what we will term 'civil disobedience,' " Welch said. About 200 members of various Western Washington student groups plan to join the unions, after gathering at Seattle Central Community College Saturday at noon. Organized in part by a student activist group from South Puget Sound Community College, the group plans to march to Westlake to join the union marchers. "What our purpose is is just for our voices to be heard," said Arielle Woolis-Pink, a 20-year-old prelaw student at South Puget Sound Community College. 'We don't oppose the NGA, but we would like them to include other interests — not just corporate interests." Like the union leaders, the students plan to keep their demonstrators out of trouble with the police. They're planning a parade, with a marching band and a couple of small floats — one of a "giant corporate swine." "We're trying to stay positive and say yes, this is what we want, as opposed to no, this is what we don't want," Woolis-Pink said. "It's a perfect venue for our frustration, I think, because it seems as though in this regime, that's happening in our country. The people's voices are being included less and less, and we're not going to stand for that." - ADAPT (1274)
THE DENVER POST 8B Wednesday, September 20, 2000 [image] [image caption] Rick James heads for Washington, D.C., for a national protest to call attention to a legal challenge to the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Denver Post / John Leyba [Headline] Disabled group to join D.C. rally By J. Sebastian Sinisi Denver Post Staff Writer About 30 wheelchair users gathered outside the Atlantis Community independent living center in south Denver on Tuesday morning to cheer members of their group who were leaving by van for Birmingham, Ala. There, they'll join a national dis-abled protest over the Garrett vs. University of Alabama case, now being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court, that they fear could undermine disabled rights. About 1,000 are expected in Birmingham on Friday, said wheel-chair user Joe Ehman, who helped organize the privately funded tour from Denver. Ehman is the housing coordinator for the American Disabled for Attendant Programs Today, or ADAPT, arm of Atlantis. In Birmingham, the eight-member Denver group will shift to a bus for news conferences and rally stops in eight other cities, including Atlanta, Philadelphia and Baltimore. More demonstrators will join the Denverites along the way. The tour ends with a rally expected to bring at least 3,000 to the U.S. Capitol at noon Oct. 3 to draw attention to the Garrett case, which questions the constitutionality of the Americans with Disabilities Act, passed a decade ago. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Oct. 11. "I'm not looking forward to rid-ing eight hours a day in a van ev-ery day, but everything we've gained under the ADA is now in jeopardy," said Rick Viator, 40, in a wheelchair for five years because of a gunshot wound. "People need to know that our rights are in danger," said Rick James, 50, who was also making the trip. James has used a wheel-chair since childhood. Atlantis-affiliated demonstrators engaged in the first disabled civil disobedience anywhere in the U.S. when they chained their wheelchairs to bus stops at Broadway and Colfax Avenue in 1977 to protest lack of wheelchair access on Denver buses. As a result, Denver was the first city in America to have wheelchair lifts on buses, long before the ADA made such access mandatory nationwide. ADAPT made front-page Denver news last February when members handcuffed themselves to Currigan Hall entryways during a homebuilding industry exposition to protest a dearth of disabled: friendly home construction. That action resulted in 17 arrests. - ADAPT (833)
[Headline] ADAPT's good cause deserves calm debate There is a tremendous difference between getting attention and getting results. Americans Disabled for Attendant Programs Today, or ADAPT, received plenty of attention last week. Whether that attention translates to results will depend in large part on whether the group focuses in the future more on its message than on its manner. ADAPT's message is that this nation's health care system is skewed too heavily toward nursing home care. It argues that many people with disabilities who could live independently at home are forced into nursing homes because home health care isn't adequately funded. It specifically asks that 25% of the nation's Medic-aid money be funneled into home health care instead of nursing homes. ADAPT's basic premise is sound. While its demand for a particular figure of 25% of Medicaid money is debatable, there is little debate that a new focus on in-home-care, not just for people with disabilities but for many other people who have long-term illnesses, would stretch health care dollars and increase quality of life. But last week, ADAPT's manner over-shadowed its message. ADAPT brought its crusade to Nash-vile last week because the American Health Care Association, a lobbying group for the nursing home industry, was holding a convention at the Opryland Hotel. On Sunday, an ADAPT demonstration blocked the entrance to the Opryland Hotel for nearly two hours. On Monday, ADAPT members lined the halls of the state Capitol, demanding to meet with Gov. Ned McWherter, who was in Germany. [Subheading] Group should make its pitch to government! On Tuesday, when a meeting between ADAPT and AHCA didn't come off as scheduled, ADAPT members attempted to storm Opryland Hotel. Ninety-seven of them were arrested for trespassing. The real pity is that ADAPT can and should be making a serious contribution to this nation's health care debate. Per-aps its members sincerely believed that the only way they could draw attention to their cause was through protest. But even then, they were protesting to the wrong people. AHCA and ADAPT are both advocacy groups. ADAPT shouldn't be taking its case to AIWA. It should be making its pitch to Congress, the Clinton administration and state legislatures. But in order for ADAPT to achieve results, government officials need to view . ADAPT as a serious, responsible advocacy group. ADAPT's cause is too just, too necessary, and too immediate to be lost in a confusing shouting match. People can hear ADAPT's message much more clearly when its members talk, not shout. - ADAPT (815)
This article continues from ADAPT 816 and the full text is included there for easier reading. - ADAPT (1195)
Post-Tribune Sunday, May 9, 1999 A5 REGION [Headline] Disabled travel to capitol, will lobby for legislation [Subheading] Local ADAPT members say the proposed legislation would give people with disabilities more options, BY DAVIE ANN BROWDER Staff Writer Facing down big government agencies never is easy. After all, the scenario pits individuals against the power and money of the United States. It's easy to get squashed like a bug. Nevertheless, local members a ADAPT, a national grass-roots disability rights organization, along with hundreds of others from throughout this country, are in Washington, D.C.. today fighting for passage of legislation. The Community Attendant Services Act (CASA) would allow federal money, such as Medicare and Medicaid, to follow the individual instead of the institution providing care. Luis Roman of Hammond has been to other rallies in Washington, and he's been asked to speak to newcomers today to tell them what to expect over the next week in the capitol. Beside the beat. the waiting, the animosity of some bystanders. there's always the chance of at Roman said. But its worth it, he said. Roman, who has been blind for 11 years, stated the case for the bill succinctly. "It's about choice," he said. "A person who is able to, should he allowed to stay home and not be forced into a nursing home. "That person who can stay at home is happier, they live longer. and it's cheaper for the taxpayer." Right now, people with disabilities have three choices, he said. They can go to a nursing home, be classified as homebound where loss of all government support results if one leaves the house, or rely on family for total care without government help. "Really, everybody has a vested interest in the bill," he said. "If you're planning on getting old, or you may become disabled through an accident or illness, don't you want to have options." Jana Longfellow also is attending the rally, her first. Longleflow is deaf, but can read lips. "I'm going to learn how to fight for people's rights," she said. And indeed, much of her five days in D.C. will be spent on the streets and in public buildings, lobbying elected officials and governmental agencies. As a quadriplegic, Terry McCarty of Lowell usually can rely on her companion dog, Frija, a German shepherd. But McCarty is leaving Frija at home with friends and making the trip alone. McCarty successfully waged a battle to leave a nursing home and live on her own about seven years ago, so the CASA bill is close to her heart. "It was kind of scary living alone at first," she said, noting that when she left the nursing home she didn't have anyone to stay through the night with her. Greg Mitro of Hobart, also an ADAPT member, took the time to label each part of his wheelchair before the trip. The reason was because once Mitro boards the plane, his wheelchair is disassembled and shipped with him. Often, he said, people with disabilities are overwhelmed with the difficulties involved in taking a trip such as this. Obstacles include ending transportation to the airport, getting loaded onto the plane by inexperienced flight attendants, getting around in a strange city, staying in a hotel, and then taking to the streets for a public protest. The threat of arrest looms. ADAPT members block access to the building, they're likely to be jailed. Mitro tells people not to let the prospects keep them imprisoned at home. "That's such a great feeling empowerment," he said. "You fee like, 'wow, l'm not alone in all this." "It's such a sense of community that develops among everybody a then everybody watches out each other. [image] [image caption] Greg Mitro of Hobart prepares Thursday for his trip to Washington, D,C., to lobby for passage of the Community Attendant Services Act. Leslie Adkins/Post-Tribune - ADAPT (1144)
Republican National Committee Thomas J. Joseflak Counsel November 2,1998 To the Leadership of ADAPT: I have been authorized to state that the leadership of ADAPT will be given the opportunity to address the Platform Committee of the Republican National Convention in the year 2000. I have also been authorized to commit to a meeting with the ADAPT leadership and Chairman Nicholson on Thursday, December 3, 1998. At that meeting you may address any other convention related questions that you may have. Included in the meeting agenda will be a discussion addressing the full convention and the position paper we have discussed. Please contact me at (202) 863-8638 to set up a time to meet with Chairman Nicholson. Sincerely, [signed] Tom Josefiak [typed] Tom Josefiak [image] [image caption] ADAPT Day Leader Steve Verriden reads victory letter from Republican Party Headquarters. Photo by Carolyn Long • Dwight D. Eisenhower Republican Center • 310 First Street Southeast • Washington, D.C. 20003 • (202) 863-8638 • FAX: (202) 863-8654 • http://www.rnc.org • TDD: (202) 863-8728 * page 8 * - ADAPT (916)
[The top left corner features the seal of the Department of Health and Human Services, USA] [Header] The Secretary of Health and Human Services Washington, D.C. 20201 May 17, 1995 Note to: Participants, May 17 Meeting on Home and Community Based Services From: Donna E. Shalala (typed and signed) Secretary Thank you for joining me this morning to discuss home and community based supports. I found our discussion helpful and believe we clarified the many areas in which we are in agreement and issues on which we need to work more closely. Per our discussion, I have issued a statement supporting the principles of home and community care and consumer choice and self-determination. A copy of that statement is attached. I look forward to our continuing dialogue. - ADAPT (1223)
- ADAPT (1201)
Saturday, January 30, 1999 [Headline] 40 disabled pr testers disrupt state office [Subheading] Noisy group removed from building housing attorney general; cops hand out 9 summonses By John Ingot News Staff Writer About 40 disabled protesters disrupted a quiet Friday at the office of Attorney General Ken Salazar. The nearly three-hour sit-in ended when Denver police officers removed the shouting protesters from Salazar's office, 1525 Sherman St., and issued summonses. "I thought it would be the usual --- a little photo op and getting their name in the paper," police Sgt. Rich Mahony said. "But I guess it doesn't work that way anymore." Members of ADAPT, a national group representing people with disabilities, began protesting in the reception area of the attorney general's office around 11:30 am. ADAPT was upset with Colorado's support of a Georgia law, which the group said would violate the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act. The law, under review by the U.S. Supreme Court, would allow the state to place people with disabilities in institutions in-stead of community programs. Former Gov. Roy Romer and 20 other governors had issued a court brief supporting the Georgia law. Denver police arrived about 1 p.m. After telling protesters that they could either leave or be are rested, police began removing them from the office. Police issued nine summonses for disturbing the peace and obstruction of a governmental process. Both charges are misdeameanors and carry fines. None of the protesters was taken to jail. "We're going to tell some folks that it's not a good idea to go to jail on a Friday because you might not get out until Monday, said Joe Ehrnan, an ADAPT organizer. Organizers said Owens asked Salazar's office to look into the issue. Ken Lane, spokesman for the attorney general, said he-lad no idea protesters would show up on Friday. He was not happy with the way ADAPT handled the issue. "We offered to meet with ADAPT officials," Lane said. "In fact, WC offered a meeting with Ken Salazar next week, and they refused." But ADAPT members don't plan to leave until they get what they want. "Ultimately, it means we've got to come back," said Michael Auberger, the national organizer for the group. - ADAPT (935)
THE Montgomery Journal The daily newspaper of Montgomery County, Md. Thursday, May 18, 1995 [Image] [Image caption] Demonstrators that blocked Route 29 for more than four hours are arrested by county police officers yesterday. Katherine Frey/Journal [Headline] Nearly 100 arrested in health care protest By TOM BERSON Journal staff writer Police arrested about 100 disabled people, many in wheelchairs, yesterday after an all-day protest that blocked dozens of people in-side a nursing home provider's headquarters in Silver Spring and tied up traffic on Columbia Pike for hours. Police charged the protesters with trespassing and disorderly conduct after some members of the group Americans Disabled for Attendant Programs Today encircled a Manor Care Inc. building and blocked all entrances and exits, while others lined up across Columbia Pike. It was the largest county police action of the year, but the number of protesters wasn't the only difficulty in clearing the scene. It took hours for police to figure out how to arrest so many people in wheelchairs. Police had to drag and carry some of the protesters, who chanted, "We'd rather go to jail than die in a nursing home." "We really don't want to arrest them," police spokesman Sgt. Prank W. Young said yesterday afternoon. Group members said they had come from 28 states to meet with House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., in search of more Medicare funding for in-home attendant care programs. When Gingrich refused to meet with them, they decided to ask Manor Care executives to sign a letter endorsing their proposal, which calls for diverting some Medicare funding for nursing homes. "So much of the budget goes for nursing homes and not much money goes for in-home attendant services," Nate Butler, 43, of Baltimore, said. "The reason we're here is Manor Care is a major player in nursing homes." [Image] [Image caption] Brenda Hanna (right) of Topeka, Kans., and Shirley Klein of Charleston, W.Va., protest Medicare's funding formula. Jeff Taylor, Journal Manor Care is the fourth largest nursing home provider in the United States, according to company spokesman Gregory Miller. The protesters arrived at Route 29 about 11 a.m. to block traffic until they could get a meeting with Manor Care executives, said protester Bob Liston, 43, of Michigan. Ten protesters met with Stewart Bainum Jr., chairman of the board and CEO of Manor Care Inc. for about a half-hour at noon. Bainum said that the meeting went well and that there was agreement on several issues, although he did not endorse the letter. "The nursing home of today is not the same as it was years ago," Bainum said. There is now much more of a focus on rehabilitation," he said. "Over 80 percent of our patients go back home and lead productive lives for decades to come," he said. Bainum said his company was sympathetic to the protesters and offered to lobby with the group for more overall Medicare funding. Liston said he wasn't satisfied. "We didn't get diddly," he said. The group moved from the street to the doors of Manor Care. The protesters did not allow employees to enter or exit the building for hours, although some were able to squeeze out through the doors with the help of police officers. Vicki Dobinski, a fiscal coordinator from Silver Spring, was able to get out, but then realized she had left her car keys inside. "I don't disagree with the people or the cause," she said. "But not being able to get into my office, I'm a bit frustrated." Valerie Williams, a graphic design-er from Silver Spring, also said she had nothing against the protesters. "They have every right to be angry and be upset and stand up for their rights," she said. Some people stuck in the building were there for a health fair, and didn't work for Manor Care. One of them, Kandy Hirsch, a massage therapist, said she fell down struggling to get out and lost a $40 piece of her massage chair in the crowd. "I don't have any gripe with their politics," she said. "I just have an appointment I'm going to be late for." As the day went on, Manor Care officials began to complain that some people needed to get out to pick up their kids from day care, but the protesters wouldn't budge. [Image] [Image caption] Mary Hither (right) of Philadelphia and Elaine Kolb (second from right) of West Haven, Conn., voice disapproval of Medicare's funding formula. Jeff Taylor/Journal "Whenever you're in a 'war' situation, and you take prisoners of war, you don't ask what they do," said George Wolf, 43, of Kansas. Another protester likened the plight of the disabled to blacks be-fore the Civil Rights Act. "We suffer from segregation just the way any black person did," said Lucy Gwin, 52, of New York, citing high numbers of disabled people who are unemployed or "shuttled off to a home in the woods." While protesters chanted slogans outside the doors of Manor Care, others remained on Columbia Pike where they waved signs at passing cars until the road was closed at about 3:30 p.m. The road closing backed up traffic for miles. One neighbor said she sympathized with the protesters' message, but said they were defeating their own cause by angering motorists. "The traffic is unbelievable," said Margaret Kerr of Silver Spring. "This is a monumental disgrace. I told one of the protesters, 'I'm all for your cause, but I think you're alienating an awful lot of people." More than 50 police officers were called in from all five districts. More than a dozen officers who had been taking a civil disobedience training class at the police academy at the time also were called in. Traffic was blocked at University Avenue and the cloverleaf for New Hampshire Avenue as arrests began at 4 p.m. and continued through rush hour. Students at five county schools were kept in class for an extra 30 minutes because buses were held up in the traffic, said Carolyn Reed, county schools bus operations manager. Police spokeswoman Ann Evans described the logistics of cleaning up the scene as "a nightmare." Police borrowed transport vehicles for the disabled from Ride-On and other county agencies to trans-port the protesters to the Silver Spring Armory, where they were to be given citations for trespassing and released. Others were processed at buildings and streets near the scene. Because the effort was time-consuming and diverted manpower from regular beats, police didn't arrest anyone who left peacefully. Young said. - ADAPT (820)
PHOTO: People are packed in facing a doorway inside the Capitol with their back to the camera. A man [Verlon McKay] has a poster on the back of his chair that reads "Move $$ to Community Services." Back by the door is a camera person filming. Two police officers stand in the doorway talking. Verlon and the person next to him have their fists raised and all the others show with their posture their intense interest in the doorway. Erik von Schmetterling is sitting to Verlon's right and is signing a chant in ASL [Erik is deaf as well as a wheelchair user.] - ADAPT (1226)
This page continues the article from Image 1127. Full text available on 1227 for easier reading. - ADAPT (1222)
[Headline] ADAPT: Demonstrators continue protests Jon Allen, a spokesman for Romer-Sensky, confirmed that the director had agreed to meet Tuesday afternoon. By that time, however, police vans were on their way. "At that point it became a law enforcement issue, not an agency policy matter," Allen said. Allen said Romer-Sensky is still willing to meet with ADAPT members. The demonstrators pleaded with the officers not to make arrests because a meeting had been planned. But the officer in charge told them he had received orders to clear the building entrance and arrest those who didn't leave. "We were negotiating in good faith, and then the (officer) took it in his own hands and said there wasn't going to be a meeting," said Mark Mankins, a protester from Riverside in the Miami Valley. Those arrested were taken to the R-Reynoldsburg Ohio State Fairgrounds, cited with criminal trespassing and released a few hours later. Scott Milburn, Taft's press secretary, said the protesters have had a standing offer to meet with state officials since last Friday. Milburn said the state is considering billing ADAPT for damages during the demonstrations. Those include two broken doors, a carpet in Taft's office and security costs. The protesters still want to meet with Taft and with the House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, R-Reynoldsburg. [pulled quote] "We were negotiating in good faith, and then the (officer) took it in his own hands and said there wasn't going to be a meeting." --Mark Mankins A protester form Riverside [text resumes] They want David-hearings on proposed legislation that would allow use of Medicaid money for home care rather than requiring the disabled to live in nursing homes. Milburn said the demonstrations have now put any possible meeting between Taft and ADAPT on the "back burner." Nearly 90 percent of Medicaid long-term care dollars are spent on nursing homes, with the rest being spent on home-based care, ADAPT officials said. Despite a past bias towards institutional care, Ohio has been pursuing development of home- and community-based care for disabled people, Milburn said. Bob Kafka, a national ADAPT organizer, said that by blocking access to the Rhodes Tower, members were declaring that the building was a "nursing home" for a. day. "So they can feel for one day what people in nursing homes and institutions feel every day," he said. Kafka said the group has used similar tactics in other cities. The protesters are likely to target another state building today. - ADAPT (1143)
Democratic National Committee Steve Grossman, National Chair Governor Roy Romer, General Chair November 2, 1998 Representatives of the DNC, including the Executive Director, will meet with representatives from ADAPT. This meeting will take place at a mutually agreeable time but no later than November 30, 1998. The meeting will include but is not necessarily limited to: Development of a position paper that recognizes the current institution bias in the long-term care system and that home and community services must be the first priority in long-term care funding. The DNC supports service in the most integrated setting. The DNC will work to develop, promote and pass legislation in the 106th Congress that will allow people with disabilities, regardless of age, or diagnosis (and family members as appropriate) to choose and control where and how long-term services and supports are delivered. This legislation must include financial incentives and sufficient funding so that no eligible individual shall be denied their choice of home and community services. The meeting agenda will also include ADAPTs inclusion in addressing the Convention and ra-ADAPTs inclusion on Platform deliberations. Sincerely, [signed] Janet V. Green [typed] Janet V. Green Executive Director [Image] [Image caption] ADAPT surrounds Democratic Party Headquarters. Photo by Bill Shumaker Democratic Party Headquarters • 430 South Capitol Street, S.E. • Washington, D.C. 20003 • 202-863-8000 • FAX 202-863-8174 Paid for by the Democratic National Committee. Contributions to the Democratic National Committee are not tax deductible. * page 10 * - ADAPT (1071)
PHOTO: A group of six people in wheelchairs sit by the front desk at the ANA and seem to fill the lobby area. A large sign on the wall behind them reads American Nurses Association, American Nurses Foundation, American Academy of Nursing, American Nurses Credentialing Center, American Nurse Political Action Committee. Behind the desk a man with his back to the desk is in the corner.