ADAPT of Texas was down at the Capitol on Tuesday to tell Senate Finance Committee members it is ludicrous to think they will have any attendants in 2024-2025 if they don’t raise the wages from the pathetic $8.11 they have in their budget plans. HHSC didn’t ask for one more cent for attendant wages, Abbott didn’t either. There will be no community based services if this keeps up. Almost everyone who spoke talked about raising the wages to $15 per hour (and that will be low by 2025). They have a huge surplus of money this year but apparently no plans to support community services. People shared their struggles trying to find workers today and their horror of being forced into a nursing home. Next Tuesday will be the House Appropriations hearing on the same subject. But legislators need to hear from you — their constituents about why they need to raise these wages to at least $15/hr. If they don’t… the picture looks grim.
Author Archives: stephanie
Public Housing on Chicon opens Wait list
The waitlist is NOW OPEN for the efficiency and one-bedroom apartment at Salina 1138 Chicon St in east Austin! Applications must be submitted before the waitlist closes on November 15th at 5pm. Learn more and apply at www.hacaapply.org.
Housing Authority of the City of Austin
The waitlist is NOW OPEN for the efficiency and one-bedroom apartment at Salina in east Austin! Applications must be submitted before the waitlist closes on November 15th at 5pm. Learn more and apply at www.hacaapply.org.
NATIONAL ADAPT HITS DC
| For Immediate Release September 19, 2022 Contact: Rhoda Gibson, rhodagibson2@gmail.com, (617)504-1792Colleen Flannigan, colleen1979@gmail.com, (617) 435-0486Gina Barabra, ginambarbara@gmail.com, (516)318-9460, ADAPT Descends on D.C. to Fight for Our Lives September 17-22, 2022, National ADAPT will be peacefully assembling in D.C. to continue fighting for the civil and human rights of disabled people. For 30 years we have been demanding Congress recognizes our right to live in integrated housing, increase funding to expand and make permanent, the Money Follows the Person (MFP) demonstration project, which provides funding for home and community-based services (HCBS), and livable wages for our personal care attendants. 32 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act the freedom of people with disabilities continues to be denied. People with disabilities continue to be forced to beg for the freedom that others take for granted. People with disabilities still don’t have the right to get care in their own homes. Public access is not a right that people with disabilities are allowed to fully enjoy. ADAPT is gathering in D.C. to peacefully yet assertively DEMAND that the Congress stop ignoring us and TAKE ACTION NOW to FINALLY Free Our People. To follow National ADAPT throughout the week and to see how you can be part of the action, visit: nationaladapt.org or follow us on social media by going to our LinkTree, and be on the lookout for announcements throughout the week. ### |
| About ADAPTADAPT is a national grass-roots community that organizes disability rights activists to engage in nonviolent direct action, including civil disobedience, to assure the civil and human rights of people with disabilities to live in freedom. |
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Fighting for Our Lives!
National ADAPT is headed back to DC September 17th – 23rd to fight for disability rights and services. ADAPT’s fearless warriors will tackle various powerbrokers who should be doing more to enhance the rights and services of people with disabilities. Keep your eyes peeled here, on our ADAPT of Texas Facebook page, on National ADAPT Facebook page and in various other spots in the social media because doubtless, amazing stories will unfold! More details to come…
ELECTION TIME IS ALMOST HERE…
The Texas Disability Issues Forum (TDIF) is back for the 2022 midterm elections! Join us Monday September 19, 2022 in Austin to find out what major party candidates have to say on your most pressing issues, from healthcare to elections to education, and more!
To register click on this link
Candidates for Governor, Lt Governor, Attorney General and this year for the first time, Agriculture Commissioner will share their positions on disability issues.
Want to be a part of the action? Volunteer slots are still needed! Call Cathy at 512-442-0252. TDIF wants you to be prepared to cast your ballot in November, so they’re providing multiple ways to learn about the candidates and their stances on issues of interest to Texans with disabilities. Whether you want to be in the room when it happens, be a part of the event, or do some reading on your own time, they’ve got you covered.
Welcome the season of disability rights
We are entering the season of disability rights. One of them anyway. June 22nd marks the 23rd anniversary of the Olmstead decision where the supreme court said people with disabilities have the right to services in the most integrated setting. Thank you Lois Curtis and Elaine Wilson (the plaintiffs). And just one month later, July 26th, is the 32nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We haven’t made it all the way but we need to celebrate how far we have come.
Don’t Dis the Vote Texas Premier
A short video and discussion designed to outreach and
build the Power of the Disability Vote.
Sat June 11th 3pm – 5pm 1300 Lavaca Austin, Texas
Family Life Center of the United Methodist Church
ASL Interpreter provided Snacks and Beverages
Bus lines #7 #20 #803
Y’all Come
Disability Vote Zoom Summit – Breaking Down Barriers to the Ballot
REGISTER TODAY FOR THE DISABILITY VOTE SUMMIT
June 29 – 30, 2022, 1:00-4:00pm ET | Virtual | ASL, CART, Spanish
Click here to Register Today https://aapd.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=08dab5cd58ad9250c3f56519f&id=e64bd2abe7&e=8258983e50
| WHEN AND WHERE IS IT? The summit takes place Wednesday and Thursday June 29-30, 2022 from1:00pm – 4:00pm ET. All the sessions will be virtual, streamed through Zoom, and free to all. We hope you’ll register to join us! WHAT IS IT? Join disability and voting advocates for a 2-day virtual summit focused on getting out the disability vote in 2022. Summit speakers will come from disability, voting, and civil rights advocacy communities across the country. This summit will include breakout sessions on: Why We Vote: Centering the Issues Making Elections More Accessible Partnering for Success Protecting Voting Rights and Access Making Voting Outreach More Accessible Motivating Disabled Voters in 2022 WHAT IS THE ACCESS INFORMATION? This event is free to all and will include ASL interpretation, English and Spanish captions, and Spanish audio translation. If you require any other accommodations, please email Jack Rosen at jack.rosen@ndrn.org with “Vote Summit — Accommodations Request” in the subject line. WHO IS ORGANIZING THIS SUMMIT? The 2022 Disability Vote Summit is co-hosted by the REV UP Voting Campaign at the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN), and the National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (NAACD). |
Travis County Section 8 Waiting List to Open
Travis County Housing Authority (different from Austin’s HACA, yes we have 2 housing authorities here, City of Austin and Travis County) has announced that they are opening their Housing Choice Voucher (also known as Section 8 voucher) list:
Housing Choice Voucher
Waiting List Opening 7/1/2022- 7/8/2022
Pre-applications for placement on the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) waiting list program will be accepted starting Friday July 1, 2022 @ 8:00 AM, through Friday July 8, 2022 @ 5:00 PM. If interested in applying for the HCV waiting list, visit https://www.waitlistcheck.com/TX1128-3917.
If you need affordable housing DO NOT LET THIS OPPORTUNITY PASS. This happens once in a blue moon and if you don’t jump on it you will be waiting for YEARS for another chance. It’s a lottery so you never know who will get lucky – so go for it!
Having problems getting your chair fixed? You are not alone
At our last ADAPT meeting we were discussing the problems of late getting your wheelchair or other DME fixed. The local go-to spots have been bought out by mega-corporations which seem to care little to none about our waiting weeks or months with broken equipment waiting on the world to change and these behemoths to get off their you-know-whats, get the parts, make an appointment, and fix the equipment. And van repair is much the same these days.
Well it seems this is not just an Austin issue. Mother Jones has an article on this problem (click here to read more). The article talks about National Seating and Numotion but here in Austin, the another part of the problem is Rehab Medical. First you must weave your way through a labyrinth of telephone answering messages and options. Then you must convince them you need help, Then you must wait for an appointment – and I do mean wait, like for a month or more. Then you must get your service request approved – again waiting and waiting. Then you wait and wait for parts. Then wait, wait, wait for another appointment and hope the parts they got are the right ones. I haven’t made it any farther than this so far, and don’t know anyone else who has either, so I’m not sure what happens after that.