On Wednesday, March 10, 2009, a busload of us from Rochester joined disability rights activists from around the state to protest Governor Paterson’s proposed budget cuts that would cap personal care services at twelve hours per day. Read about what happened here.
Archive for the ‘Rochester’ Category
No Matter What You Call It…It’s Still a Cap!
Friday, March 12th, 2010My first paid article!
Saturday, February 27th, 2010Wow, am I happy! A week ago, I wrote another article for Associated Content. This time, due to the encouragement of another seasoned AC writer who has been very supportive of me, I decided to ask for upfront payment along with performance pay. I’d never done this before, fearing that my writing wasn’t good enough.
I submitted the article last Friday evening, and on Monday, I got a notice saying that the article was declined for upfront payment because they couldn’t tell what city was the focus of the article. I didn’t understand that, as I mentioned the city several times.
All wasn’t lost though. In the notice, the Content Manager suggested that I insert the city name in the title, or create a subtitle, and re-submit the article. I added a quick subtitle, and re-submitted it.
I didn’t hear anything from AC for the rest of the week. When I got home from work yesterday, I was checking my account, and happened to glance at a small note. I took a closer look and saw that it was a notice that Associated Content had made a payment offer for my article! I quickly accepted the offer, which wasn’t bad, and the article was immediately published.
I am excited because this is the first time that I have been paid actual money for something that I wrote. I’ll definitely continue to ask for upfront payment for my new articles!
Nathaniel’s Pub: My Favorite Watering Hole
As usual, I added my unique twist on this review, but you’ll have to read it to find out what that twist is. 
Let your voice be heard in Albany!
Sunday, November 8th, 2009Bright and VERY early Monday morning, the Rochester crew will be saddling up to go to Albany, our state Capital, to protest the Governor’s, and state Republicans’ proposed budget cuts. I’ll try hard to blog live from the action. Anyway, here is the Alert that I sent out:
Let Your Voice be heard in Albany!
As you have probably heard, the Governor proposed DRASTIC cuts to home care, Medicaid, and Independent Living Centers that include a 10% cut from November through March and an on-going cut of three to four percent. Further, state Republicans have proposed to completely eliminate all Medicaid services that are labeled “optional” by the federal government, including coverage for prescriptions, as well as 18 other essential health care services. Although times are difficult, these cuts will make matters worse for many folks. These proposed cuts directly affect almost every New Yorker with a disability!
TAKE ACTION!!!! Let your voice be heard in Albany!
The Center for Disability Rights has planned a trip to make sure our voice is heard by the Albany bureaucrats who hold people’s lives in their hands.
November 9, 2009 – Albany
We are headed to Albany for a statewide action on the cuts.
We will meet at the Center for Disability Rights, located at 497 State Street by 5:30 AM, and we will arrive back at the office about 11 PM.
We don’t know what could happen, so people should be sure to bring meds and toileting supplies for two days in case we have unexpected problems or delays.
We really don’t expect to need them, but don’t want people to have serious medical issues, so bring them, just in case.
We have proposed approaches that will save money and support people living independently, but the Paterson administration has not acted on our proposals. Instead, they are proposing cuts to services across-the-board, so we have the right to be angry and push back.
Please join us and help others join us in this effort!
They Still Don’t Get It: My Vote Story
Sunday, November 8th, 2009I got up Tuesday (November 3, 2009) bright and (not so) early so that I could make a quick stop at my polling place and vote before going to work. Thankfully, my polling site is down the street from my house at Andrews Terrace, one of those buildings whose residents are mostly seniors or folks with disabilities, so I didn’t have to worry about physical access.
I wondered if I would have the trouble that I had last year, where it took me almost two hours to vote because the machine had not been turned on, or would the machine be “broken” as it was claimed to be when I tried to vote on Primary Day this past September. Oddly, the machine had broken down a few minutes before I came, and they had called it in. I later learned that the Board of Elections had received no such call. Hmmm…
I got there a bit after 8:00 am, and presented myself to the election inspectors, and signed in. Afterwards, the gentleman (I don’t remember his name, so I’ll call him Tony) pointed toward the lever machine, but I wanted to use the accessible voting machine. They called to Don, an older gentleman who apparently was the tech guy. The screen was still blank, but I was told that they had powered up the machine earlier. After about ten minutes, they were able to get the screen to operate, and I was able to vote with no problems at all. The ballot printed out quickly and slid nicely into the privacy sleeve. I smiled and breathed a sigh of relief.
This is where I celebrate the happy ending, right? Where I sail out the door on a cloud of elation for having the first hassle-free voting experience since I’ve been in New York, right? WRONG! Almost immediately, Tony snatched my ballot out of the privacy sleeve, glanced at it, and proceeded to put it into the scanner. I asked one of the ladies (I believe it was Ruth) at the desk about privacy in voting, and she instructed Tony to let me see my ballot. Tony handed it to me without the privacy sleeve. I glanced at it, and handed it back. I asked about privacy again, and she assured me that they wouldn’t pay attention to how I voted, but meanwhile, Don had taken the ballot from Tony, and was perusing it, reading it like he was reading the morning newspaper! I was aghast, and my jaw literally dropped. I said, “See, this is exactly what I mean”! Ruth then yelled to Don, “Hey, hey, stop that! You can’t do that”! It took a full 30-45 seconds to get his attention, then, he handed the ballot to Tony, who scanned it, then folded it and put it aside. Ruth apologized, but I shook my head in disgust, got my “I Voted” sticker from Sarah, the fourth inspector present, and left.
Lisa, who also came to vote, told me that Ruth had remarked to her that I had used the machine last year, and was the only person to do so, and probably would be the only person to use it this year, as well. I recalled that I’d overheard the conversation while I was voting, and I heard Sarah say that it was good that they had the machine here for me to use.
I must say that I left that voting experience with a really bad taste in my mouth. The thought of not being able to cast my vote in secret like everyone else makes me exceedingly angry. I wasted no time in contacting the Monroe County Board of Elections, and spoke with Commissioner Tom Ferrarese, who was every bit as appalled as I was. He placed a call to the polling place and gave a stern reminder to the inspectors about privacy and the use of the privacy sleeve on ballots cast on the accessible machine.
It certainly seems, based on other complaints that I’ve received, that many of our election inspectors still don’t get it when it comes to voting access for people with disabilities. I have come to the conclusion that I will continue to have problems at the polls for the foreseeable future. I will, however, continue to fight for the right of people with disabilities to vote privately, independently, and secretly, just like everybody else.
Testimony before the State Senate Finance Committee
Sunday, November 8th, 2009Monday, November 2, 2009, I was one of over 50 people from Rochester ADAPT/Center for Disability Rights who went to Buffalo, NY, for the hearing before the State Senate Finance Committee about Governor Paterson’s Deficit Reduction Plan (DRP). Chris, Bruce, and I presented testimony before this body. Here is my testimony. I will say here that many folks felt that it was very powerful!
Dear Senator Kruger and members of the Senate Finance Committee:
My name is Anita Cameron, and I am a Systems Advocate with the Center for Disability Rights, a Rochester-based Center for Independent Living with offices in Geneva, Corning, and Albany. I would like to thank you for allowing me to speak today regarding Governor Paterson’s Deficit Reduction Plan (DRP).
I am before you today not only in my capacity as System’s Advocate with the Center for Disability Rights, but as a person who has friends and colleagues who will be personally affected by the proposed cuts with devastating results.
As you know, the proposed cut to Medicaid is $287 million, which includes $24.5 million from home health care, and $27.5 from personal care. Combined with the loss of federal matching funds, the total amount of cuts to home care and personal care will total $131 million!
I have friends and colleagues who will be at imminent risk of institutional placement because the cuts will mean that they will not be able to receive the necessary hours of service for them to remain at home. Some of them work, and won’t be able to keep their jobs if they lose their hours of home and personal care services and are institutionalized. Not only will it cost the state more to institutionalize people, as has been demonstrated, the state will further lose revenue from the loss of tax and other revenues from these New Yorkers.
This unnecessary institutionalization is in direct contravention of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Olmstead decision, which states that “unnecessary institutionalization is discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act”. Instead of forcing people into institutional settings as a result of the proposed cuts, our state should be working expeditiously to create and implement an Olmstead plan to transition New Yorkers trapped in institutions back into their communities.
Another concern is that part of DRP includes $11.4 million in cuts to the state’s Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit. A cut of as little as ten dollars will have devastating effects for people on SSI. I have a friend who has told me that a loss of even $10.00 means that he won’t be able to pay his rent. For another friend this means that she can’t pay the co-pay on her medications. Another friend won’t be able to pay bus fare to go to the doctor, school, or church, leaving him trapped in his home. For another friend, that means that she won’t be able to buy the few groceries that she can on her limited income. Add to this that for the first time in 34 years, the federal government will not add a cost of living increase, and you can only imagine what that means!
The last thing that I want to speak of is the other proposed cuts by the Senate Minority that are particularly disastrous for people with disabilities and seniors. The proposal is to eliminate all Medicaid optional services offered in New York. Optional services are those services that are not required by the federal governments, such as prescription drug coverage and home and community based personal services. People with disabilities and seniors will not be able to get their medications, or receive personal services which will result in a worsening of disabling conditions and illnesses, hospitalizations, and institutionalization in nursing facilities. I know that we can do better than this. Cuts must happen, that is true, but there must be a common-sense way that this can be done, rather than gutting the very programs that would save our state money. There must be a mustering of political will to do the right thing by the most vulnerable New Yorkers.
Thank you for your attention,
Anita Cameron
Systems Advocate
Center for Disability Rights
Off to Atlanta!
Friday, October 9th, 2009Well, its 10:55pm, and we’ve been on the bus for about an hour. Strangely, I’m not sleepy.
A light mist was in the air as our Rochester crew boarded the bus. A reporter from a local news station was on hand to see us off. He interviewed me and filmed folks waiting inside, and got footage of our people boarding the bus. By the time he left, he fully understood that we were going to Atlanta to help free our people. I’ll look for the story online, and link to it.
Now, I think I’ll settle down and enjoy the ride!
CCA Reintroduced!
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009It’s happened! The Community Choice Act has been reintroduced into both the House of Representatives and the Senate! Yesterday, March 24, 2009, Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Arlen Specter (R-PA), and Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL) came together to do the deed. I don’t have any information about the Senate, but on the House side, the bill number is H.R. 1670, and it has 25 original co-sponsors. Here they are:
Rep Baldwin, Tammy [WI-2] – 3/23/2009
Rep Brady, Robert A. [PA-1] – 3/23/2009
Rep Carney, Christopher P. [PA-10] – 3/23/2009
Rep Christensen, Donna M. [VI] – 3/23/2009
Rep Cohen, Steve [TN-9] – 3/23/2009
Rep DeLauro, Rosa L. [CT-3] – 3/23/2009
Rep Doyle, Michael F. [PA-14] – 3/23/2009
Rep Fattah, Chaka [PA-2] – 3/23/2009
Rep Hinchey, Maurice D. [NY-22] – 3/23/2009
Rep Israel, Steve [NY-2] – 3/23/2009
Rep Kaptur, Marcy [OH-9] – 3/23/2009
Rep Kind, Ron [WI-3] – 3/23/2009
Rep Kucinich, Dennis J. [OH-10] – 3/23/2009
Rep Langevin, James R. [RI-2] – 3/23/2009
Rep Larson, John B. [CT-1] – 3/23/2009
Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] – 3/23/2009
Rep Lewis, John [GA-5] – 3/23/2009
Rep Meeks, Gregory W. [NY-6] – 3/23/2009
Rep Moore, Dennis [KS-3] – 3/23/2009
Rep Olver, John W. [MA-1] – 3/23/2009
Rep Payne, Donald M. [NJ-10] – 3/23/2009
Rep Sanchez, Loretta [CA-47] – 3/23/2009
Rep Schwartz, Allyson Y. [PA-13] – 3/23/2009
Rep Sestak, Joe [PA-7] – 3/23/2009
Rep Velazquez, Nydia M. [NY-12] – 3/23/2009
There was a celebration in Washington, DC inside the Capitol. A busload of Rochester ADAPT folks attended (and are still there today for the Senate Finance Committee hearing on Long Term Care), but unfortunately, I wasn’t on that bus. I’m still out from surgery. I went to CDR, and was able to attend via teleconference. CDR was one of 119 sites in 37 states around the nation that had local hook-ups to the celebration. After Senator Harkin (who recognized Bob Kafka and Yoshiko Dart in his sppech), Senator Specter, and Rep. Davis Spoke (as usual, Danny Davis mentioned our mutual friend, Dennis Schreiber in his remarks), my dear friend Dawn Russell, from ADAPT got things started with a rousing call to action. Other speakers included Mitch LaPlante, who wrote the study that led to the new scoring on CCA, Victor Robinson, of Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE), Marty Ford, of Citizens Consortium of people with Disabilities (CCD), Andy Imparato, of American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), who is my old boss (I used to work at AAPD), and John Lancaster, of NCIL. I was proud that in his remarks, John mention that ”The two best CILS in the country-Philadelphia and Rochester”.
As I mentioned earlier, The Rochester, and presumably, the Philly crew are staying for the hearing before the Senate Finance Committee on the role of Long Term Care in Health Reform. CCA is supposed to be one of the topics that will be covered. The hearing is at 2:30. I hope it will be webcast, but it doesn’t appear that it wiil be. I’ll check again.
I’ll also let you know when I get the Senate numbers for CCA, and co-sponsor list.
Rochester ADAPT heads to DC!
Wednesday, March 4th, 2009Tonight, a busload of Rochester ADAPT folks left for Washington, DC to attend a hearing of the Senate Aging Committee on long term care. ADAPT is going to be there to make sure that the Community Choice Act is their first priority! Afterwards, there will be other visits.
The Community Choice Act is of utmost importance to us all! It will give people with disabilities and seniors who are incarcerated in nursing homes and other institutions, or those at risk of such placement, the choice to live in the community with the services and supports that they need to remain independent. CCA will soon be reintroduced, but it is very important that you contact your Senators and Congressfolks to sign on. Here are the links:
Senate:
http://capwiz.com/rochestercdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12598871
House:
http://capwiz.com/rochestercdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12597841
Please take a minute to do this. We’ve made it quite easy!
RA’s Note: To my great dissappointment, I am not one of the ones on the bus to DC. I am at home recovering from surgery.
Laid up
Thursday, February 12th, 2009Between the last post and this one, much has happened. I went to the ADAPT strategy meeting in Austin, and Legislative Day, and training in Albany. I got to speak out at the NYAPRS rally against cuts in SSI.
Here’s the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4DhUYWwGH8
If you live in New York, you can do the Action Alert. It’s really easy!
http://capwiz.com/rochestercdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12547841&type=CU&show_alert=1
While you’re at it, do this Action Alert on the Consumer Directed Personal Care Program (CDPAP), which saves our state millions of dollars!
http://capwiz.com/rochestercdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12588526&type=ML&show_alert=1
Now that I’ve told you about the important stuff, let’s get back to me. Through all of this, I have been back and forth to doctors for various health issues. Now, I’m laid up in pain (I’ve been so all week) from colon issues again, and I found out yesterday that I’m to have surgery AGAIN! This time, depending on what they find, they’ll do a procedure that could lead to a complication that I’m not going to talk about here, but after discussing it with Lisa, we have decided to give the doc permission to do the procedure, if need be. The surgery will be on Thursday, February 26th.
Needless to say, though I am in intense pain, I am missing work, and trying to do stuff from home. Hopefully, I can make it in tomorrow, or next week.
I’ll kee you abreast of what is going on.
Same problem, different year!
Thursday, January 8th, 2009For the third year in a row, CDR (and I) have tried to illustrate the problems that people with disabilities, particularly, those who use wheelchairs, encounter when trying to navigate snowy sidewalks. In February, 2007, the Mayor and the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Services (DES) came to CDR, got in wheelchairs, and tried to get through the snowy sidewalks. Of course, it wasn’t happening! The Mayor was so struck by his experience that he allocated more money for snow removal in the city budget. Last year, about the same time, Chris and the Mayor did an op-ed piece in the Democrat and Chronicle, our local newspaper, asking neighbors to be good citizens and clear the sidewalks on, or near their property. On Monday, January 5, 2009, R News (Channel 9 on cable), one of the local cable stations, did a piece about this same issue.
By now, I am really frustrated. Here are my thoughts on the matter:
What I really hope is that the city begins enforcing its own policy. I know that they want fines to be a last resort, but as I said to the reporter, people will follow the city’s lead. No one will take the city seriously on this unless they get tough. Otherwise, we’ll be hearing about a tragedy, and I don’t want that to happen. Somehow, though, I feel that a tragedy is what it will take for the city to open its eyes, and get serious. The message that I take away is that people with disabilities truly don’t matter. Yes, there is more money allocated in the budget for snow removal, but people must understand that it is also their duty to remove snow, and if they can’t do it, they have to see if they can get it done for them. More important, the city, itself, must abide by it’s own rules! The city must clear the sidewalks around any property that it owns, including vacant property. People will not clear the snow if they know that the city is not doing it’s part. Once the city begins doing it’s part, then, they’ll be able to fairly enforce the policy, and hopefully, people will get serious.
Anyway, here is the link to the news story:
http://www.rnews.com/Story_2004.cfm?ID=68231&rnews_story_type=18
In case you can’t get to the video, or you are Deaf, here is the text:
City Streets Discourage the Disabled
In the dead of winter, many of us spend most of our time indoors – most times from the house to the car and back inside.
A group of folks forced to spend more time outdoors to get around is having problems in the City of Rochester. City residents could be unknowingly making it difficult for the disabled.
“To travel in the street? It is extremely scary,” Anita Cameron of Rochester said.
Cameron gets around the only way she knows how.
“People yell, they scream ‘get out of the street’,” Cameron said.
Wheels on a wheelchair spin out just like those of a car. It’s a problem the disabled, like Cameron, find challenging in a western New York winter.
“I have to wait for the bus right here because there is no way we can get on. The last time I did this, I had the police called on me and I was considered a danger to myself,” Cameron said.
City streets are the city’s responsibility right? Not so fast. According to a Rochester snow ordinance, shoveling is up to you.
“The property owner or the first floor tenant must keep the sidewalk area free of snow and ice,” Neighborhood Empowerment Teams Director Molly Clifford said.
An ordinance the City of Rochester says can cost you up to $75 if not followed.
“That’s really a last resort for us. We really want people to take a proactive step and keep their sidewalks shoveled,” Clifford said.
The city plows sidewalks as long as there’s more than three inches of snow. Fine print in the rulebooks Cameron believes needs to be even clearer.
“I think that the city should begin enforcing its own policies because otherwise there’s going to be a tragedy,” Cameron said.
