Functional Needs Disability Awareness News Today

For Missourians with a disability, earning too much money, or having a spouse earn too much, can mean losing important Medicaid health coverage. State Rep. Melanie Stinnett, R-Springfield, said she observed this problem when young people she had worked with as a speech therapist shared some of the struggles they faced after entering the workforce. ...

A revamped website for the Americans with Disabilities Act has launched to make the site more accessible. The Justice Department has updated ADA.gov to provide more straightforward information on the rights of people with disabilities. It is also more accessible for people with low vision who use screen readers to navigate the internet. ...

Advocates for Iowans with disabilities say a new "school choice" law could allow discrimination against students with disabilities. The bill creates "savings accounts" to allow families to send their children to private schools, some of which may not be equipped for students with special needs. Public schools are required by law to serve all students who come to their campuses, but private schools are not. ...

The first of four training sessions is coming up March 6-7 in Springfield on preparedness to help individuals with disabilities survive a disaster. According to the project director, David Whalen from Niagara University, "Emergency Management Access and Functional Needs Disability Awareness Training" is appropriate for an "eclectic mix of people." He encouraged anyone in emergency management, or in government or social-services organizations, to attend. Whale...