|
in the spotlightParity in Advocacy: Overcoming Barriers to Legal Representation is Long OverdueBy PWDF Staff People With Disabilities Foundation (PWDF), having long advocated for people with psychiatric and/or developmental disabilities, has begun an initiative to press for increased legal representation using these individuals as plaintiffs in anti-discrimination lawsuits for this population's disability rights. LEGAL CurrentsPWDF Urges the Social Security Administration to Specify and Implement Reasonable Accommodations for Individuals with Mental and/or Developmental Disabilities to Ensure Effective CommunicationBy Steven Bruce, PWDF Legal Director, April Banerjee, PWDF Program Manager for Public Awareness and Education, and Sophia Hocini, PWDF Program Coordinator for Public Awareness and Education The Social Security Administration (SSA) has been enacting changes to its operations related to providing reasonable accommodations when communicating with people with disabilities. These changes do not include the identification of specific accommodations for people with severe mental and/or developmental disabilities. The need for these accommodations is huge: People With Disabilities Foundation (PWDF) estimates that 8-10 million people receive Social Security disability benefits and/or Supplemental Security Income disability benefits based on mental disorders. PWDF settled two lawsuits, Terrence Davis v. Michael Astrue, Case No. 3:06-CV-6108 EMC (NC) and John Doe v. Michael Astrue, Case No. 3:09-CV-980 EMC (NC), against the SSA in which the SSA agreed to provide reasonable accommodations to two individuals with mental and/or developmental disabilities (currently in post-settlement enforcement). These accommodations can be applied to other individuals with severe mental and/or developmental disabilities; however, SSA does not do so. New Seminar AnnouncementUpcoming Event: Abuse Against People with Mental and/or Developmental Disabilities Part 2: Jails, Prisons, and Law EnforcementJoin us for a free public education seminar on the topic of abuse against people with mental and/or developmental disabilities in jails, prisons, and law enforcement contexts. This event is planned for late October - early November 2014. Watch our events page for the date, time, and location of the seminar. This event will also be live-streamed. PWDF NEWS: PROGRAM UPDATESAdvocacy UpdatePWDF continues to hold a monthly Legal Clinic for Social Security beneficiaries (SSDI & SSI) with post-entitlement / eligibility issues. The clinic is being held the fourth Thursday of every month. Attorneys will be available to answer a wide range of questions from what the resource limits are from both earned and unearned income to requests about the effect marriage would have on a claimant's benefits. The upcoming clinics are scheduled for Thursday, September 25, October 30, and November 20 from 10 AM to Noon. Please note that the November clinic will be held on the third Thursday of the month. Call us at 415-931-3070 to make an appointment. The Advocacy Program welcomes licensed Staff Attorney Steve Egler, with 10 years of experience in civil litigation and administrative law, and Advocacy Program Manager Nora Breslin with over 5 years of experience in public benefits, tenants' rights, and homeless advocacy. Education UpdateThe PWDF Public Awareness and Education Program held or took part in a number of informational events this summer, including holding our 13th free public education seminar. Our largest event of the summer, PWDF's 13th public education seminar took place on August 18th at the Koret Auditorium in the San Francisco Public Library. The three-hour seminar included a diverse panel of experts who discussed the topic of abuse against people with mental, developmental, and/or intellectual disabilities in institutional or community settings. Speakers included a psychiatrist, a primary care physician, a licensed psychologist, three attorneys, a social worker, and an individual with personal experience with this issue. This was the first time PWDF live-streamed an event to make it available to a greater audience; the seminar is available for on-demand viewing through our website. Information and handouts are available on our website.
In May, PWDF's Program Coordinator for Public Awareness and Education, Sophia Hocini, participated in the 2014 NAMIWalk Bay Area, a walk that supports people impacted by mental illness, and works to influence the way Americans view persons with a mental illness. In August, PWDF held a very successful workshop on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) at Support for Families of Children with Disabilities. Staff Attorney Zoya Yarnykh provided information on eligibility and maintaining benefits for children on SSI, age 18 redeterminations, and disabled adult children receiving SSDI under someone else's account (i.e., deceased, disabled, or retired parent). Several members of the PWDF staff also recently attended Project Homeless Connect (PHC) 55 at the San Francisco Civic Center Auditorium. PHC enables nonprofit medical, social service, and other providers to serve homeless San Franciscans with comprehensive services. PWDF is available for speaking arrangements and training sessions regarding reasonable accommodations, employment, housing and other issues regarding the mentally and/or developmentally disabled population. We have particular expertise in Social Security/SSDI and SSI disability post-entitlement / eligibility issues for beneficiaries with mental and/or developmental disabilities. For inquiries about PWDF's Public Awareness and Education Program, please contact our Program Manager, April Banerjee at education@pwdf.org. Agency UpdatePWDF is pleased to announce that Todd Teixeira joined PWDF as its new Deputy Director of Development and Administration. Todd comes to PWDF with 15 years of experience in non-profit agency management and fundraising. Todd will oversee administrative, human resources, and development functions for PWDF. PWDF ProfileWho We ArePeople With Disabilities Foundation is an operating 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California, which focuses on the rights of the mentally and developmentally disabled. ServicesAdvocacy: PWDF advocates for Social Security claimant's disability benefits in eight Bay Asrea counties. We also provide services in disability rights, on issues regarding returning to work, and in ADA consultations, including areas of employment, health care, and education, among others. There is representation before all levels of federal court and Administrative Law Judges. No one is declined due to their inability to pay, and we offer a sliding scale for attorney's fees. Education/Public Awareness: To help eliminate the stigma against people with mental disabilities in society, PWDF's educational program organizes workshops and public seminars, provides guest speakers with backgrounds in mental health, and produces educational materials such as videos. Continuing Education Provider: State Bar of California MCLE, California Board of Behavioral Sciences Continuing Education, and Commission of Rehabilitation Counselor Certification. |
Volume 19
|
|
Our Mission is to provide education and advocacy for people with psychiatric and/or developmental disabilities, with or without physical disabilities, so that they can achieve equal opportunities in all aspects of life. | |
|
PWDF does not provide legal assistance by email or telephone. Unsubscribe from this e-newsletter list. |
