Recently introduced bills - S.2089 & HR.1601 - would change asset limits for people on the SSI program. These bills would also increase income disregards, add inflation adjustments for future years and do away with some of the rules that decrease SSI payments for people who receive additional support from family members. The Senate bill [...]
Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries will receive a 1.5 percent COLA increase for 2014. Other important changes SSI Federal Payment Standard: Individual $721/mo. Couple $1,082/mo. SSI Student Exclusion: Monthly limit $1,750 Annual limit $7,060 Social Security Disability Thresholds: Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) Non-Blind $1,070/mo. Blind $1,800/mo. Trial Work Period (TWP) $770/mo. Receive [...]
Reforms Health Insurance Practices • Eliminates pre-existing condition exclusions • Bans annual and lifetime limits • Ends insurance companies retroactively denying coverage • Improves the appeals process when a person is denied coverage of a treatment or service • Requires that at least 80% of health insurance premium dollars are paying for health care • [...]
The Department of Transportation is exploring the creation of a national, exchangeable ADA Universal Identification card. This card would allow people who are eligible for Paratransit to travel to other areas within the United States and receive Paratransit services in that area without filling out a separate request form for that area. To learn more, [...]
A collection of images and artifacts detailing the presence and impact of people with disabilities in American history. Visit www.everybody.si.edu to learn more about the collection
Thomas Waldrup wants to go into nursing. Sidney Watson is thinking about becoming a web designer. Caysee Reinholz dreams of teaching children how to dance. All three of them want to own their own homes one day—but for many young adults with disabilities, like Thomas, Sidney and Caysee, government rules can bar them from becoming [...]
The ABLE Act is a bill under review by Congress that would allow for people to save money for goals such as education or housing without losing SSI or Medicaid eligibility. This bill has 110 co-sponsors in the House and 12 in the Senate, including Montana Sen. Jon Tester. The following information has been taken [...]
The new regulations apply to Title II of the ADA, covering programs, activities, and services of public entities, and Title III of the ADA, covering public accommodations, commercial facilities and private entities offering certain examinations and courses. Common examples of facilities covered under Title II include state and local government offices, public schools, and state [...]
The Montana Independent Living Centers – Housing Task Force is actively promoting Visitability at a local, state, and national level. We would like to see the day when all newly constructed homes have the visitable/minimum accessibility standards. They are: 1) one zero-step entrance 2) doors with 32-36 inches of clear passage space 3) one bathroom [...]
Building Advocacy and Learning Leadership Skills (BALLS) classes were offered to five high schools this past year and almost 100 students took this training in three Missoula High Schools as well as in Frenchtown and Florence. Disability and IL History, Movement and Culture training was also given to junior and senior history/government classes at Big [...]