Indiana Family to Family

from NDNRC: Yesterday, the House voted on and approved the American Health Care Act (AHCA) and it now moves to the Senate for consideration. Back when the AHCA was originally introduced in March, we did a  blog post  analyzing what the AHCA would mean for people with disabilities. However, recent amendments to the bill changed this analysis as the MacArthur amendment specifically addresses protections for people with pre-existing conditions. We have a new blog post which examines what the new version of the AHCA would mean for people with disabilities and includes a look at high-risk pools which have been proposed as a possible solution to address people with pre-existing conditions. For that new blog post which includes a list of resources on high-risk pools,  click here . For the reasons stated in the blog post, the American Association on Health and Disability (the lead partner for the NDNRC) continues to oppose the AHCA and now urges the Senate to reject it. If you’d like to

Send resume and cover letter to: projects@fvindiana.org or mail to: Family Voices Indiana, 445 N Pennsylvania St Ste 941, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 Resumes will be accepted through May 31, 2017 Family Voices Indiana Vision - Our ultimate goal is a world where all children and youth experiencing complex care needs or disabilities thrive. Family Voices Indiana Mission - Our mission is to equip and support families with children and youth experiencing complex care needs or disabilities. Basic position description: The Executive Director of Family Voices Indiana (FVI) is responsible for the administration, maintenance, and growth of the organization and for equipping and supporting families of children and youth experiencing complex care needs or disabilities. The Executive Director needs to be a passionate and professional person and a self-motivated leader who serves as the keystone of FVI’s operations and activities as well as the face of FVI in the community. Th

May 2, 2017   Andy Schneider The White House and the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives are continuing to look for enough votes to pass a bill to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  A number of Republican Members opposed to the bill have expressed specific concern about a new amendment that would allow states to undo the ACA’s protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions such as asthma, cancer, depression, and diabetes.  They are right to be concerned. The ACA contains two protections for people with pre-existing conditions.  It requires health insurers to cover essential health benefits, and it prohibits them from charging individuals with a poor medical history more than those who are healthy.  Under the new amendment to the bill, states would be allowed to waive both the ACA’s benefits standards as well as the prohibition against raising premiums for those with pre-existing conditions.  As explained by the Center on Budget and

from National Family Voices: ACA Replacement / Medicaid Legislation The House of Representatives is scheduled to begin a on a one-week recess  on Friday . The House leadership and the administration are hoping to garner enough votes before then for the House to pass an amended version of the House bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) -- the  American Health Care Act  (AHCA, H.R. 1628). As of this writing ( Monday  night), it is unclear whether this will be possible. See  GOP struggles to find ObamaCare repeal votes  (The Hill, May 1, 2017).  The bill will not be brought to the House Floor for a vote unless the leadership has the commitment of enough House members to pass it. If all the Democrats vote against the bill, as expected, then the bill will not be approved if more than 22 Republicans oppose it. If brought to the Floor for a vote, the bill will incorporate the so-called  MacArthur amendment , which was developed with the aim of gaining the votes of

from National Family Voices: THIS  TUESDAY, MAY 2 , JOIN IN FOR A  NATIONAL CALL IN DAY  TO PROTECT MEDICAID AND HEALTHCARE FOR MILLIONS OF AMERICANS. The U.S. House of Representatives may vote this week on a health care bill (the American Health Care Act) that would severely harm the Medicaid program, putting ALL people on Medicaid at risk for losing access to services (including children getting Medicaid through waivers).  The bill would also alter the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Among other things, it would allow states to do away with the ACA’s Essential Health Benefits, out-of-pocket limits, and the ban on annual and lifetime limits.  It would also allow states to let insurers charge more for people with pre-existing conditions. You can help defeat this legislation!   Tuesday  is a national call-in day.  Please call your U.S. Representative  on Monday ,  Tuesday , or as soon as possible to tell them, “Please vote NO on the American Health Care Act.”   Explain w

Indiana families now have access to a new web-based training which will help them build knowledge and skills in the area of family leadership!  Building Family Leaders will give families access to the tools they need to be empowered to lead, advocate and engage as partners in the systems that serve their children. The idea for the Building Family Leaders  modules was born during a statewide meeting of the Family Leadership Council. The council was led by staff from the Riley Child Development Center and Family Voices Indiana in collaboration with the Indiana State Department of Health's Title V Maternal and Child Health & Children's Special Health Needs Services. The Family Leadership Council is made up of more than 20 organizations whose missions include, at least in part, serving children with special health care needs. Families raising children with disabilities and special health care needs encounter a myriad maze of systems of services as they seek care and support

from NAMI Indiana: When a person is in a psychiatric crisis, it is imperative to be able to get him or her into treatment as quickly as possible. This situation can present a very significant challenge that we hope this booklet will help you meet successfully. In the booklet itself, we will describe the general parameters of what to do to get help in a psychiatric crisis. As you are probably aware, there are 25 Community Mental Health Centers (CMHCs) with office locations serving 92 counties in Indiana. Each of these CMHCs has its unique set procedures, and so it will be critical to contact the one serving the county in which your person in crisis resides, to become cognizant of what these procedures are. Contact information is on pages 17 - 20 of this booklet. The information contained in Planning for and Responding to a Mental Health Crisis (“Crisis Booklet”) is subject to constant change. Further, the information contained herein is intended for general information purposes only