ARIZONA CENTER FOR DISABILITY LAW
DRAFT Objectives/Priorities for
Services
Fiscal Year 2008
The Arizona Center for Disability Law (Center) is a non-profit
legal services organization designated by the Governor as the Protection and
Advocacy (P &A) System for the State of Arizona.
The Center operates federally funded grant programs to
protect and advocate for the legal rights of persons with disabilities. The terms of these grants only allow us to
serve individuals who fit into specific federal eligibility categories. Demand for our services far exceeds available
resources; therefore, we must plan activities in a strategic manner to most
effectively utilize our limited resources.
In addition to the objectives and priorities listed below,
the Center also utilizes the following criteria when deciding when and how to
represent any individual.
Case Selection Criteria
1. The
applicant must meet the program eligibility guidelines and the legal problems
must fall within an objective and priority for services.
2. Services
will be provided only to persons whose legal problems are related to their
status as an individual with a disability, whose legal problems are susceptible
to resolution by Center staff and whose claim has legal merit.
3. Services
will generally only be provided to individuals whose problems cannot be solved
by other individuals, agencies, attorneys or organizations.
4. Priority
for outreach, training and representation will be given to individuals from
under-served or unserved populations or geographic regions in an effort to
ensure that more Arizonans with disabilities have the opportunity to access our
programs and services.
5. Priority
for direct legal representation will be given to individuals that present
systemic issues or problems.
6. Even
within priority areas, services will be contingent upon the availability of
staff and resources.
Priorities for:
Protection
and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness - PAIMI
The Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental
Illness (PAIMI) program was established by Congress in 1986. PAIMI agencies, such as the Center are
mandated to: protect and advocate for the rights of people with mental illness
and investigate reports of abuse and neglect both in facilities that care for
or treat individuals with mental illness and in the community. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services administers the
PAIMI program.
The following objectives and priorities will be followed by
the Center in conducting our PAIMI activities during fiscal year 2008.
OBJECTIVE #1: Reduce
the incidence of abuse and neglect of individuals with mental illness ‑
especially those in institutions ‑ (a) by improving the quality of
investigations of abuse and neglect conducted by agencies and service systems
that serve individuals with disabilities, and (b) by conducting direct
investigations of abuse and neglect allegations.
Description: Individuals
with disabilities have a right to be free from abuse and neglect. The quality of the agency/system
investigations into allegations of abuse and neglect has a direct impact on the
incidence of abuse and neglect.
Priorities:
1. Conduct direct, independent and/or
secondary investigations into allegations of abuse or neglect of individuals
with disabilities and advocate for policy changes when warranted. Cases will include secondary investigations
to follow up on incident or mortality reports and individual complaints.
2. Conduct outreach, education and/or
monitoring at jails, juvenile detention facilities or other community
placements.
3. Conduct regular outreach, education
and/or monitoring regarding seclusion and restraint, other abuse and neglect
issues, and rights violations on the psychiatric units of Maricopa
Medical Center, Arizona State
Hospital, and University
Physicians Hospital
at Kino. Conduct periodic outreach at
other inpatient psychiatric facilities.
4. Pursue litigation to address
constitutional, statutory, and regulatory matters related to abuse and neglect
issues, whether in the context of individual cases or class actions.
5.
Provide
commentary on proposed administrative rules and policy changes and promote or
support public policy initiatives to address issues related to persons with
mental illness.
6. Review, track, and trend incident reports
from licensed behavioral health agencies
furnished to the Center pursuant to the Arizona Administrative
Code. Advocate for policy changes when
warranted. Cases may include secondary
investigations to follow up on incident or mortality reports and individual
complaints.
7. Review, track and trend mortality and
morbidity (M&M) reports of all individuals in Arizona who die while enrolled in the public
mental health system. Advocate for
policy changes when warranted. Cases may
include secondary investigations to follow up on incident or mortality reports
and individual complaints.
8.
Provide technical assistance to
other agencies advocating on behalf of individuals with mental illness,
including regional Human Rights Committees.
OBJECTIVE #2: Increase
access to comprehensive and appropriate mental health care services for adults
and children with mental illness.
Description: Adults
and children with mental illness are vulnerable populations with difficulty
accessing mental health care services that allow them to be as independent as
possible, maintain their mental health, and live life to its fullest. Additionally, individuals with mental illness
have the right to mental health care treatment in the least restrictive
environment. A goal for treatment should
be to enable individuals to live and work in the community.
Priorities:
1. Pursue policy or system changes to
address failures in the mental health system and coordinate with agencies to
develop client‑based practices, including but not limited to case
management, medication, crisis, behavioral health, community support and
transportation services.
2. Provide advocacy and legal services to
individuals to ensure discharge from inpatient settings to appropriate and
adequate housing with appropriate and adequate supports with an emphasis on
individuals currently residing in institutions or being discharged from
psychiatric and detention facilities who have significant barriers to discharge
into a community setting.
3. Provide advocacy and legal services to
individuals to obtain and maintain appropriate mental health services in
accordance with case selection criteria. Particular priority will be given to
cases which present systemic issues or problems, due process and other civil
rights violations. Priority will also be
given to cases which concern individuals with a dual diagnosis (substance abuse
or a developmental disability), cases which involve denials of vocational services
or long term vocational support, cases which involve children at a high risk of
entry into the foster care system or who are transitioning into the adult
mental health system, and involving persons at risk of criminal justice
involvement or who are within the detention or jail system.
4. Conduct
outreach and training.
5. Monitor the existing class action cases
for the provision of mental health services to adults and children, which
includes pursuing legal remedies to address noncompliance with the existing
orders when appropriate. Initiate class
action cases where systemic issues not covered by the existing class actions
are presented.
6. Provide technical assistance to other
agencies advocating on behalf of individuals with mental illnesses, including regional
Human Rights Committees.
7. Provide timely and accurate information
and referral, technical assistance and short term assistance to individuals.
OBJECTIVE #3: Expand
access to appropriate and high quality special education services for students
with mental illness.
Description: The
overwhelming majority of children with disabilities are capable of
participating in a regular education environment with adaptations or
modifications, provided that they receive quality educational programs to meet
their individualized needs. Through this objective, the Center is attempting to
ensure that children with mental illness truly benefit from special education
and related services and have real opportunities for independence, productivity
and inclusion.
Priorities:
1.
Provide advocacy and legal
services to children with mental illness who have received inadequate or
inappropriate behavioral interventions leading to a denial of a free and
appropriate public education.
2. Provide advocacy and legal services to
children with disabilities who have been long-term suspended or expelled to
receive a free appropriate public education.
3. Conduct training on the educational
rights of children with mental illness.
4.
Provide timely and accurate
information and advice to families and students on special education issues and
referral to appropriate advocacy resources.
5.
Provide abuse and neglect advocacy
and legal services to children with mental illness who reside in residential,
detention and adult jail facilities.
OBJECTIVE #4: To
promote equal employment opportunity in the workplace and to increase access to
employment related services for people with mental illness.
Description: People
with disabilities continue to face barriers to employment, including but not
limited to physical obstacles in the workplace, communication barriers,
discriminatory policies and procedures and attitudinal barriers based on
stereotypes, misconceptions and fears.
This objective addresses the discrimination caused by these barriers by
providing advocacy and legal services in order to promote: (1)
Non-discriminatory hiring procedures, (2) the provision of reasonable accommodations
to employees and job applicants, (3) non-discriminatory policies and
procedures, and (4) the prevention and redress of unlawful harassment,
retaliation, intimidation and termination.
Priorities:
1. Provide legal advocacy services for the
provision of effective and reasonable accommodations when necessary for people
with mental illness in the hiring process, employment and receipt of benefits
and privileges of employment, and advocating for employer policies that support
an interactive accommodation process between the individuals with disabilities
and employers.
2. Provide legal advocacy services to
oppose hiring and recruitment procedures that do not create equal access for
people with psychiatric disabilities and employment practices involving
unlawful disability‑related inquiries and medical examinations.
3. Provide legal advocacy services to
challenge withdrawal of job offers and employment termination of people with
mental illness based on stereotype and ignorance about disabilities.
4. Provide information and referral and
self-advocacy technical assistance to individuals and their guardians.
5. Provide training to individuals on
their rights under federal and state law.
OBJECTIVE #5: Promote
equal opportunity to housing under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) for people with
mental illness. Bring about this
awareness through trainings, dissemination of written information, information
and referral services, and short term assistance.
Description: People
with disabilities continue to face barriers to equal opportunity in
housing. Housing providers discriminate
against people with disabilities by failing to provide reasonable
accommodations and physically accessible housing and by failing to reasonably
modify discriminatory policies and practices.
Housing providers also discriminate by including discriminatory terms
and conditions in housing agreements.
Municipalities discriminate against people with disabilities by
continuing to enforce exclusionary zoning practices. This objective seeks to: address those
discriminatory practices which decrease the amount of available housing for
people with disabilities, and (2) ensure that these individuals and their
housing providers are aware of the FHA.
Priorities:
1. Provide information and referral about disability
rights protected by the FHA and how to enforce them.
2.
Provide training about disability
rights protected by the FHA and how to enforce them.
3.
Provide short‑term
assistance to consumers whose circumstances are likely to be resolved by
informal advocacy by the Center.
OBJECTIVE #6: Provide
support to the PAIMI Advisory Council
Description: The
PAIMI Advisory Council is an important part of the mental health program at the
Arizona Center for Disability Law. Center staff will support the Council through
clerical and technical support so that the Council may carry out its function
to provide independent advice and recommendations to the agency.
Priorities:
1. Provide
support and technical assistance to ensure the Council is composed of the
members necessary to comply with federal law.
2.
Provide support to assist with the
scheduling and documentation of regular Council meetings and related
activities.
3. Provide
support and technical assistance to ensure the Council is knowledgeable about
the Center, the community and the needs of individuals with serious mental
illness.
4. Provide
support and technical assistance to ensure the Council is able to provide
independent advice and recommendations to the agency about our annual PAIMI
priorities.
5. Provide
support and technical assistance so that the Council can timely complete its
section of the annual Program Performance Report.
Protection and
Advocacy for Persons with Developmental Disabilities - PADD
The Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Developmental
Disabilities (PADD) program was created
by the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of
1975. The Arizona Center
for Disability Law (Center) is required by the Act to pursue legal,
administrative and other appropriate remedies to protect and advocate for the
rights of individuals with developmental disabilities under federal and state
laws. The U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services Administration on Developmental Disabilities administers the
PADD program.
The following objectives and priorities will be followed by
the Center in conducting our PADD activities in fiscal year 2008.
OBJECTIVE #1: Reduce
the incidence of abuse and neglect of individuals with developmental
disabilities by improving the quality of investigations of abuse and neglect
conducted by agencies that serve individuals with developmental disabilities
and by conducting investigations of abuse and neglect allegations.
Description: Individuals
with developmental disabilities have a right to be free from abuse and
neglect. The quality of the agency
investigations into allegations of abuse and neglect has a direct impact on the
incidence of abuse and neglect.
Priorities:
1. Respond
to reports of specific instances of abuse or neglect where death or serious
injury has occurred and report in writing to the appropriate agency concerning
recommendations for changes in policy, practices and delivery of services.
2. Provide
timely and accurate information and referral and advice to individuals with
developmental disabilities and their family members so that they may act to notify
the proper authorities and seek redress for any injuries suffered.
3. Publish
a new self-advocacy guide on abuse and neglect in the DD system.
OBJECTIVE #2: Ensure
access to comprehensive and appropriate healthcare services for individuals
with disabilities who are beneficiaries of Medicaid and/or Medicare.
Description:
For many individuals
with disabilities who are beneficiaries of Medicaid and/or Medicare, access to
appropriate healthcare services is often the key to living independently at
home and in their communities. When
seeking healthcare services, individuals with disabilities are often denied
critical healthcare services that allow them to be as healthy and independent
as possible.
Priorities:
1. Pursue systemic changes through
litigation, issuing commentary on proposed administrative rules and policy
changes and supporting legislative initiatives that increase access to
medically necessary services for individuals with developmental disabilities.
2 Provide advocacy and legal services to
challenge systemic denials of healthcare services by AHCCCS and/or its
contractors which subject individuals with disabilities to health risks and
potential loss of independence.
3. Conduct outreach activities to train
individuals with disabilities and advocates in the various steps involved in
accessing publicly funded health care services, including how to initiate
requests for medically necessary services and how to challenge denials of
requested services.
4.
Provide timely and accurate
information and advice to individuals and their guardians on AHCCCS and
referral to appropriate resources.
OBJECTIVE #3: Expand
access to appropriate and high quality special education services in the least restrictive
environment for students with developmental disabilities.
Description: The
overwhelming majority of children with disabilities are capable of
participating in a regular education environment with adaptations or
modifications, provided that they receive quality educational programs to meet
their individualized needs. Through this objective, the Center is attempting to
ensure that children with disabilities truly benefit from special education and
related services and have real opportunities for independence, productivity and
access to general curriculum.
Priorities:
1. Provide advocacy and legal services to
challenge the actions of local educational agencies that result in a pervasive,
ongoing, or systemic failure to provide appropriate related services for
children with disabilities.
2. Provide
advocacy and legal services to children with disabilities who have received
inadequate or inappropriate behavioral interventions leading to a denial of a
free appropriate public education.
3. Provide advocacy and legal services to
pursue access to the general curriculum for children with disabilities who are
seeking more inclusive educational settings with appropriate aids,
supplementary services or assistive technology.
4. Provide
advocacy and legal services to challenge the actions of local educational
agencies in which there have been significant denials of
procedural rights or substantive benefits regarding children with severe or
multiple disabilities leading to the denial of a free appropriate public
education such as lack of total progress, complete denial of services, or total
absence of procedural rights.
5. Provide advocacy and legal services to
students with disabilities of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds to receive
a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment based
upon an accurate and comprehensive evaluation and classification process.
6. Provide advocacy and legal services to
advocate for the use of peer-reviewed, scientifically based methodologies and
best practices in the education of students with severe or multiple
disabilities.
7. Conduct
trainings on the educational rights of children with disabilities.
8. Provide timely
and accurate information and advice to families and students on special
education issues and referral to appropriate advocacy resources.
OBJECTIVE
#4: To reduce the discriminatory barriers which
prevent qualified people with developmental disabilities from being hired,
obtaining reasonable accommodations and working in a workplace free of unlawful
harassment, retaliation and intimidation.
Description: People
with disabilities continue to face barriers to employment, including but not
limited to physical obstacles in the workplace, communication barriers,
discriminatory policies and procedures and attitudinal barriers based on
stereotypes, misconceptions and fears.
This objective addresses the discrimination caused by these barriers by
providing advocacy and legal services in order to promote: (1)
Non-discriminatory hiring procedures, (2) the provision of reasonable
accommodations to employees and job applicants, (3) non-discriminatory policies
and procedures, and (4) the prevention and redress of unlawful harassment,
retaliation, intimidation and termination.
Priorities:
1. Provide
legal advocacy services to advocate for effective and reasonable accommodations
when necessary for people with developmental disabilities to have an equal
opportunity in the hiring process, to be able to perform their jobs, and to
receive the benefits and privileges of employment and the implementation of
employer lawful reasonable accommodation policies.
2. Provide
legal advocacy services to oppose hiring and recruitment procedures that do not
create an equal opportunity for people with developmental disabilities to
apply, be considered for employment and to pass lawful employment entrance
medical examinations.
3. Provide
legal advocacy services to oppose unlawful disability harassment, retaliation
or intimidation and employer policies and procedures that do not prevent
disability‑related harassment and address it with effective corrective
action.
4. Provide legal advocacy services to
challenge unlawful withdrawal of job offers and job termination of people with
disabilities based on stereotypes and myths about disabilities or fears about
costs to employer-sponsored health insurance.
5. Provide
information and training about employment rights protected under federal and
state law.
6. Provide timely and accurate information and
referral and advice to individuals.
OBJECTIVE
#5: Promote equal opportunity to housing
under the fair housing act for people with developmental disabilities. Bring about this awareness through trainings,
dissemination of written information, information and referral services, short
term and technical assistance, and litigation, where appropriate.
Description: People
with disabilities continue to face barriers to equal opportunity in
housing. Housing providers discriminate
against people with disabilities by failing to provide reasonable
accommodations and physically accessible housing and by failing to reasonably
modify discriminatory policies and practices.
Housing providers also discriminate by including discriminatory terms
and conditions in housing agreements.
Municipalities discriminate against people with disabilities by
continuing to enforce exclusionary zoning practices. This objective seeks to: address those
discriminatory practices which decrease the amount of available housing for
people with disabilities, and (2) ensure that these individuals and their housing
providers are aware of the FHA.
Priorities:
1. Provide
information and training about rights protected by the FHA and how to enforce
them.
2. Provide
timely and accurate information and referral and advice to individuals about
their rights under the FHA.
OBJECTIVE
#6: Increase
access by persons with developmental disabilities to services, programs, and
facilities open to the public.
Description: Ensure
that health care providers not refuse treatment on the basis of disability,
health care providers provide auxiliary aids and services when needed for
effective communication, and governmental entities and public accommodations
remove physical barriers to accessibility and make reasonable modifications in
policies to avoid discrimination.
Priorities:
1. Provide
advocacy and legal services to challenge discrimination by health care
providers who refuse to treat individuals based on their disability or refuse
to provide auxiliary aids for individuals seeking treatment pursuant to case
selection criteria.
2. Provide
advocacy and legal services to challenge governmental policies that impede
access for a large number of people with developmental disabilities to
essential services or programs.
3. Litigate
selected cases which present systemic issues and where litigation promises to be
far‑reaching and have high‑impact.
4. Provide training to individuals on their
rights under federal and state law.
5. Provide timely and accurate information and
referral and advice to individuals.
OBJECTIVE
#7: Collaboration with the ADD Network.
Description: The
Arizona Center
for Disability Law, the Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Sonoran University Centers
for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities and the Northern Arizona
University Institute for Human Development are partner organizations
that, together, form the Arizona Developmental Disabilities Network. The four
organizations are authorized under the Developmental Disabilities Assistance
and Bill of Rights Act (Public Law 106-402) and receive funding from the United
States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Developmental
Disabilities.
The Arizona Developmental Disabilities Network partners work collectively and
collaboratively to foster the independence, advocacy and community integration
of individuals with developmental disabilities.
Priorities:
1. Participate on the Advisory Councils for
the Institute for Human Development, the Council for the Governor’s Council on Developmental
Disabilities, the Sonoran UCEDD and the Developmental Disabilities Advisory
Council.
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