News

Follow up Information Re: CDR Community Forum Tonight!

A few more tidbits which may or may not influence your decision whether or not to attend the community forum this evening...thanks to Aaron Gorelick for bringing this to my attention.

1. The "lead up":
   
   If anyone is going to the CDR open forum scheduled Monday night, and even if you are not - I thought you might want to see this background info. BTW- I think CDR also has a contract for SSPs for deaf blind folks. i don't know if that is through Monroe County, medicaid, or completely separate.
   
   Here are some links to the story about the county ending its contract with CDR: "Monroe County on Thursday announced it was ending its contract with the Center for Disability Rights to administer a program that allowed Medicaid-eligible participants to hire their own home health attendants." D&C
   www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=20107230337
   
   CDR denies charges: "The Center for Disability Rights this morning called “absolutely false” allegations by Monroe County that CDR’s personal attendant program was guilty of widespread neglect." D&C
   www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2010100723009
   
   More info:
   www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=20107240327
2. Part II:
   
   From: Chris Hilderbrant
   Sent: Monday, July 26, 2010 9:10 AM
   Subject: The next episode

   Hi All,
   
   Wow, so much to say and so little time with which to say it.
   
   First – thanks to everyone that came out for the ADA Gala Friday night. I think a great time was had by all! Special thanks to Amy Cochrane for planning about 98% of that event for me! And congratulations to Norita Darling for being selected as this year’s Busy “Bea” Award Winner.
   
   Secondly – Thanks to everyone who spent time over the weekend supporting our work to fight back against Monroe County ’s efforts to eliminate CDR’s CDPAS. Thanks to the efforts, we are much more prepared than we were just a day ago.
   
   Thirdly – As you probably saw in Susan’s email earlier, plans for the ADA Forum tonight have evolved. We’re still having the forum as planned. It’s still open to ALL types of disability issues. MANY of our angry consumers and attendants will be speaking out about Monroe County ’s attack on CDR. AFTER the forum, we’ll be marching from the library to the County Office Building . After rallying there, a group is planning on staying the night… and the next day… and the next night… until Maggie Brooks agrees to meet with us and resume CDR’s CDPAS contract. Details will emerge, but the campers will need your support – physically and emotionally.
   
   Fourthly (Is that really a word?) – I’m attaching our response to the allegations contained in Commissioner Reed’s letter. Monroe County never sent us that letter, but we were able to obtain it through a friend in the media. I think it’s obvious that their allegations are baseless and that this amounts to little more than a witch hunt.
   
   Thanks to everyone for your efforts during this crisis. I’ve never seen us all more unified in mind and purpose.
   
   Yours,
   
   Chris

3. And furthermore:
   
   From: Dean DeRusso
   Sent: Mon, July 26, 2010 11:48:41 AM
   Subject: FW: Why we keep at it

   Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks decided to cut the PCA Service of Center for Disability Rights (CDR) because of 12 people’s complaints. But, CDR has yet been given the complaint and is not aware of it.
   
   Currently, the deaf and disabled clients interview their PCA and it is their decision to decide whenever they want to hire or fire the person. CDR empowers them to be sure that they pick who they want. Now, the County is forcing these people into a nursing home based PCA service where they might not get the choice to hire whoever they want as CDR did.
   
   Lets put it this way. A deaf disabled person is being pushed into a program that has a staff who will be assigned by the agency just because the agency did not have a signing staff. Image what it is like whenever deaf people have to deal with a staff that they are not comfortable with where only the agency can hire or fire the person. And, even being given to a profit organization as CDR is the only non-profit organization giving over 300 peoples this opportunity. And the county shut this program out and gave them only 10 days.