HM 1349

1	House Memorial
2	A memorial to the Congress of the United States, urging
3	Congress to support the opportunity to provide increased
4	access to community-based services for individuals with
5	developmental disabilities.
6
7	WHEREAS, federal and state financial assistance is provided
8	for services under the Medicaid program for individuals with
9	developmental disabilities, and
10	WHEREAS, community-based services are a valuable cost-
11	effective alternative to institutional care because such
12	services benefit both the individual receiving the services and
13	the federal and state programs that fund the services, and
14	WHEREAS, a study by the National Conference of State
15	Legislatures and other studies document that individuals with
16	developmental disabilities who receive services in their homes
17	or other community settings experience improved outcomes,
18	quality of care, and quality of life in contrast to individuals
19	with developmental disabilities who receive care in
20	institutional settings, and
21	WHEREAS, publicly funded programs that cover community-
22	based services for individuals with developmental disabilities
23	are limited, and
24	WHEREAS, federal and state programs provide limited support
25	for community-based services that serve as an alternative to
26	institutional care for individuals with developmental
27	disabilities, and
28	WHEREAS, the years after a student with a developmental
29	disability leaves the educational system are critical for
30	learning and transition, and
31	WHEREAS, the need to allow the opportunity to provide
32	increased access to community-based services at the discretion
33	of the developmentally disabled individual's family is
34	recognized, and
35	WHEREAS, access to community-based services, regardless of
36	a family's income, insurance coverage, or Medicaid eligibility,
37	is recognized as essential in improving the quality of life for
38	individuals with developmental disabilities, NOW, THEREFORE,
39
40	Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
41
42	That the Congress of the United States is urged to:
43	(1)  Support the "Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of
44	2009" or the "ABLE Act of 2009," as reflected in H.R. 1205 and
45	S. 493; and
46	(2)  Support ABLE accounts for individuals with
47	developmental disabilities to assist them in paying certain
48	expenses, including expenses for education, housing,
49	transportation, employment support, medical care, and certain
50	life necessities.
51	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
52	dispatched to the President of the United States, to the
53	President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the
54	United States House of Representatives, and to each member of
55	the Florida delegation to the United States Congress.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.