STATE

The legislature recently passed a budget adjustment act during the short session. The short session is designed to make adjustments to the previous long session budget.  The July 2021-July 2023 two-year budget that passed during the long session included the additional waiver slots, increased wages for direct support professionals, and some adjustments to the funding for special education. The budget adjustment was not expected to include any significant new funding specifically for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). 

Some items related to I/DD Included in the budget adjustment act were:

• Some changes to the Medicaid program that are designed to improve access to services as we move toward implementation of the Tailored Plan. Many people with I/DD will have their care managed under the Tailored Plan. 
• Children in the NC Health Choice program will move to regular Medicaid. This will give these children access to more Medicaid state plan services. This includes services that are covered under Early Periodic Screening Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) and Research Based Behavioral Health Treatments (RBBHT) for those on the autism spectrum.
• Adjustments to teacher salaries and a new teacher bonus program. 

From a broader perspective, $1.84 billion has been earmarked for health and human services priorities for this fiscal year. That is an increase of less than $42 million from what was originally set aside for health and human services priorities in the two-year budget that was approved last year. While this sounds like a large amount, it is only a 2.3 percent increase from the initial number. Many advocates are pointing out that this is much less than the national inflation rate of approximately eight percent.   

There was hope that Medicaid expansion would be included in the budget adjustment. During the short session, the Senate passed Expanding Access to Healthcare and the House passed the Rural Health Care and Savings Act. While both propose to give healthcare coverage to more people in North Carolina who do not qualify for coverage on the healthcare marketplace, there were other differences that could not be resolved between the Senate and House.

The budget process moves to the Governor after approval from the legislature. The Governor will either sign the budget (within 10 days), veto the budget or let it become law without his signature. Lawmakers will likely stay in session to address any possible veto overrides and then return to handling interim committee meetings and any special sessions later in the year.  

Plain Language: Legislators met for a short session. They made some small changes to the budget. We were hoping that they would increase the number of people in North Carolina who can get healthcare through Medicaid. This could help people with disabilities. They were not able to agree on how to do this. 

FEDERAL

SSI Asset Increase Legislation

Current Supplemental Security Income (SSI) rules require that someone receiving SSI can only have $2,000 in countable assets. Married couples can only have $3,000. The SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act [S.4102] raises the SSI asset limit to $10,000 for individuals and $20,000 for couples. The legislation also increases those numbers every year based on inflation. In June, Senators Wyden (D-OR), Cassidy (R-LA), Casey (D-PA), Scott (R-SC), Hassan (D-NH), and Collins (R-ME) joined the legislation.

Plain Language: Some Senators are working to make it easier for people with disabilities to save money without losing their benefits. In June, more Senators joined to help with this. 

ABLE Age Adjustment Act

On Wednesday June 22, 2022, the Senate Finance Committee met to mark up the Enhancing American Retirement Now Act (EARN Act), which is a part of the larger retirement reform bill (SECURE 2.0). The ABLE Age Adjustment Act was included in the EARN Act as part of the mark-up. The ABLE Age Adjustment Act will increase the age eligibility for ABLE accounts from 26 to 46, giving millions of people with disabilities the chance to save money without losing eligibility for federal benefits. ABLE accounts are tax-free savings accounts for people with disabilities to save money, while not disqualifying them from federal benefits like Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid. The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) signed on to this Statement for the Record from the Consortium for Constituents with Disabilities.

Plain Language: ABLE accounts are savings accounts for people who develop their disability before the age of 26, and they allow people to save money without risking losing federal benefits such as Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid. The Able Age Adjustment Act would increase the age of eligibility to 46, giving more people access to these accounts. The Senate Finance Committee is working on this. 

Senate HELP Committee Passes Bill Banning the Use of Electrical Stimulation Devices

On June 14, 2022, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Landmark Advancements Act of 2022 (FDASLA Act) (S. 4348). The bill was passed with the inclusion of an amendment from Senator Murphy (D-CT) that would prohibit the use of electrical stimulation devices that are used to limit a person’s aggressive or self-injurious behavior at one school in Massachusetts.

Plain Language

The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed a bill that bans the use of shock devices that are used to control behavior in people with disabilities. Congress is one step closer to banning the use of electrical stimulation devices used to control behavior. They are currently used at one school in Massachusetts.