VOR Comments to Senate HELP Committee on Workforce Crisis
On February 16, 2023, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) Committee held its first hearing on the health care workforce crisis. The meeting focused on the shortage of doctors and nurses, especially the imprnding retirement of most of the nursing force in the years ahead and the current/recent lack of enrollees in nursing schools. Only one brief mention was made of the crisis in the workforce of Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) that has been shutting down care services systems for people with I/DD and autism.
On March 20, 2023, VOR submitted comments to the Senate HELP Committee, asking them to expand the scope of their investigations to include this essential workforce and take action to this critical shortage of caregivers.
Please download (and share) VOR's comments here
HCBS Settings Rule - Full Implementation by March 17, 2023
New requirements in the Home and Community Based Services Settings Rule are sceduled to be fully implemented by March 17, 2023. For more information on the regulatory changes and the rights of HCBS Waiver participants and their families, please download the CMS HCBS Settings Rule document from CMS here.
VOR Comments to ACL Proposal Supporting Family Caregivers
VOR has submitted comments to the Administration for Community Living (ACL) on its proposal supporting family caregivers.
VOR Comments to the Republican Caucus in the House Energy & Commerce Committee
The Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee submitted a policy statement recently and asked for the public to submit comments. VOR found several points of agreement, and several policies that we believe should be expanded to ensure that they cover the needs of the entire community of people with I/DD, not only those who receive waiver services or participate in competitive integrated employment.
To view the E&C Republicans' policy statement, click here.
To view VOR's comments, please click here.
To view our supplementary materials, click on the links below.
VOR's Public Testimony to the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID)
The President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities is holding the first public meeting of its new term on July 28, 2022.
VOR has submitted public testimony to the committee, which may be downloaded here.
