Journal of Disability Policy Studies

Although some legal scholars argue that the progression of Congressional intent in laws for children with disabilities reflects a mission to raise the educational standards and their achievement levels, other insist that many students are not realizing equal educational opportunity and not receiving educational benefit. This article proposes that the alignment of the Individuals with disabilities Education Act (IDEA) with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act may implicate a student’s right to a free, appropriate public education (FAPE) and cautions against complacency with mere access to the general curriculum and a satisfaction with aggregate accountability of outcome. An analysis of litigation from circuit courts is presented to confirm individual benefit as the legal standard of appropriateness, and the duties of IEP teams to monitoring individual progress on IEP goals are defined. Two recommendations for the reauthorization of both the NCLB Act and the IDEA are proposed.

The effects of EU candidacy and accession on disability rights in education and employment are examined in two new member and two candidate countries. The development of EU disability policy is also discussed, especially as EU policy impacts reforms in Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Analysis is based on the existing literature and personal communication with scholars and activists in the countries of inquiry. Although considerable progress has been made in antidiscrimination legislation in the four countries, a lack of political will and inadequate financing means that real on-the-ground progress in advancing disability rights is limited. The article concludes with recommendations for how the EU and its administrative bodies and members of disability communities in the four countries can better advance disability rights in education and employment as part of the accession process.

This study examines the effectiveness of Washington State’s Medicaid Buy-In (MBI) program—Healthcare for Workers With Disabilities (HWD)—which gives workers with disabilities who earn too much for conventional Medicaid the opportunity to purchase full Medicaid coverage by paying a monthly premium based on a sliding income scale. The authors compare HWD enrollees who recently had conventional Medicaid coverage to a statistically matched group of individuals who had conventional Medicaid coverage in recent history and at baseline. Their findings suggest that MBI in Washington State is encouraging work, increasing earnings, and decreasing reliance on food stamps while providing medical coverage to a vulnerable population for whom continuous health insurance is particularly important.

The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 has expanded employment opportunities of numerous persons with disabilities, although its effect on employment for disabled individuals has been mixed. With the strong correlation between disability and obesity, the ADA has likely had spillover effects through several court cases related to disability and obesity. The authors create a data set that combines state-level data on cases pertaining to the ADA with an individual-level health data set representative of the U.S. population: the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 1993–2007. Controlling for state-level unemployment rates, the authors find little effect of these state-level disability policies on the probability of employment and the probability of being a student. Further analysis reveals that the occurrence of the court cases increases the probability that obese individuals report having a disability, perhaps paving the path for the creation of an environment in which obese individuals with disabilities are able to collect disability benefits.

The study examined the relationship between work disability and mortgage default in the latest economic downturn in the United States and further assessed the associations of work disability and mortgage default with life satisfaction. Work disability was measured by self-reported health-related work limitations. Mortgage default was defined as delaying home mortgage payment for more than 30 days in the study. The data were obtained from the 2007 and 2009 Panel Study of Income Dynamics, and logistic regression was used to test research questions. Of the 2,361 homeowners who had a mortgage, nearly 6% had mortgage default in 2009, and 14.5% of householders or their spouses had work disabilities in 2007. The disability group was significantly more likely than the non-disability group to have mortgage default, AOR = 1.80, 95% CI = (1.02, 3.16). Both work disability and mortgage default had significant and negative associations with life satisfaction. Results suggest that mortgage assistance services should be provided for individuals with work disabilities and their families to prevent housing distress and improve quality of life.

Self-directed supports are a program or service option in which individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), their families, and their allies directly manage their supports. This study explores the perspectives of county-level administrators in the implementation of one state’s self-directed support option for people with IDD. Perspectives of local-level administrators are important as they have key leadership roles concerning policy, program implementation, and program accountability. As the prevalence of self-directed supports increases, it is important to understand both the successes and challenges faced by local administrators as they implement this service option. A qualitative research methodology was used for this study, following a grounded theory analytic approach. In-depth semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with county directors of Developmental Disability Services as the primary source of data for this study. Analysis of the semi-structured interviews with the county-level administrators and staff revealed both successes and challenges with the self-directed waiver option. Many county administrators cited changes in professional philosophy, improved quality of life, higher staff quality, and lower costs as major sucof the self-directed waiver option. Challenges of the self-directed waiver option consisted of need for clear policy guidelines, program changes, and monitoring of outcomes. The results of this study illuminate both the successes and chalof self-directed service implementation for individuals with IDD from the perspectives of the local adminwho are responsible for the direct management of programs for individuals with IDD. This research presents important implications for the design, implementation, and modification of future self-directed initiatives.