Washington, D.C. – In a series of critical meetings this week, The Arc will take important steps in urging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to address the caregiver crisis facing millions of families. Nancy Murray, President of The Arc of Greater Pittsburgh at ACHIEVA, and James Cheely, President of The Arc of Barren County, Kentucky serve on the newly-formed RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council. The Council meets for the first time on Wednesday, August 28 and Thursday, August 29 in Washington, D.C. to develop recommendations to HHS Secretary Alex Azar.

Murray, who is co-chair of the Council, and Cheely bring a deep personal and professional understanding of the caregiver crisis for families and people with intellectual and development disabilities (IDD). Murray is the mother of two adult children with Down syndrome and was a caregiver to both of her aging parents. Cheely has a son with IDD. He is also a former president of The Arc of Kentucky.

“The RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council has been charged with a huge task.  I am honored and excited to be a part of it,” said Cheely. “I am looking forward to representing families of The Arc in these discussions.”

Murray and Cheely are available to speak about the growing national caregiving crisis and efforts to alleviate it.

“I am honored to be selected to be a member of the new Family Caregiving Advisory Council and to create awareness of the vital role that family caregivers play in the United States. At one time or another, many, if not most Americans, become a caregiver for an elderly parent, child with a disability, or spouse with a disability or illness,” said Murray. “We need to increase and strengthen the resources and supports for family caregivers. One possible solution to help ease the crisis is a federal paid leave policy.”

Less than half of caregivers reported having paid leave in The Arc’s Family & Individual Needs for Disability Supports (FINDS) 2017 Survey. The survey reflects the true extent of the crisis and the need for change.

The Council was established by the RAISE Family Caregivers Act enacted last year to help HHS address the caregiver crisis for family members and persons with IDD, seniors, veterans, and others. Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Michael Bennet of Colorado were original sponsors of the legislation. Florida Rep. Kathy Castor and New York Rep. Elise Stefanik originally sponsored the House version of the bill.

The Arc advocates for and serves people wit­­h intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including Down syndrome, autism, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, cerebral palsy and other diagnoses. The Arc has a network of over 600 chapters across the country promoting and protecting the human rights of people with IDD and actively supporting their full inclusion and participation in the community throughout their lifetimes and without regard to diagnosis.

Editor’s Note: The Arc is not an acronym; always refer to us as The Arc, not The ARC and never ARC. The Arc should be considered as a title or a phrase.

Washington, DC – On July 30, The Arc’s staff traveled to Walmart’s corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas to deliver a disability inclusion training to members of its leadership and staff. Nearly 300 participants, both in-person and virtual, took part in the session which provided an introduction to the history of the disability rights movement in the United States and examined some of the core issues affecting today’s disability community.

The training is the first of two that The Arc’s national employment initiative, The Arc@Work, will be conducting over the coming months. The next step will be to develop an eLearning training module that will span multiple topics related to disability, inclusion and employment. This training module will be made available to the staff at corporate headquarters as well as all of Walmart’s US-based associates.

“The Arc is a leading voice in the disability community, advocating for and implementing change for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities across the lifespan. The Arc is honored to be bringing nearly 70 years of knowledge and expertise in the disability rights field to Walmart and its employees. Our trainings will allow Walmart to learn more about the disability community and further their understanding of how fostering employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities is the right thing to do, and good for business,” said Jonathan Lucus, Senior Director, Workforce Strategy, The Arc.

The Arc@Work supports corporate clients in meeting their diversity and inclusion goals, from recruiting qualified job candidates with disabilities, to conducting staff and management disability awareness trainings, to creating disability-inclusive workspaces.

Employment rates for people with disabilities – especially people with intellectual and developmental disabilities – are critically low compared to people without disabilities. The US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2015) estimates that people with any disability or a cognitive disability are employed at much lower rates (34.3% and 24.8% respectively) than those without disabilities (73.6%)¹. Additionally, the National Core Indicators Survey of 2015-2016 reported that 19% of people with IDD in the workforce reported having a paid job in the community².

The Arc advocates for and serves people wit­­h intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including Down syndrome, autism, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, cerebral palsy and other diagnoses. The Arc has a network of over 600 chapters across the country promoting and protecting the human rights of people with IDD and actively supporting their full inclusion and participation in the community throughout their lifetimes and without regard to diagnosis.

Editor’s Note: The Arc is not an acronym; always refer to us as The Arc, not The ARC and never ARC. The Arc should be considered as a title or a phrase.

Washington, DC – The Arc, the nation’s largest civil rights organization for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), which was founded by parents and family members who rejected institutions and fought for decades to close them, released the following statement on President Trump’s comments about creating new institutions for people with mental health needs.

“The Arc and our constituents are all too familiar with calls to reopen the institutions of the past, where people with all different disabilities were imprisoned against their wills and subject to horrific torture and abuse. For nearly 70 years, The Arc has focused on advocating for deinstitutionalization to ensure that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and other disabilities, can live meaningful, independent lives in the communities of their choice among their families and peers, with accompanying supports and services.

“We have spent decades building the community services we need and we still have so far to go to ensure that people with all disabilities, but especially those with dual diagnoses of IDD and mental illness, have access to the critical services they require to support community living.

“People with IDD and mental illness are far more likely to be victims of violent crime than perpetrators of it. The misguided idea that mental illness causes violence is inaccurate, harmful, and discriminatory to the disability community.

“Re-institutionalization would bring people with disabilities back into the dark ages of isolation and segregation. Nearly 30 years after the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act and its ‘integration mandate’, we have come so far. Yet 37 states still have institutions, and these comments impede our progress. Clearly, we have more work to do, and encourage people to join our efforts to build a world where people with disabilities do not face this harmful stereotyping,” said Peter Berns, CEO, The Arc.

The Arc advocates for and serves people wit­­h intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including Down syndrome, autism, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, cerebral palsy and other diagnoses. The Arc has a network of over 600 chapters across the country promoting and protecting the human rights of people with IDD and actively supporting their full inclusion and participation in the community throughout their lifetimes and without regard to diagnosis.

Editor’s Note: The Arc is not an acronym; always refer to us as The Arc, not The ARC and never ARC. The Arc should be considered as a title or a phrase.