ANCOR and Coalition Maintain Pressure on Congressional Leaders for Additional COVID-19 Relief for Medicaid Programs

As part of its coalition work with national disability provider organizations, ANCOR joined a group letter to congressional leadership making “yet another plea for additional funding for disability service providers who right now are doing the work to keep their businesses open and to provide services to people with significant disabilities.” As the letter further elaborates:

“Let us look for a moment at what providers have done: many had to close their brick and mortar businesses in March, but they did not shut down. They reconfigured, found ways to provide virtual services, supported employment, and personal services, scoured the country for personal protective equipment (we know, because we did everything we could to help), and tried to keep people engaged. Many provided services that will never be reimbursed just to keep people with disabilities and staff engaged. This has been a difficult time for America and a particularly difficult time for people with disabilities with complex medical conditions who are in the high-risk category for the Coronavirus. Providers understand how important it is to keep people engaged. Now, as providers are trying to reopen to provide more in-person services, they are taking on the expense of increased PPE and cleaning supplies to keep people safe.

Please help the most vulnerable in our society and the disability service providers on which they rely by doing the right thing now.”

The letter concludes by listing six provisions Congress could pass to strengthen Medicaid supports during the pandemic, including a 14-percent increase in the Medicaid Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) rate.