The Role of P&As During COVID-19

September 02, 2020

1:00pm-2:30pm EST

In the quest to offer person-centered services and supports, providers often find themselves negotiating the appropriate balance between individual rights and the common good. The precautionary measures to protect the people we support, our workforce, our families, and our communities against COVID-19 infections has brought this tightrope walk into sharp relief.

Team members from the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN), the non-profit membership association for the federally-mandated protection and advocacy (P&A) network, will discuss how the nation’s largest provider of legal advocacy services for people with disabilities is addressing civil rights and protections during the pandemic.

NDRN will provide an overview of the scope of the work of P&As to protect the rights of people with disabilities while keeping them safe, with a specific focus on the impact of COVID-19 on representative payee monitoring, facility monitoring and investigations, and activities related to health care, community reopening strategies, and engaging people with disabilities.

A recording will be made available for registrants.

This is an exclusive event for ANCOR members only.

Presenters

Curt Decker has been affiliated with NDRN since its inception in 1982. As Executive Director of the nation’s largest non-governmental enforcer of disability rights, Curt oversees all activities related to training and technical assistance, membership services, and legislative advocacy. Before founding NDRN with other P&A Directors, Curt served as Director of the Maryland P&A, Disability Rights Maryland. Curt also served as Director of the H.E.L.P. Resource Project for Abused and Neglected Children and was a VISTA worker prior to working as a senior attorney for Baltimore Legal Aid Bureau.

Philip Fornaci provides training and technical assistance on adult criminal justice issues for persons with disabilities as well as on abuse or neglect of persons with disabilities who reside in institutional settings. Prior to joining NDRN in March 2020, Philip spent more than twelve years as an advocate and litigator in Washington, DC on behalf of prisoners and formerly incarcerated people. He developed expertise around prison conditions, as well as around access to medical care and parole decision-making, with a specialized focus on issues affecting prisoners with disabilities. Previously, Philip served as the Executive Director for the Maryland P&A, now called Disability Rights Maryland.

David Hutt oversees the NDRN Legal Services Unit which works on numerous legal issues impacting the Protection and Advocacy System and the rights of persons with disabilities. Prior to his current role, David provided training and technical assistance on P&A access authority, standing, abuse and neglect investigations and monitoring, human trafficking, guardianship and supported decision making, and conducted the employment law training for the Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security program. David was involved in the development of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; the NCD reports on the enforcement of disability rights law by federal agencies; and the first iteration of the Representative Payee Review Project.

Danielle Whetton began her career in disability rights issues as a fellow for Mental Health America-Los Angeles in 2011. She spent the first portion of her career working as a case manager in Los Angeles, CA, specializing in mental health and affordable housing. Danielle earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration at the University of Washington. During her graduate program, Danielle served on the PAIMI advisory council for the Washington P&A, Disability Rights Washington (DRW). She integrated her prior work experience with DRW’s policy priorities to lead change in Washington state.