UI students and Moscow community members will have the opportunity to learn more about new developments in Medicaid at a seminar celebrating Disability Advocacy Day on Oct. 26, at Gritman Medical Center.
The seminar will consist of disability advocacy workshops conducted by the Consortium for Idahoans with Disabilities and Medicaid Matters.
The workshops will include a panel of community members with disabilities who will talk about getting involved in the Idaho legislature, as well as seminars on new Medicaid developments said Christine Pisani, executive director of the Idaho Council on Developmental Disabilities. Pisani also took the lead on coordinating Disability Advocacy Day.
“We want to teach how easy it is to be a citizen involved in Idaho legislature,” Pisani said.
The Moscow disability advocacy workshop is part of a larger statewide campaign that presents the workshops in seven other locations around Idaho, which is the most that have ever been coordinated in the history of Disability Advocacy Day.
Each workshop is free of charge and begins at 9 a.m. The workshops will end at 2:30 p.m.
Pisani said Disability Advocacy Day started in Idaho in 2010 due to significant cuts to Medicaid and the economy bottoming out.
“This is also the first year we’re offering Spanish translation during the workshops,” Pisani said.
Other points that will be specifically touched on will be managed care for behavioral health, substance abuse and workshops for individuals receiving both Medicaid and Medicare. Also, there will be focus on informing attendees on children’s Medicaid developmental disability services, and other forms of disability advocacy.
George Wood can be reached at [email protected]