People with disabilities have long been underrepresented or excluded from the workforce based on employers’ low expectations and prejudiced bias about abilities. As CEO of an Arizona-based organization that promotes opportunity and inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities, I can tell you that things are looking up, but there is still more to do.

This important moment for the disability community, which represents a huge part of our nation’s population but whose needs have been ignored for decades. It’s urgent that the Senate passes this bill. We must push forward for the many people who are still waiting for care. 

Anyone can become disabled at any point in their life. Would you want your mom or daughter to be without access to the daily care they need? I hope that sharing our family’s story will help people understand the need for investing in home health care.

In the wake of horror at Hacienda HealthCare, there is no shortage of ideas for how to prevent abuse in the disability community. But what action can and will actually be taken at the state Legislature this year is not yet clear.

We have a lot of work to do to prevent sexual abuse of our most vulnerable. Only with greater awareness and resources can these heartbreaking incidents be stopped. The time to act is now.

The only reason I am able to have such a full life is Medicaid. Medicaid provides vital services to people with disabilities through a state-federal partnership that finances coverage for those who qualify. The program has successfully provided care to the most vulnerable Americans for the past 50 years.

Advocates for the disability community say the governor’s budget proposal is nearly $50 million short of what disability service providers need to keep up with Arizona’s minimum wage increase next year.

A state audit found the state’s Vocational Rehabilitation program spends significantly more per person than similar programs in other states.

Justin Dart, the man often considered the father of the Americans with Disabilities Act, famously and repeatedly said: “Vote as if your life depends on it – because it DOES!” For people with disabilities, this is especially true. Every policy decision from employment, to housing and transportation, to funding of programs like CHIP, Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid are influenced by whom we elect.

An attorney for a major Arizona taxi firm is defending the $10 additional fee charged for those who want a van, saying that does not discriminate against those with disabilities.