RFWiA members operate work centers and are the largest provider of community employment opportunities for people with disabilities in Wisconsin. This dual-purpose approach provides a choice for those who are not able, or do not want, to work at private businesses. There are advocates who are working to remove this choice from consumers, parents, and guardians, advocates who believe people must work in the community, and if they cannot, or if the job opportunities are not available, then folks should stay home, or get involved in day services of some type and not be allowed the choice to be employed at a work center.

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Tune into the Wisconsin Family Care Reform channel on YouTube for important information about consumer rights and how to use them. Brought to you by Rehabilitation for Wisconsin in Action featuring disability Attorney Robert (Rock) Theine Pledl and C. Thomas Cook, Executive Director, Rehabilitation for Wisconsin in Action.

The Journal Sentinel published an in-depth article about the problems plaguing consumers and sub-contractors under the new Mediciad transportation company Logisticare. Not only are people with disabilities and the frail elderly missing important medical appointments, but Logisticare is reimbursing its transportation sub-contractors at such a below-market rate that jobs are being eliminated.

"You're reimbursing these companies at such a low rate. You can't pay people a living wage. This is all supposed to be about small businesses setting up the economy. It seems the only company making money is LogistiCare. I really do think that somehow, some way, consumers are the ones that are suffering," said a transportation manager for the Milwaukee provider, who spoke on condition of anonymity because his job was threatened and he didn't want to risk losing other contracts.

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Show your support throughout the year for businesses and organizations that employ people with disabilities. These important employment opportunities help drive Wisconsin’s economic growth in cities and rural areas alike, and allow people to live as independently as possible!

Here is a sampling of RFWiA members and social entrepreneurs to get you started:

• Best Events Catering and Special Events Production. A premier caterer in the Wisconsin and Illinois state line area providing the expertise and experience you deserve. Book your holiday party now!
• Mission Mop. The amazing 100% microfiber Mission® Mop offers superior cleaning performance on most hard surfaces - tile, finished wood, glass, metal and more.
• Goodwill Industries in Menasha, Madison, and Milwaukee have all your Halloween costume needs and more! Bid on that hard-to-find treasure online! Or ask the resident home décor and fashion experts advice.
• Greater Grain Gluten-Free Goods in Racine, Wis.
• Farmhouse Recipes. Wonderful jams, pickles and relishes, dry soup mixes, baking mixes and dips!
• Just for the Birds. Keep the wonderment of feathered friends close to home this fall with suet balls, bird feeders, and seed.
• Opportunities Inc. Custom Print and Design Services. With over 50 years of combined experience in the printing industry and graphic design, our knowledgeable team of experts will create a professional and affordable solution for you!
• The Local Oven in Prairie du Chien, featuring fresh, made from scratch products baked each morning. From classic bakery items like donuts and cinnamon rolls to authentic honest to goodness loaves of bread, all products are baked with simple ingredients and no preservatives.
• And brighten the season with an autumn mum from Opportunities Blooming.

Madison, Wis., – Thomas Cook, executive director, Rehabilitation for Wisconsin in Action (RFWiA), joins other top state association executives from around the country who will report on the experiences of disability service providers in their states at the Pennsylvania Association of Rehabilitation Facilities Thurs., Sept. 20 in Harrisburg, Pa. 

Wisconsin’s approach to managed care; the application of state limits on services; threats to community rehabilitation facilities; and high-profile litigation will be showcased in a panel session featuring Cook, “Roads Taken: Choices for States in Managing Human Services.”

Cook’s other session, “Getting Down to Business: New Opportunities for Community Rehabilitation Programs,” will explain the successes of RFWiA member organizations in developing new business; increasing commercial contracts that yield job opportunities for people with disabilities; maximizing state use programs; and integrating business and service models.

Since 1972, Cook has worked in direct support, operational, policy, design, and consulting roles related to services for people with disabilities. He began serving as RFW's executive director in Oct. 2008.  Under Cook’s leadership, RFW in Action was the first provider association to support calls for a legislative audit of Family Care, Wisconsin’s managed care and long-term care program for frail elders and people with disabilities. Cook is currently consulting with the state of North Dakota as part of the JVGA – Potentia team on the use of the Supports Intensity Scale for resource allocation and service planning for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

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Portage Daily Register Sept. 14, 2012 By Jen McCoy

For a quarter of his life, Jason Neuman has been the guardian of his dad, Donald, who has a traumatic brain injury.

Donald Neuman, 61, is at peace in the adult group home in Pardeeville, his son said, but by the end of the month, he might be forced to leave. Read more.

By Eric Lindquist Leader-Telegram staff

But that ideal living arrangement is threatened by a nearly 40 percent cut — from $305 to $190 a day — in the reimbursement Your Home receives from the managed care organization Northern Bridges, or MCO, that oversees Carrie's care through the state's Family Care program.

 

Your Home owner Dennis Sykora was put in the uncomfortable position of having to notify the Rings he no longer can afford to care for Carrie at the new rate.

 

"I didn't want to lose her as a client, but I'm not going to lose money doing this job," Sykora said, noting that the reimbursement rate is going down at the time costs for fuel, food and insurance are going up. "When they do these cuts, the bottom line is it hurts the residents, and that's really sad."

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