Official Government Website
Community NOW! is a statewide collaborative workgroup led by adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their families, who participate in Medicaid home and community-based services. The Workgroup allows adults with I/DD to lead discussions about adult developmental disability (DD) services under Idaho’s Medicaid DD Waiver program. It is made possible through the shared resources of the Idaho Council on Developmental Disabilities and the Department of Health & Welfare.
Current Projects & Activities
Community NOW!
Meetings and discussions are part of the implementation of the K.W. v. Armstrong settlement agreement. The Workgroup of over 60 people brings together:
- Adults with I/DD;
- Family members who support and speak on behalf of adults with I/DD;
- Department managers and administrators;
- advocacy groups such as the DD Council, Disability Rights Idaho, The Center on Disabilities and Human Development at the University of Idaho;
- Medicaid service providers; and
- Representatives from the Idaho Attorney General’s Office (OAG), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and Human Services Research Institute (HSRI).
As part of the Community Now Project, representatives from the Department of Health and Welfare, DD Council, the Office of the Attorney General, Human Services Research Institute, and the ACLU also completed in-person listening sessions in Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Twin Falls, Emmett, Caldwell, Boise, Grangeville, Lewiston, Coeur d’Alene, and Ponderay. Each listening session provided wonderful opportunities to meet with and listen to an additional 94 adults with I/DD, 128 families, and other stakeholders who shared experiences about what is and is not working with adult DD services in Idaho. The shared stories and real-life experiences of adults with I/DD and their families are key to learning what supports adults with I/DD want and need, and what barriers may keep adults with I/DD from living full and independent lives.
Our Care Can’t Wait
Our Care Can’t Wait, is a coalition of people with disabilities, families, disability advocacy organizations, and HCBS provider agencies working to ensure people with disabilities and families have a well-qualified, reliable workforce that meets their needs to live the life they choose.
The coalition is working on pushing forward Communtiy NOW recommendations from the Bfair2DirectCare workgroup. Click here for more information.
Idaho Living Well (ILW)
In 2018, Idaho was awarded one of eight Living Well grants from the Administration on Community Living (ACL) to develop and test a model to improve the safety and quality of home and community services in the state. The ILW project, based on several CNOW recommendations, designated four workgroups to carry out specific objectives and report back to CNOW for feedback and refinement. Over the last four years, CNOW stakeholders provided feedback through discussion on the recommendations presented by the ILW workgroups, one of which was named “bfair2directcare”. The direct care workgroup addressed two of the 17 CNOW recommendations:
- RECOMMENDATION 10: “Put mechanisms in place that help adults to find, support, and keep competent, consistent, capable, and quality staff.”
- RECOMMENDATION 11: “Implement a tiered, linguistically and culturally appropriate, training process that is standardized and person-specific to ensure that all staff draw from best practice, experience, and knowledge.”
bFair2DirectCare Workgroup
The goal of the bfair2directcare workgroup was to develop a system to increase the skills and knowledge of DSPs and provide opportunities to increase wages, recognition, and retention through a tiered training system and wage enhancement process. Over four years 25 people participated in the workgroup. Like CNOW meetings, to assure that people with disabilities and their families had the primary voice, input was first solicited from adults with disabilities and family members who receive services, followed by DSPs, then service providers.
Publications Related to Goals & Objectives
Related Materials & Resources
- Project Overview Chart
- The Jack Hansen Show – Three YouTube videos related to the KW vs Armstrong Lawsuit Settlement and Community Now
- Presentation highlights from Community NOW! Report to Idaho Legislators and the Department of Health and Welfare
- Medicaid’s response to the Community NOW! Service and Support Recommendations Report
- My Choice Matters Idaho
“This work is supported by a grant from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201 with 100% federal funding award totaling $527,570 (Federal Fiscal Year 2023 Grant No.: 2301IDSCDD-01). Council efforts are those of the grantee and do not necessarily represent the official views of not are endorsed by ACL, HHS, or the U.S. government.”