Missouri

This report offers recommendations to increase opportunities for people with disabilities to become fully involved in the economic mainstream of society. It presents research findings in key areas such as education and health care. It also describes selected state-level innovations affecting asset development and wealth accumulation. Finally, the report makes policy recommendations for securing meaningful employment, career advancement, and benefits needed for daily living and accommodations.

AARP Bulletin Online has compiled a state-by-state list of local supports to help you quickly access transportation in your community. More than 6,000 transit systems nationwide provide some form of service to older riders, from reduced fares to use of low-floor vehicles to personalized training sessions. This resource puts information about these options in one place.

This memorandum and tables present data on Medicaid 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver expenditures from Federal Fiscal Years 2002 through 2007. Each HCBS waiver is classified by population served in order to show the distribution of HCBS waiver expenditures across long term care populations.

This memorandum presents data on Medicaid long-term care expenditures in Federal Fiscal Year 2007 (Oct 2006-Sept 2007). Table 1 presents national data on Medicaid expenditures for Long-Term Care from 1995-2007. Other tables present state-by-state data for Nursing Homes, ICF/MR, Personal Care, HCBS Waivers, Home Health, Home Care, 1115 Waivers focused on HCBS, and other Medicaid services.

Seven states received a share of over $8 million in federal grants to increase awareness of home-and community-based long-term care options for people leaving hospitals who otherwise may enter a nursing home. Over $7 million of the awards will be used to develop person-centered hospital discharge planning models. An additional $574,613 will supplement grants from FY07 to Wisconsin and Alaska so they can continue their Person-Centered Planning Implementation programs for another two years.

Mathematica researchers examine the effects that the Medicaid Buy-In program has had on participants’ earnings. The first brief looks at whether earnings increase after enrollment. The second profiles the workers that earn the highest wages. The last brief profiles all Buy-In participants and compares earnings data by state. Each brief analyzes the traits of the workers and different state programs to identify successful strategies.

How many people served by home and community-based mental health services in your state are employed? This DataNote explores this question and illustrates a wide variance in outcomes between states, suggesting the need for further research to identify and implement best practices.

Thanks to the steadily increasing demand for home care, the second fastest-growing occupation in the country is that of personal and home care aides (PHCAs). Yet PHCA wages - which were low to begin with - are failing to keep up with inflation nationwide. A new publication looks at the decline in inflation-adjusted wages. Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it charts the wages received by personal and home care aides in all 50 states and the nation over a seven-year period.

This report presents findings from Oct ‘05 – Oct ‘07, which includes the first nine months of strategic planning for the FY05 and FY06 Systems Transformation (ST) Grants and the subsequent initial 15-months of implementation (through Oct ‘07) for the FY05 ST Grants. The report focuses primarily on documenting grantees' experiences during the start-up period and grantees' progress during early implementation and suggests early trends and findings.

States are ranked in this report based on the outcomes of Medicaid services provided to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The key outcomes measured are the promotion of independence and meaningful employment, tracking quality and safety, keeping families together, and reaching those in need. Each state’s progress is measured by comparing data from the previous year. This report is issued annually with past editions available on the included website.