Wisconsin

Wisconsin Pathways to Independence convened a series of symposia to improve the process of maintenance and repair (M&R) for mobility assistive technology (AT) and its effects on outcomes such as employment. The symposium report presents current knowledge and sums up future objectives. The mobility survey reports on user experience and employment outcomes. Finally, the current practices report analyzes the processes involved in M&R to identify aspects that increase complexity and time of repair.

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.

Access Training helps therapists and support professionals to improve skills in assessing the assistive technology (AT) needs of persons with disabilities. This document reports on the project's accomplishments in 2006, namely two major training events. One focused on serving people with mobility needs, the other on people with sensory and learning disabilities.

Find here documents needed for managing a peer mentoring program. Advisory committee meeting materials illustrate the planning process. Flyers, posters and press releases aid in marketing. Letters to parents and mentors and interview questionnaires and assessments for recruitment are also given. So are worksheets and activity guides for use once a mentor and mentee have been matched.

The WI Statewide Transition Initiative receives guidance from a Youth Advisory Board (YAB). The materials contained here were developed to teach workers to help support meaningful work by the Board via youth leadership training and development. The YAB description provides the details and goals of the program. The facilitators guide and presentation structured the training, and the youth activities and programming resource support implementation.

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.

This publication provides a summary overview of the accomplishments and enduring changes brought about by all of the Systems Change NFT Grantees Despite bringing about many enduring systems improvements, Grantees reported that many transition barriers remain. Grantees made recommendations to help states address continuing barriers to nursing facility transition and diversion so that no one need live in a nursing home simply because sufficient community services and supports are unavailable.

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.