RSA-509 for FY-2016: Submission #98

State name Minnesota

Report through date 9/30/2016

General Information

Designated Agency Identification

Name Mid-Minnesota Legal Assistance

Address 430 First Ave. N.

Address 2 Suite 300

City Minneapolis

State {Empty}

Zip Code 55401

E-mail Address mndlc@mylegalaid.org

Website Address http://www.mndlc.org

Phone (612) 332-1441

TTY Phone (612) 332-4668

Toll-free Phone (800) 292-4150

Toll-free TTY Phone {Empty}

Fax (612) 334-5785

Name of P&A Executive Director Cathy Haukedahl

Name of PAIR Director/Coordinator Alex Farrell

Person to contact regarding report Alex Farrell

Contact Person phone (612) 746-3764

Contact Person phone ext {Empty}

Part I. Non-Case Services

A. Individual Information and Referral Services (I&R)

1. Individuals receiving I&R within PAIR priority areas 317

2. Individuals receiving I&R outside PAIR priority areas 8

3. Total individuals receiving I&R (lines A1 + A2) 325

B. Training Activities

1. Number of trainings presented by PAIR staff 20

2. Number of individuals who attended training (approximate) 640

Training PAIR staff delivered 20 presentations that provided 640 participants with information on an array of advocacy, service, and rights-related topics.  Of these presentations, five focused on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); four focused on health care issues impacting persons with disabilities; three focused on employment-related issues; three focused on the Minnesota Disability Law Center’s (MDLC) advocacy role in the community; two focused on special education topics; and two focused on voting rights issues.  Participants at MDLC training sessions included persons with disabilities and their family members, social service and other public agency staff, legal aid attorneys, pro bono attorneys, school staff attorneys, county attorneys, police officers, health care providers, non-profit business owners, and staff from other disability advocacy organizations.  In addition to these 20 presentations, PAIR advocates and attorneys staffed tables at and otherwise participated in ten outreach and resource events that provided information to 3470 community members.  PAIR staff distributed MDLC’s information at a school in Duluth; four social service agencies; an annual two-day Veterans Stand-Down Event, which is a resource fair and appreciation event for veterans and service members; Project Homeless Connect, an outreach event for homeless individuals; and the Minnesota State Fair.  "

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C. Information Disseminated to the Public

1. Radio and TV appearances by PAIR staff 1

2. Newspaper/magazine/journal articles 14

3. PSAs/videos aired 0

4. Hits on the PAIR/P&A website 1737

5. Publications/booklets/brochures disseminated 8

6. Other (specify separately) 0

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Part II. Individuals Served

A. Individuals Served

1. Individuals still served as of October 1 (carryover from prior FY) 92

2. Additional individuals served during the year 162

3. Total individuals served (lines A1 + A2) 254

4. Individuals w. more than 1 case opened/closed during the FY. (Do not add this number to total on line A3 above.) 19

B. Individuals served as of September 30

Carryover to next FY may not exceed total on line II. A.3 above 123

C. Problem Areas/Complaints of Individuals Served

1. Architectural accessibility 6

2. Employment 0

3. Program access 4

4. Housing 7

5. Government benefits/services 39

6. Transportation 7

7. Education 7

8. Assistive technology 0

9. Voting 0

10. Health care 51

11. Insurance 0

12. Non-government services 86

13. Privacy rights 0

14. Access to records 0

15. Abuse 3

16. Neglect 1

17. Other 43

D. Reasons for Closing Individual Case Files

1. Issues resolved partially or completely in individual favor 79

2. Other representation found 4

3. Individual withdrew complaint 7

4. Appeals unsuccessful 5

5. PAIR Services not needed due to individual's death, relocation etc 12

6. PAIR withdrew from case 0

7. PAIR unable to take case because of lack of resources 7

8. Individual case lacks legal merit 17

9. Other 0

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E. Intervention Strategies Used in Serving Individuals

1. Technical assistance in self-advocacy 22

2. Short-term assistance 34

3. Investigation/monitoring 0

4. Negotiation 46

5. Mediation/alternative dispute resolution 0

6. Administrative hearings 17

7. Litigation 12

8. Systemic/policy activities 0

Part III. Statistical Information on Individuals Served

A. Age of Individuals Served as of October 1

1. 0 - 4 3

2. 5 - 22 34

3. 23 - 59 169

4. 60 - 64 22

5. 65 and over 26

B. Gender of Individuals Served

1. Females 108

2. Males 146

C. Race/Ethnicity of Individuals Served

1. Hispanic/Latino of any race 2

2. American Indian or Alaskan Native 6

3. Asian 9

4. Black or African American 56

5. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander 0

6. White 152

7. Two or more races 3

8. Race/ethnicity unknown 26

D. Living Arrangements of Individuals Served

1. Independent 175

2. Parental or other family home 31

3. Community residential home 4

4. Foster care 0

5. Nursing home 7

6. Public institutional living arrangement 9

7. Private institutional living arrangement 1

8. Jail/prison/detention center 21

9. Homeless 5

10. Other living arrangements 0

11. Living arrangements not known 1

E. Primary Disability of Individuals Served

2. Deaf/hard of hearing 72

4. Orthopedic impairment 71

5. Mental illness 0

6. Substance abuse 3

7. Mental retardation 0

8. Learning disability 15

9. Neurological impairment 21

10. Respiratory impairment 4

11. Heart/other circulatory impairment 7

12. Muscular/skeletal impairment 7

13. Speech impairment 0

14. AIDS/HIV 0

15. Traumatic brain injury 0

16. Other disability 38

Part IV. Systemic Activities and Litigation

A. Systemic Activities

1. Number of policies/practices changed as a result of non-litigation systemic activities 12

2. Number of individuals potentially impacted by policy changes 622000

Describe your systemic activities. 1.      Enterprise Appeal Project The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) Appeals and Regulations Division is currently upgrading and modernizing its process for public benefits appeals.  PAIR program staff served on a workgroup convened by DHS to develop templates and forms that will be part of the new online appeals system.  The work group commented and edited approximately 75 forms that will be available for use by public benefits recipients who wish to appeal adverse actions taken by state and county social services agencies.  PAIR staff also provided comments and recommendations to approve the appeal process as DHS transitions to a web-based appeals system.   The group’s work lead to policy changes regarding how fair hearing appeals and evidence will be received.   DHS also adopted approximately 5 of the suggested changes that PAIR staff made to template forms that will be used as part of the process.   MDLC estimates that at least 66,000 PAIR eligible clients will be affected by these changes.  MDLC’s estimate is based on the fact that approximately 6% of Minnesota’s population are PAIR eligible clients, and that at least 1.1 million Minnesotans have access to the fair hearing system.  The 6% figure is based on the 2014 Disability Status Report from the Yang-Tan Institute on Employment and Disability at the Cornell University ILR School.   The Institute estimates that 10.6 % of Minnesota’s population are people with disabili"

B. Litigation/Class Actions

1. Number of individuals potentially impacted by changes as a result of PAIR litigation/class action efforts 40000

2. Number of individuals named in class actions 0

Describe your litigation/class action activities. PAIR’s litigation activities fell within two of MDLC’s priority areas during this report period:  Priority #3 (Community-Based Supports, Services, and Health Care) and Priority #4 (Accessibility and Discrimination).  An example from each of these priority areas is included below. Priority #3 Litigation Example: PAIR staff represented a 10-year old girl with Dravet Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that causes intense seizures, in a Medicaid claim against the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). The child suffered anywhere from 10-50 seizures per day, and required multiple hospitalizations.  After exhausting all other medical options, the little girl’s doctor prescribed Stiripentol, an Orphan drug that has yet to receive final approval from the federal Food and Drug Administration.  DHS refused to provide Medicaid coverage for the drug because it has not received final FDA approval.  PAIR staff filed a complaint and motion for a preliminary injunction in federal court, seeking Medicaid coverage of the drug.  The complaint alleged that DHS was required to provide Medicaid coverage for the drug under the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment (EPSDT) benefit.  The EPSDT benefit requires states to provide Medicaid coverage for medically necessary treatment to children under the age of 21.  Prior to a hearing on the motion, DHS agreed to settle the case.  The settlement agreement requires DHS to provide Medicaid coverage for the drug as long as it proves to be effective for the client.&n"

Part V. PAIR'S Priorities and Objectives

A. Priorities and Objectives for the Fiscal Year Covered by this Report

For each of your PAIR program priorities for the fiscal year covered by this report, please:

Identify and describe priority.
Identify the need, issue or barrier addressed by this priority.
Identify and describe indicators PAIR used to determine successful outcome of activities pursued under this priority.
Explain whether pursuing this priority involved collaborative efforts by other entities. If so, describe this collaboration.
Provide the number of cases handled under the priority. Indicate how many of these, if any, were class actions.
Provide at least one case summary that demonstrates the impact of the priority.

Priorities and Objectives  A.  Priorities and Objectives for the Fiscal Year Covered by this Report:  Note: MDLC’s priorities are organized by issue rather than by program.  This section includes all of MDLC’s priority issues that designate PAIR as a possible advocacy source.  This report highlights PAIR work under Priority III (Community-Based Services, Supports, and Health Care) and Priority IV (Accessibility and Discrimination).   I.   ABUSE/NEGLECT  GOAL:  People with disabilities will be free from abuse and neglect.  Priority:  Abuse/Neglect:  A person with a disability needs legal advocacy because his/her health or safety is at risk due to abuse or neglect.  ·   Assault: A person with a disability needs legal advocacy to be free from physical and sexual assault.<"

B. Priorities and Objectives for the Current Fiscal Year

Please include a statement of priorities and objectives for the current fiscal year (the fiscal year succeeding that covered by this report), which should contain the following information:

a statement of each prioirty;
the need addressed by each priority; and;
a description of the activities to be carried out under each priority.

B. Priorities and Objectives for the Current Fiscal Year  MDLC PRIORITIES FOR 2017The order in which the following four priorities are listed does not imply higher or lower ranking. PRIORITY 1:  Eliminate Abuse and Neglect For individuals with disabilities:  MDLC helps clients whose health or safety is at risk because of abuse, such as physical assault, sexual assault, chemical restraint, (e,g., the wrong type/dose of psychotropic medications), restraint or seclusion, and neglect, such as failure to provide adequate medical care, required supervision, or other necessities.  MDLC also helps clients who are financially exploited and those whose residential/treatment providers are not providing or deny them access to critical care or supports. For groups of people with disabilities:  MDLC staff conduct monitoring visits to facilities where persons with disabilities reside, learn or receive services.  MDLC conducts investigations when it has cause to believe that abuse or neglect has occurred in a program or facility serving a group of individuals with disabilities. Funding:  MDLC’s services under this priority are primarily funded by PADD, PAIMI, PAIR, and PATBI.  PRIORITY 2:  Increase Integration and Decrease Discrimination<p style="margin: 0p"

Part VI. Narrative

Narrative

At a minimum, you must include all of the information requested. You may include any other information, not otherwise collected on this reporting form that would be helpful in describing the extent of PAIR activities during the prior fiscal year. Please limit the narrative portion of this report, including attachments, to 20 pages or less.

The narrative should contain the following information. The instructions for this form outline the information that should be contained in each section.

Sources of funds received and expended
Budget for the fiscal year covered by this report
Outline the budget for the fiscal year covered by the report (prior fiscal year), as well as a projection for the current fiscal year. Be sure to include a breakdown of dollars expended/allotted for: administrative costs (i.e., personnel salaries, equipment, etc.); services to individuals; and other expenses (i.e., staff training, travel, etc.)
Description of PAIR staff (duties and person-years)
Involvement with advisory boards (if any)
Grievances filed under the grievance procedure
Coordination with the Client Assistance Program (CAP) and the State long-term care program, if these programs are not part of the P&A agency

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Certification

Signed

Signed? Yes

Signed by Cathy Haukedahl

Title Executive Director

Signed date Mon, 12/19/2016 - 00:00

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