Service animals are a common subject of discrimination in MT housing / Public News Service

According to Pam Bean, executive director of Montana Fair Housinga private, non-profit organization that fights discrimination in housing.

Bean said accommodations in state housing are protected under the Federal Fair Housing Act and Montana Human Rights Law, allowing both service and assistance animals. She said people with disabilities can request accommodations for disability-related needs.

“Any animal that a person with a disability needs is considered a service or support animal,” she said, “regardless of what the doctor or the household might call it.”

Bean noted that service animals help people with tasks, while service animals can help with things like emotional support. She said housing providers cannot charge fees for approved service or service animals, even if they normally charge a pet deposit, for example. Bean said she expects there will likely be a marked increase over the next month in the number of filings with state and federal agencies regarding the issue of service and assistance animals.

In most cases, Bean said, pet boarding requests are for people with permanent disabilities. Those who need short-term help may run into problems. Bean gave the example of a person who needs a service animal for a year, but lives in a place where animals are not allowed. She said people need to figure out how the lease is going to be handled and what will happen to the animal and its owner at the end of that period.

“Can we set up the lease in such a way that it doesn’t interfere with the scheduled expiration of this request? Because we don’t want to see the household getting slammed with a lease break fee or something like that,” she said.

Bean said housing providers have a right to know how a person’s disability affects their life, what it will be for a substantial period of time, and the animal’s role in helping that person. However, they do not have the right to know a person’s specific diagnosis. Sadly, she said many people look online and pay for a statement that their pet is an “emotional support animal”.

“Obviously a lot of them are fraudulent, so consumers are really wasting money going to these sites,” she said. “And housing providers are like, ‘Is this an acceptable form to verify disability?'”

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Groups advocating for Iowans with disabilities say 2022 is a crucial year in laying the groundwork for individuals to gain independence and live stronger lives, and they hope state policymakers hear the message.

Advocates say the caregiver crisis remains a major concern, with a continued shortage of direct support professionals.

Brooke Lovelace, executive director of the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council, said many industries are struggling to attract workers, and this area should not be overlooked.

“We know there’s a crisis with health care, and with restaurants and other businesses,” Lovelace observed. “But we also need to make sure they pay attention; that there is also a critical need for community services and supports for people with disabilities.”

His group argued that raising caregiver salaries by at least 6% would help recruit and retain employees. They also suggested allowing payment for guardians and family members who provide support through Iowa’s self-directed options.

At the start of the legislative session, the governor and Republican leaders said that with a budget surplus in hand, they wanted to focus on tax cuts.

Chris Hageman of Clear Lake has a grown daughter, Rylee, who was born with an intellectual disability. Rylee is one of more than 17,000 Iowans on a waiting list for home and community services. She is able to work, but her mother said getting respite care would allow her daughter to lead an even more active life.

“Sometimes it’s just nice for people with disabilities to have interactions with other people, other than their family,” Hageman remarked. “To have these services, so they can be outside and be productive members of a community setting.”

There are calls to make the service delivery system more efficient to help reduce the waiting list.

Sheldon’s Rob Roozeboom was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy as a child. He said recently that he used his wheelchair a little more when he was active with his family or traveling for work, but he said the buildings are not always suitable and noted that he should to have more family toilets. He wants lawmakers to help ensure greater accessibility in public places.

“We are there, we want to be there, we want to spend money in your communities,” Roozeboom stressed.

As Iowans with disabilities overcome the odds, their allies hope progress won’t be derailed. They refer to a recent Department of Justice investigationwhich revealed that Iowa’s care system for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities is heavily biased towards institutions.

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Advocates say Utah lacks skilled workers to provide home and community services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Lawmakers at the state and federal levels are debating measures to increase funding for public and private health care providers, but no action has been taken.

Utah lawmakers heard a report last week from state health officials, showing they have nearly 1,000 vacancies for disability care providers.

Nate Crippes, supervising attorney at the Utah Disability Law Center, said the lack of hiring limits access to care.

“There are about 6,000 people in those wards right now,” Crippes reported. “The state currently has a waiting list of 4,000 people. And if providers can’t find staff to provide the support these people need, that’s going to cause real problems.”

Crippes pointed out in recent years that there has been an effort to get people out of institutions to provide treatment. the Utah State Developmental Center provides direct care, but also partners with private groups for home and community services.

The average Utah salary for disability care workers is well below what many consider a “living wage.” Crippes argued that the industry cannot attract qualified personnel because their budgets are ultimately decided by the state legislature.

“People who provide services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the home and community say the rates for these workers are really, really low,” Crippes said. “I think the average is around $11.50 an hour.”

The Utah Legislature’s Social Services Subcommittee heard comments last week on pending legislation to increase disability care spending by up to $40 million. Crippes pointed out that advocates hope Congress can pass a section of the blockade Building back better which allocates $150 billion to community care.

“It looks like there might be some interest in trying to do pieces of this legislation individually rather than as a whole,” Crippes noted. “I think that would make a huge difference that would certainly allow the state to potentially expand services or do more.”

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People with disabilities are often left out of conversations about disaster preparedness, and the recent Marshall fire has tested emergency officials in Colorado.

Curtis Garrett, disaster preparedness coordinator for the Atlantis community, said the Disability and Disaster Helpline has played a key role in connecting people to emergency services, in part because State leaders have included the disability community in their planning efforts.

“The state of Colorado as a whole is really moving forward and is seen as a leader in disaster preparedness and disability services,” Garrett explained.

Garrett pointed out that when temporary shelters and other facilities are not ready to meet the needs of all members of the community, people with disabilities can be separated from their neighbors and moved to nursing homes against their will. Anyone in need of assistance can call the hotline at 800-626-4959.

Sadie Martinez, Access and Functional Needs Coordinator for the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said his team had developed a framework for identifying real resource needs rather than labeling people as “special needs.” The acronym CMIST provides an easy-to-remember checklist to ensure that all communication, medical care, independence, security and transportation needs can be met in times of crisis.

“Do we have American Sign Language interpreters, or are we available to get them immediately? Martinez describes. “Someone who is using oxygen or needs access to their medication that didn’t come with them, how do we get them to this shelter?”

Garrett added that ensuring everyone can receive emergency messages and emergency alerts is critical, but too much media continues to neglect people with disabilities. For example, broadcasters routinely exclude sign language interpreters.

“My safety depends on hearing this message,” Garrett stressed. “It should be something they do, it’s planned. You have to plug in the microphone. Well, having the performer on screen should be just as important. It should be a no-brainer.”

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