Since 1965, the Older Americans Act (OAA) has gained recognition as a unique and highly regarded statute that has stimulated the development of a comprehensive and coordinated service system. This system has contributed greatly to enhancing the lives of older individuals, family caregivers, and persons with disabilities. In 2011 Congress will consider reauthorization and amendments to the Act effective in FY 2012. In anticipation of this process, the Administration on Aging (AoA) is soliciting input concerning the reauthorization through three mechanisms: (1) AoA-Convened Listening Forums; (2) OAA Reauthorization Input Events; and (3) Direct Input via the AoA Website.

The CVS Caremark Community Grants program awards funds to nonprofit organizations for programs targeting children with disabilities, programs focusing on health and rehabilitation services, public schools promoting a greater level of inclusion in student activities and extracurricular programs, and initiatives that give greater access to physical movement and play.

Additionally, some contributions are made to organizations that provide uninsured individuals with needed care, in particular programs where the care received is of higher quality and delivered by providers who participate in accountable community health care programs.

The medical journal The Lancet on Tuesday retracted a controversial 1998 paper that linked the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism. The study linked autism with the MMR vaccine.

The research had been discredited subsequently. Last week, the study's lead author Dr Andrew Wakefield was found to have acted unethically in conducting the research.

See full retraction at: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2810%2960175-7/fulltext

Together We Make a Difference: An Inclusive Service Learning Curriculum for Elementary Learners With and Without Disabilities is an innovative curriculum providing educators and youth workers with a new tool for engaging all elementary-age learners in service learning.

Active Living Research is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The program supports research to inform policy and environmental strategies for increasing physical activity among children and adolescents, decreasing their sedentary behaviors and preventing obesity. A special emphasis is placed on research focused on racial/ethnic populations and children living in low-income communities who are at highest risk for obesity. Findings will advance RWJF's efforts to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic by 2015.

Round 10 consists of grant opportunities for dissertation awards and the following specified research topics:

The 2010 C. H. McCloy Lecturer is Dr. James Rimmer of the University of Illinois at Chicago, who will speak on: “Building Inclusive Fitness Communities Across America: What Every Physical Activity Professional Needs to Know.”  

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Invites Proposals for Communities Creating Healthy Environments: Improving Access to Healthy Foods and Safe Places to Play in Communities of Color.

The Great Lakes ADA Center is hosting a series of free ADA legal webinars. Alan Goldstein and I from Equip for Equality are in charge of providing the content for these webinars.  In some of the webinars, we are the featured speakers, and in others, we are co-presenters with ADA experts, including Brian East from Advocacy Inc. and John Hendrickson from the Chicago EEOC office.

The National Council on Disability (NCD) has released a report entitled The State of Housing in America in the 21st Century: A Disability Perspective. The report provides recommendations to improve housing opportunities for people with disabilities. The research contained in this report presents a comprehensive overview of the state of housing in the twenty-first century, and answers important questions about the current housing needs and options for people with disabilities living in the United States.

MCHB Publications

To download a pdf of the report, click here.