Community Living

This year is the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush.

Each May, the Administration for Community Living observes Older Americans Month. In 2021 the theme is “Communities of Strength,” celebrating the resilience and strength older adults have built during lives filled with successes, failures, joys, and difficulties. The focus this year is on the power of connection and the vital role it plays in well-being.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is dedicated to promoting safe behaviors of older road users to include individuals age 65 and over who are drivers, passengers, pedestrians, motorcyclists, and bicyclists.  New Editions provides content management and outreach support to NHTSA for the Clearinghouse for Older Road User Safety (ChORUS).

New Editions analyzes the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research’s (NIDILRR's) Annual Performance Report (APR) data through a subcontract with RTI International. The purpose of the APR is to collect data from NIDILRR’s grantees concerning their project foci, activities and progress, and contributions to society’s capacity to provide opportunities and accommodations to citizens with disabilities.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) Money Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration Program provides funding and support for 44 state grantees to design and develop services and supports to assist individuals move from institutional to home and community-based settings. Additionally, MFP provides the foundation and framework for states to transform their systems to be more focused on home and community-based systems. 

New Editions assists the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in the national implementation of regulations, particularly in regards to ensuring that beneficiaries receiving home and community-based services (HCBS) live and work in settings that are home and community-based and are integrated into the community. In March 2014, CMS published regulations to improve Medicaid HCBS by providing increased guidance on person-centered planning and by clarifying what protections must be in place when restrictions are imposed on individual rights.

This is one of several banners Money Follows the Person (MFP) used to direct meeting attendees to a registration booth.

In June, New Editions facilitated the seventh annual meeting between the US Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Agriculture (USDA) at HUD headquarters. The theme of this year’s meeting was Housing as a Platform for Health.

The Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Technical Assistance (TA) website provides technical assistance to state agencies pursuing 1915(c), 1915(i) and 1915(j) HCBS waivers and state plan amendments.