MD Disability Community Succeeds (for Now) in Saving Funding

In a statement issued today, The Arc Maryland, the Maryland Association of Community Services, and People on the Go Maryland thanked Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, Comptroller Peter Franchot, and Treasurer Nancy Kopp for their decision not to cut funding for community provider organizations which support Marylanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD).

The joint statement thanked the officials “… for listening to the voices of Maryland’s intellectual and developmental disabilities community. Your decision not to cut funding for our most vulnerable citizens will enable them to continue receiving the essential services they need to live and work in the community.”

Noting that funding could still be withdrawn in the future, the statement continued, “As all of us struggle with the budgetary constraints caused by COVID-19, we hope we can continue to count on all of our elected officials to make certain that needed resources are in place to support organizations statewide which more than 17,000 Marylanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities depend on for their continued well-being.”

Nonprofit provider organizations which support Marylanders with I/DD and their families feared that essential funding from the State would be cut as the Governor tries to deal with budget shortfalls brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

Ironically, the feared budget cuts would have come just months after a 4% increase for I/DD community services was restored in Maryland’s FY21 budget. The 4% funding increase was mandated through the Minimum Wage bill passed last year as a way to ensure Medicaid providers would hold ground as employee pay rates increased.

Provider organizations argued that despite modest annual service funding increases from the State in the past, they have struggled to keep pace with the rising costs associated with delivering required services and maintaining adequate staffing. The cost associated with the pandemic, coupled with skyrocketing service and staffing costs, an anticipated reduction in corporate and individual donations, and potential State funding cuts, would have left many of these organizations with no choice but to limit whom they can support or, in some cases, close permanently.

According to the providers, reducing or closing services would translate into a lack of access to residential services, day program services, and employment supports for countless citizens with I/DD throughout Maryland. Providers note that many families of people with disabilities rely on these services for their loved ones. Without a caregiver to support their adult child during typical working hours, many parents would be unable to hold their own jobs.

Closure would also jeopardize many of the positive gains that have been achieved by Maryland’s disability community over the past few decades. Providers argued that without essential community services, successful efforts to close state institutions, increase inclusion, and advance community participation and employment for people with I/DD would likely be reversed.

For more information about Maryland’s I/DD community and the effort to save I/DD funding (#SaveDDFunding), visit The Arc Maryland (http://www.thearcmd.org/), the Maryland Association of Community Services (http://www.macsonline.org/), and People on the Go Maryland (https://www.peopleonthegomaryland.com/).