October 1997 Edition - Access Press

VOTE

"Whatyou do speaks so loud that I can not hear what you say.

- Waldo Emerson "

Cartoons-

p. 9

MAYORAL CANDIDATES

by Dwight Hobbs

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by Dim Hmmy 6 live in a wzysljmge

coatawy. People .who cmmit heinous h e s , d murder and armed m t h y

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c o n s i d e d guilty of Iryiag to eerscompensation.Et wastime rob ar get something W is Tci.slte b&lifi. more than or better than what to W

htgs. But, most people are not slime and being treated as such is demoralizing.

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TTYs At MN Rest Stops

by Rich Diedrichsen S West Consumer Advisory Panel has written a Eetter to the Commissioner of nsportation requesting that rest stop areas in Minneta 'have Tele typewriter ) equipment installed. e public telephones at these ations are not accessible to people with severehearing and iipeech limitations. To make the public pay-telephone usable to these individuals reuires access to a text telene or TTY. The technolcurrently exists to equip

however, they do not have ac- Other states have installed cess to the public telephones TTYs at public rest stop areas. at the Minnesota rest stops.

Installation of t h e m accessible pay-telephones will help The Consumer Panel under- ensure that all Minnesotans stands that this request for the have access to our rest areas.

State ofMinnesotato purchase and install a TI"Y accessible For more information call public pay-telephone exceeds (320) 255-3502 V ,255-3599 . the requirementsof the Ameri- TTY. If you would like to s u p cans with Disabilities Act re- port TTYs at road side rest lated to access for public tele- areas please write a letter of phones; the ADAonly requires support to: Office of the Comthat a TTY be installed if there missioner,MNDepartment of are four or more public pay- Transportation, 395 John Iretelephones on a given site. landBlvd,St. Paul,MN55155.

KENNY FRIES, EDITOR

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ANNE FINGER SUSAN NUSSBAUM JOHNSON CHEU LYNN MANNING

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FNW October 24. 1897 at 7:00 P.M. St. Paul Student 201 7 Buford Center-Terrace Avenue Room ,

UNIVERS~TY OF MINNESOTA S~onsonD h b l l Servl~eo. ~~ off- of th. dent for Mu(aarkuralAffair@:htitut. for H-hh ~ u t one~ommunityimegmnan.

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* ~ h l s event wlH be slpn Language mterpreted. Disability acarrnmod.tlons and &ernate f m a u available upon request Call 82S1333 (dny)

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.Mn 551182728 12 -6;EikiF 1 2 - 4 sal

wm.equipind.com

ers. When they find themin these situations,

1488437-771 3 (v/tty) 6 1 2 4 3 1 4 2 6 Fax

::YOU can always buy new if we do not have what you need.

ACCESS PRESS .................................................... ............Wm.

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tuations that result in their

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CO-~ounderl~ubli~her (1990.1995) EditorlPublisherlCo-Founder Cartoonist Production Editorial Assistant

Handi Medical Supply 2505 University Avenue West St. Paul, Minnesota 55114 At Hwy. 280 & University Avenue

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Visit Our Large, Fully-stocked showroom Open to the public.

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............................................................................ Charles F. Smith ................................................................................................................. Scott Adams ............................................................................ Presentation Images, Ellen Houghton .................................................................................................Cindy Bordeaux

YOUR COMPLETE MEDICAL SUPPLY VENDOR

ACCESS PRESS is a monthly tabloid newspaper published for persons with disabilities b Access Press, Ltd. Circulation is 10.000, distributed the 1 0 . of each month through more than I30 rocations statewide. Approximately 650 copies are mailed directly to political, business, institutional and civic leaders. Subscriptions are available for $1 5Iyr. Witonal submissions and news releases on topics of interest to persons with disabilities, or persons serving those with disabilities, are welcomed.

Paid advertising is available at rates ranging from $14 to $18/coiumn inch, depm$nqon&z$-and I'rqucncy. Cla\s~fiedads are $8.00, plus 35 centslword over 20 words.

Advertising and editorial deadlines are the 30th of the month preceding publication; special scheduling available for camera-ready art.

(612) 644-9770

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GREAT SERVICE & PRICES We offer 24 hr. Emergency Service exclusivelv to our regular customersmFree UPS and deliveriesto MPIS., st. Paul & suburbs.

Access Press is available on tape. Call MN State Services for the Blind, 642-0500 or 800-652-9000.

Inquiries should he directed to: ACCESS PRESS 1821 University Ave. W. Suite 185N

St. Paul.

We bill M.A., Mediwe. Blue C r d l u e Shield. Medim and many 0 t h insurances

IN BRIEF. . . .

T

he disability experience has, until very recently been marginalized, stereotyped, and ignored in literalure. NOW,through the vehicles of nonfiction, poetry, fiction, and drama, Staring Back is the first anthology 10 open the landscape of the disabled experience for exploration and discussion.

The presence of such wellknown authors as Lucy Greatly, John Hockenbeny, and Marilyn Hacker in this anthology givesimmediatelie to the notion that disability is a

Perfect Squares, wheelchair ing tosquaredance. Make new agecenter. call ~ h e i l a ~ e l s o n squaredancers are looking for friends. Travel. Meets Mon- at 379-4721 or 379-4027 if new members. Have fun learn- days, 7:00 - 9:00 pm at Cour- you plan to attend. limitation to insight and productivity. ~ ujust t as importantly,StaringBackchallenges US to look anew at the disabilities of FDR and Matisse; the livesofHelen Keller andFrida Kahlo; the work of Stephen Hawking. It urges US 10 redefine what ismeant by "CUIE"~O understandhidden disabilities, and even to find humor in ways that defy our expectations.

each other, with our bodies, and withourselves. AS Kenny Fries writes in his introduction,"Throughout history, those who live with disabilities have been silenced by those whodid not want to hear what we have tosay. We have also been silenced by our own fear.. the fear that if we told our stories, people would say, .S=. it isn't W O * ~ it. YOU

Ifthere isonetheme that binds thisdiverse body ofwork,aside from its subjectmatter, it is the themeofhumanconnection-a connection with the past, with

Staring Back emphatically

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APPEAL- cont from p. 1

get her excited she extends her arms and legs locking them with the strength of a steel beam. Then, without warning she'll kick a leg or swing an arm - overflow of pure joy.

Keeping her safely contained requires the strength of Hercules. Bath time is extremely exciting. Lifting a wet, excited child who can offer no help out of the tub is a very difficult and dangerous task..

Not any lift woulddo. Finally, after a long search I was able to find a though it would meet our needs. It was less than half the cost of the ceiling lift. Of course it could only serve one purpose. I wanted to stay as simple as possible, minimizing therisk ofdenial,soIcould get the lift as soon as possible.

We needed a lift that would give my daughter full body support during the entire bathing process from setting into the tub and bathing to gettingher back out of the tub.

We submitted our request to Healthpartners and were promptly denied; it was notan itemcovered underourpolicy.

Not surprising, why pay for something they can get the State to pay for? Step two, it was then submitted to the Department of Human Services (DHS) for MA approval and once again we were, not so promptly, denied. Apparently we didn't provide enough. information. An additional letter was sent and we were once again, not so promptly, denied. This time because it was nQt medically necessary nor the least expensive alternative.

The game was afoot. We had been discovered, the bathlift was not on their magical list so we had to be criminals trying to take advantage of the system. Step three, an appeal was our only option. I sent an appeal letter and gave Minnesota Disability Law Center a call.

I had not given DHS enough information. They needed to know why every least expensive option would not work.

This always baffles me. We have to supply the Department of Human Serviceswith loads ofpaperworkdocumentingour daughters condition - but for what? So it can be filed away and never again seen? I'm sure the average person could figure out that a person who cannot sit or support herself in any manner cannot sit on a

Starlight Ball Help Yourself, Inc. will hold 1997 from 7-1 1 p.m., at the spoon, food, dancing and sitheir 10th Anniversary Star- Zuhrah Shrine Center, Mpls.. lent auction. For more inforlight ball on Friday, Nov. 7, SpecialGuestShirley Wither- mation, call (612) 497-2800. \

Mental 1l1ness Conference Breaking the Chains of Minnesota (AMMN) will sumer scholarships are availStigma: 1977-1997, the Alli- hold their annual conference able. For infomation, ,-all for the ~ ~111 of October ~ 24 ~ & 25,1997. ~ Conl A M l ~ (612) N~ 645-2948.

Learning Disabi1ity C0nference

Annual National Orton Dysdemonstrates the power of lexia Society confemnce,Nothese writers' stories to overcome that fear and to break that silence.

An information and networking confersnce for Deaf & ~ & of d Hearing consumers and their families will be held on October 17 & 18 at the St.

dsy confCrencewillfeature154 LcminrDisabilities of Mirr workshops and guest nesota 222-2696.

Deaf & Hard Of Hearing Conference

the petitioners burden to show that the requested equipment is the least costly alternative."

In otherwords, wemustprove that we are not guilty of trying to order something lavish that meets our child's needs. It's not like medical equipment is desired for its lavish qualities.

Although it has slightly improved,someequipmenteven has color options like blue or purple instead of fluorescent yellow, pumpkin orange, or institutional stainless steel.

Furthermore, we were informed by DHS "the service that is least expensive ... may not necessarily be the specific service that is desired, convenient or beneficial to the recipient and her family." Am I missing something? Why would we want a piece of equipment that is not beneficial? Convenient, well the medical and social servicesystems already do a great job of I don't understand, why does making sure our lives are anyDHS have to have such a vin- thing but convenient. dictive mind set? Why would I want to order a piece of Thanks to the assistance and medical equipment that is persistence of the Minnesota not medically necessary? Disability Law center, the deBelieve me, I can think of a lot nial was reversed due to the of other things to add to our "unusual circumstances" of limited space with far greater "the physical dimensions of the bathtub." Of course it had aesthetic value. nothing to do with my daughAn appeal hearing was held. I ters needs and our bathtub is wonder if DHS ever takes into quite typical but I guess DHS consideration the cost of an 'had to say something to save appeal? Loads of hours, nu- face.. merous people, it can't be cheap. Of course, since DHS considers us to be criminals trying to take advantage of the system, no cost would be too high to prove us as such even if it means only 'saving' a couple hundred dollars on an alternate piece of equipment whether or not it meets the needs of the 'recipient'. In fact, one letter from DHS stated, "It is not enough for petitioner to show that the requestedequipmentWlLLmeet her needs. This is not the . issue." I guess not. The issue according to LIHS is that "it is

contact the Regional Center in St. Cloud 255-3502 V, (320) 255-3590 (Tl'Y).

address.Formoreinformation,

Applicants For Advisory Board Metropolitan Council seeks three applicants for advisory board on transportation services for people with disabilities. Members are sought to

fill vacancies in Distr. A in Northwestern Hennepin Cty; Distr. E in AnokaCty, St. Anthony,New Brighton,Mounds View, Distr. G repres

St. Paul, Lauderdale, Falcor Heights. Application deadline is Oct. 24. Formoreinfor. rnation contact Traci Vibo 701.

Closing The Gap

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l ~~ d~t ~b ok r tAa t i m .he - w ~ & i a nc ~ ~ ~ ~ o i ~ tion with the Metro t33l~dte (‘TA'A'C), iB forums Mobility M i c e Center (MMSC), will Wold t-blic to receive comments on the Metro Mobility system. These forums are being held to receive input from the riders on how well the system is working for them.

Public forums are scheduled as follows:

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Monday, October 27,1997 6:00 p.m. 7:30 p.m.

Minneapolis Convention Center Room 102 1301 Second Avenue South Minneapolis, MN

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Wednesday, November 5,1997 12:OO Noon 1:30 p.m.

Mears Park Centre Chambers 230 East F i h Street St. Paul, MN gWkK

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All interested persons are encouraged to attend the hearings and offer comments. People may register in advance to speak by calling Dawn Hoffner, 221- 1932 or 221-9886 ('ITY), or sign up at the forum. Upon request, reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities will be provided. Special accommodations should be requested by October 13, 1997

Patronize your Access Press Advertisers.

Let them know where you heard about them. They bring you your paper.

Comments may also be submitted as follows:

- Send written comments to: Tbm Vida, Metro Mobility Service Center, 245 East Sixth Street, St. Paul, MN 55 101.

- Fax comments to Mr. Vida at 221-9015.

- Record comments on the Council's Public Comment Line at 602- 1500 - TTY comments to Mr. Vida's attention at 221-9886.

- E-mail comments to: data.center@metc.state.mn.us

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The annual Closing The Gap is the leading source for infor- formation call 507-248-3294-

to document that this is not an effective option. Of course, 1 am just a mother, what would I know of selecting an appropriate piece of equipment to meet my daughter's needs?

Being a mother I would probably just be looking for another piece of fancy equipment todecorate my bathroom and sit in the bathtub, so the rest of us cannot take a bath.

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Cloud Holiday Inn. Donna Sorkin, Executive Director of Self Help for Hard of Hearing People will give the keynote

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Comments must be received by November 19,1997.

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