DISABILITY RIGHTS EDUCATION & DEFENSE, INC.

- Joined a letter led by the Coalition to Preserve Rehabilitation to Congressional Committee leaders supporting S 1816/HR 35.14 (Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act), which tries to regulate the use of prior authorization by Medicare plans - Joined letter led by Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities (CCD) to House Energy and Commerce Committee opposing HR4022 which would repeal the Medicaid IMD rule and remove the restrictions on Medicaid funding going towards services provided to people in Institutions for Mental Diseases - Joined a letter led by the Coalition to Preserve Rehabilitation (CPR) to the Administrator of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, opposing a proposed prior authorization program for traditional Medicare that is likely to create a barrier to people with disabilities getting needed effective and timely rehabilitation and habilitation services - Joined a letter led by CCD to the CMS Administrator opposing the inclusion of tracheostomy, ostomy and urological supplies in CMS's Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program for Medicare, a policy that CMS recently proposed in CMS-1828-P in the fed register - Joined letter spearheaded by Movement Advance Project to Congress opposing proposed changes to the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey that would reduce demographic recognition of LGBTQ+ persons

- Joined letter from over 160 organizations to House committee leaders opposing HR 3492 which would criminalize gender affirming care by broadening an existing criminal prohibition on female genital mutilation

- Joined a Coalition of local and national groups writing to DC Mayor Muriel Bowser asking her to immediately denounce the attempted federal takeover of DC, insist on an end to the federal surge, defend DC residents from abuse by police and ICE, enforce DCs Sanctuary Values Act and demand that DCs autonomy be respected

- Supported Disability and Age in Jury Service Non-Discrimination Act, a bill introduced by Senator Markey that would prohibit exclusion from federal jury service on the basis of disability or age, to be included alongside current protections, and would also clarify that disabled jurors are not to be disqualified on the basis of disability - Endorsed John Lewis Voting Rights Enhancement Act, which would restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, most notably its requirement for states and jurisdictions with a history of voting rights violations to seek federal approval before enacting certain changes to their voting laws. The bill would also increase access to voting for people with disabilities.

- Joined a letter led by Common Sense Media and Encode AI to Congress arguing against the enactment of a federal moratorium on state regulation of AI that protects consumers and citizens within the state from the acts of AI developers and users - Endorsed a bill (yet to be finally named) that would honor disability advocate Judy Heumann with a Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award given by Congress

- Joined letter led by the Leadership Conference of Civil and Human Rights (LCCHR) to Congress urging it to defend the National Education Associations right to advocate - Joined letter led by the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities to the US Department of Education upon the department issuing a policy on "Proposed Priority: Advancing Artificial Intelligence in Education." The letter asks for an AI priority with guardrails relating to accessibility, universal design, and full inclusion of students with disabilities. - Joined letter to Congress led by Council of Parent Attorneys (COPAA) and Advocates and the Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE), supporting funding for education programs for students with disabilities - Joined letter by COPAA and CASE to the Dept of Ed and Secretary McMahon, urging the Dept. and Congress to maintain all current grants (as of September 2025) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

- Joined a coalition letter to the Congressional leaders of the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development & Related Agencies urging them not to eliminate the Fair Housing Initiatives Program or otherwise cut funding to critical housing programs

- Joined a letter to HHS Secretary Kennedy led by the Latina Institute and National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF) opposing a proposed HHS that redefines federal public health benefits for the purposes of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act (PRWORA) and rescinds a narrower 1998 interpretation of federal public health benefits - Joined a letter led by Community Catalyst to Congress, asking for passage of the Marketplace Extended Premium Tax Credits and for signing of the the Protecting Healthcare And Lowering Costs Act (this bill repeals much of HR1, the fed budget act passed in July 2025) - Joined letter from the Disability and Aging Coalition (DAC) to Congress that supports the Protecting Healthcare and Lowering Costs Act of 2025 which would repeal major provisions in HR1 that cut health care (Medicaid) and would also make the Enhanced premium tax credits offered in the marketplace permanent - Joined letter jointly led by DAC and the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities to Congress, expressing support for the repeal of HR1 Health Provisions and Medicaid cuts while extending Enhanced Premium Tax Credits - Submitted comment to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, asking for a change in how the United States Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI) categorizes the disability status elements in electronic health records and asking for accommodations to be included in the electronic health record (EHR).

- Joined a letter spearheaded by the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund to Congressional Committee leaders that opposes anti-DEIA and anti-critical race theory riders in FY26 appropriations bills - Joined letter by the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities urging Congress to protect and expand FY2026 funding for critical HUD housing programs that serve older adults and people with disabilities - including Section 811, Mainstream/Non-Elderly Disabled (NED) Vouchers, the Fair Housing Initiatives Program, and Emergency Housing Vouchers - Joined a letter led by the Technology Task Force of the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities (CCD) to the House seeking greater appropriations in support for the Assistive Technology Act and support for the US Access Board - Joined letter spearheaded by the National Coalition on Accessible Voting to Congress asking for a rejection of the Presidents FY26 budget proposal which would eliminate all funding for the Protection and Advocacy for Voting Accessibility (PAVA) program - Joined letter led by CCD to Congressional Committee leaders asking for the Appropriations Labor-HHS-Ed Subcommittees to distinctly and fully fund all programs in the FY26 Independent living request which includes the University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs), Projects of National Significance (PNS), Limb Loss Resource Center, Paralysis Resource Center, and the Protection and Access for Voting Access Program - Joined letter led by CCD to Congress letter urging it to vote against deep cuts in the Health and Human Services Agency and Dept of Education budgets, and asking for continued funding of all portions of the Protection and Advocacy program

- Joined a letter written by Congresswoman Jayapal to the Dept of Labor Secretary opposing DOL's proposed rule that would rollback a 2013 rule that provided wage and overtime protections to personal care/home care workers - Joined a letter led by the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) that opposes two rules proposed by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and the Employment and Training Administration that would jeopardize employment of people with disabilities - Joined a letter led by Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities (CCD) and the Disability and Aging Coalition (DAC) to the Dept. of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, opposing a proposed fed rule from the dept of labor that would roll back the application of fed min wage and overtime protections of home care workers, including personal care assistants - Joined a letter led by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights to the US Dept of Labor opposing a proposed rule out of the Dept. of Labor (DOL) that would require states to share their unemployment data and wage records with the department for "fighting fraud and increasing efficiency" - Endorsed the Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act, which would assist employers providing employment under special certificates issued under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to transform their business and program models to models that support individuals with disabilities through competitive integrated employment, to phase out the use of such special certificates, and for other purposes - Endorsed the Equal Employment for All Act, which would prohibit employment discrimination based on credit check findings