DISABILITY RIGHTS EDUCATION & DEFENSE, INC.

- Joined a letter led by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCHR) opposing HR 7296 (the "SAVE" Act) that would require all new registering voters to produce proof of U.S. citizenship, also imposing new nationwide photo ID requirements that go far beyond the requirements of any existing law.

- Joined a coalition letter from the Consortium for Constituents with Disabilities' (CCD's) Long Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Task Force to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding implementation of a new Home and Community-Based Services waiver authorized under HR 1. - Joined a letter led by the Rights, Health, and LTSS Task Forces of CCD to CMS, opposing a proposed rule (CMS-2451-P, 90 Fed. Reg. 59441 (Dec. 19, 2026)) to prohibit Medicaid and CHIP reimbursement for gender transition-related health care for minors. - Joined a letter spearheaded by the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) to CMS requesting that they not follow the drug treatment policies of other countries that use Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) as a standard for determining the worth of a drug treatment, because the QALY inherently discriminates against the lives and worth of disabled people. - Joined a letter led by CCD's Health and LTSS taskforces and the Disability and Aging Collaborative (DAC) to Congressional leadership, stressing the importance of home and community-based care to disabled people and refuting the overly broad accusations of waste, fraud, and abuse being leveled against home and community-based services (HCBS), disabled persons, and family caregivers. - Joined a letter spearheaded by the Coalition to Preserve Rehabilitation (CPR)/Habilitation Benefits Coalition (HAB) to CMS with comments on the Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2027 Proposed Rule put out by the Dept of Health and Human Services. - Joined a letter led by CCD and DAC to CMS, responding to a Request for Information from CMS seeking public comments on a series of questions concerning the presence and impact of fraud in the Medicaid program ("Comprehensive Regulations to Uncover Suspicious Healthcare"). - Joined a letter led by the Coalition to Preserve Rehabilitation to Congress supporting HR 5940/S 3480, which reverses the scheduled implementation of a spending & review model for original Medicare beneficiaries in a few pilot states.

- Joined a letter from the Collaboration to Promote Self-Determination (CPSD) to Congress asking for federal oversight hearings over the Executive Branch's actions to illegally restructure the Department of Education, including the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) - Joined a coalition letter led by CPSD to the US Office of Management and Budget (OMB) opposing the movement of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) away from the Department of Education. - Joined a letter spearheaded by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCHR) and sent to the House Judiciary Committee, defending a longstanding Supreme Court Decision in Plyler v. Doe which recognized that states could not exclude non-citizen immigrant children from public education. - Joined a large coalition of federal and state educational advocacy and civil rights organizations (All4Ed) in a letter to Congress opposing the unlawful transfers of Dept of Ed roles and responsibilities to other federal agencies. - Joined a letter led by the Education Task Force of the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities (CCD) to Congressional representatives opposing the 21st Century Dyslexia Act (S.3010/H.R. 5769) which would undermine existing protections under IDEA and could result in unintended negative consequences for students with disabilities, including students suspected of or those already identified with dyslexia.

- Joined National Fair Housing Alliance's comments to the Dept of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) opposing HUD's proposed rules eliminating HUDs current regulations acknowledging disparate impact as an important legal standard under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) - DREDF-authored comments submitted to HUD opposing HUD's proposed removal of Fair Housing Act (FHA) discriminatory effects regulations from the Code of Federal Regulations. This change would undermine HUDs obligation to fully enforce the Fair Housing Act

- Joined a letter from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) to Congress, calling for immediate oversight/investigation of the changes to the childhood vaccination schedule. The letter highlights how the changed status of a number of vaccinations makes their coverage under insurance an open question mark, discouraging vaccination, and therefore threatens herd immunity for disabled students, people with cancer and organ transplants), and individuals with other risk factors who rely on high rates of vaccination for protection. - Joined a letter from the Health Task Force of the Consortium of Constituents with Disabilities to HHS in response to a Request for Information on "accelerating the adoption and use of AI as part of clinical care." The letter raised concerns and cautions specific to how AI's use in health care services can impact on disabled people. - Joined a coalition letter led by Caring Across Generations (CAG), the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), and others to Congress opposing attacks on, and funding cuts for, basic needs programs like Medicaid and SNAP, and the communities who rely on these programs. - Joined a letter led by the National Partnership for Women and Families, opposing the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act (HR 6945), a bill that codifies the ability for states to apply TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) dollars to funding anti-abortion centers, also known as crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs). - Joined a letter led by the American Association of Retired People (AARP) to Congress urging support for the inclusion of the bipartisan Lowering Costs for Caregivers Act (S. 1565/H.R. 138) in in any relevant legislation advanced in the 119th Congress.

- DREDF joined a letter spearheaded by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCHR) to the US Dept of Commerce, responding to a Fed Register Notice on changes to the American Community Survey (ACS) and the Puerto Rico Community Survey. The letter asks for implementation of the more detailed race/ethnicity standards with MENA categories, inclusion of an internet self-response option to the PRCS, the Bureau's release of research undertaking a Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity census question, and ongoing work toward a refreshed disability census measure that is undertaken with people with disabilities and disability researchers. - Joined a letter led by LCCHR to the US Dept of Commerce, responding to a Request for Information on proposed changes to the 2026 Census test for the 2030 census that will harm the efficacy, accuracy, and comprehensive inclusion of the existing plan for the test.

- Joined a letter led by the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) to Senate Majority Leader Thune urging the removal of funding for the Dept of Homeland Security (DHS) from the minibus government funding package. - Joined a letter led by the Planned Parenthood Action Committee (PPAC) and the National Health Law Program (NHELP) to Congress, asking for restoration of Medicaid and other healthcare funding after deep cuts while stopping the funding of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)/DHS. - Co-led coalition letter with the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, urging US Congress to halt all funding to DHS ICE, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) activities, and reallocate the funding towards Medicaid, SNAP, and other essential services for people with disabilities and those who are Deaf and hard of hearing. - Joined a letter led by the National Immigration Law Center letter to Senators, urging them to vote "no" on Senator Markwayne Mullins nomination for Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security because he is unqualified and has urged the continuation of DHS lawless violence at ICE and Border Patrol. - Joined a large coalition led by the Center for Law and Social Policy and others to endorse and support the anticipated reintroduction by Representative Espaillat and Senator Blumenthal of the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, in response to the announced rescission of the Protected Areas policy by the Trump Administration; the protected areas policy prohibited immigration enforcement actions in places that provided vital services important to well-being. The bill would restore those protections in places like schools, places of worship and healthcare facilities.