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On Thursday, April 15, 2004, at 10:00 AM, we, Damian
Gregory & Denny Wood, met with Lt. Governor Toni Jennings about the
Florida Vocational Rehabilitation Program and our serious concerns and our
mission to make client service delivery radically better. Our “talk paper”
that we left with the Lt. Governor is as follows:
Issues to be Addressed within the
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Rules made by VR administration are not functional
and costs VR clients Time and Money;
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| 1. |
Example:
Under current VR policy, in order for a van to be modified, it must
be a certain number of years old. A more practical approach would be
to have a certified auto mechanic's statement, that if the vehicle
is maintained correctly, it will have a projected life span of 5-15
years.
(Denny Wood drives a 1979 Chevy Van to and from the 2004 State
Legislature. He just spent $1300 repairing the lift. His second van
is a 1984 Chevy Van. His insurance company just installed a new lift
for $3,800.00 after a certified mechanic statement that the van has
at least 5 years of life left in it.)
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| 2. |
College students are told that graduate school,
and tuition and books cannot be part of their VR Client Plan.
(Example:
Polly Hines, a UCF Undergraduate Social Work Major, who has already
been counseled by her VR counselor that graduate school tuition and
books is out of the question, if she is going to be reliant on VR
for assistance. PH: 321-409-2884)
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| 3. |
Getting van
modifications on paper and into a client’s plan is difficult. Even
after the plan is written down on paper, getting the actual
modifications completed is another challenge. Often, modifications
are delayed for indefinite periods, sometimes as long as months and
months, even while insurance policy payments are made.
(Example: Marjorie Burnett, who
has cerebral palsy and requires specialized software for computer
voice conversion, a voice communication device, and a van conversion
signed a plan which detailed all of this on October 2003. However, a
visit from a VR engineer only happened a few days ago, on April 2,
2004. Sadly, her van was purchased in August 2003, and has just sat
in the parking lot while she waited for VR. Marjorie faced major
opposition while developing her vocational rehab plan. They refused
to give her assistance with college tuition and books. As a result,
she took out student loans to get through college. With a great deal
of effort, Marjorie obtained a van, under the rules for conversion
set forth by VR. Then they refused to modify it. After this was
challenged, VR came around. Sort of. She got a plan on paper. But to
date, none of the prescribed items in her plan have come to
fruition.
Although, Denny Wood and Damian Gregory have been at the
Legislature, advocating for more money for VR, radical overhaul of
VR Administration and client service delivery, which may have
finally prompted VR into scheduling an evaluation for the van
modifications.)
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| 4. |
Clients are
denied van and lift modifications for months, when this was the sole
objective for becoming a client.
(Example: Damian Gregory, who is
here today)
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| 5. |
VR
Counselors are quick to order expensive psychological evaluations
for clients who do not need such evaluations.
(Example: Damian Gregory, who is
here today. He was forced into two days of such testing, when his
vocational objective was to get his van rehabilitated.)
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| 6. |
Few if
any, VR counselors with severe disabilities are currently on
staff. Hiring more personnel with disabilities, in positions across
the board, would go a long way in fulfilling two primary and
essential objectives of the agency: a. getting more people employed
and b. creating much needed sensitivity within VR culture.
(Example: “I am rated as 60%
disabled, with a service connected disability. I have applied over
and over for a position as a VR Counselor in the Pensacola area and
have yet [not] received an interview. I did write the Gov. about
this and all I got was “no answer” by the head of Voc. Rehab. I hold
a M. Ed. from UWF and have been working in Supported Employment with
disabled adults for 5 years.”
From: JGEVE@aol.com)
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| 7. |
Unfortunately, many VR Plans are being dragged out for months. Hand
controls seem to be a problem, when this should not be. Other VR
plans just do not get implemented on a timely basis.
(Jose: Jose is from Miami, he
ended up fabricating his own hand controls. In the event they fail,
he may be charged with an accident, manslaughter and the like. Jose
is terrified that if his name is revealed his vocational
rehabilitation plan will be in jeopardy. He trusts me with his
information.)
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SOLUTIONS
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A radical change in Administration in Tallahassee is
overdue. Leadership must be of the type that insists that
"Stakeholder" meetings take place on a regular basis. Currently,
these meetings do not take place. (The last meeting was a year ago.)
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| A. |
A new
leadership which must include people with disabilities on all
levels. Creating a new culture where people with disabilities are
not only clients, but also service providers.
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| B. |
A new
leadership in Vocational Rehabilitation must foster a more friendly
and less hostile relationship between the client and counselor.
Currently, there are many counselors employed who act like it is
their mission to deny services such as tuition and books to college,
hand controls, vehicle modifications, etc. even though these
services are a part of VR plans.
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| C. |
We need new
leadership that will use all administrative and legal tools to
ensure that the Vocational Rehabilitation facilities are up to code
in accordance with state law, with particular emphasis on access to
bus stops, parking areas, elevators, and restrooms.
(Example: The Miami-Dade County
Cutler Ridge VR Offices does not have legal and adequate disabled
parking. When we reported this to the VR Ombudsman we were rebuffed
and told that the disabled parking is adequate and legal.)
We want a leadership in VR that can
proudly boast of its successful recruiting and hiring people with
disabilities. This will help VR to push other entities in the public
and private sector to follow their lead. This would lead to more
employment of people with disabilities throughout the labor market.
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| D. |
We want
a VR leadership that encourages people with disabilities to go on to
graduate school, as opposed to counseling them why this can't
happen, if the client expects VR to help.
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| E. |
We need a VR Leadership that takes over the
student loans that clients had to take out to get a college degree,
because some counselor said no to higher education to a bright
disabled person. We have such college graduates, out of work, paying
off student loans because VR continues to be a blocking force,
rather than a facilitating force. Many of these jobless people are
qualified to be employed as VR counselors.
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More Vocational Rehabilitation
Administration Goals
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| a. |
Develop and
make available clear concise set of procedures for each VR service,
ensuring transparency and consistency of services. Included should
be a clear and articulated policy of granting clients student loans
which are equivalent to state rates for college and university
students, and a clear articulated policy on post-graduate education,
and vocationally relevant adaptive equipment.
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| b. |
Require
more follow-ups with clients. Focus should be placed on providing
expedited auxiliary services including equipment repair.
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In closing, Florida has more people with disabilities
than any state in the nation. We want the best possible Vocational
Rehabilitation Program in the nation. |
Respectfully submitted,
Florida Paraplegic Association, Inc. |
