A new coalition of disability organizations from across Indiana is banding together to push lawmakers and state agencies to protect the services that help people live on their own terms. The Indiana Disability Alliance, which first met in April, says it will speak with one unified, statewide voice on budgets, rulemaking and civil rights protections. Leaders are especially worried about home- and community-based services and Medicaid-funded supports that people with disabilities rely on every day.
As reported by WFYI, the alliance brings together eight statewide groups: Autism Society of Indiana; Down Syndrome Indiana; FUSE; Independence Indiana (an association of Indiana centers for independent living); Indiana Family to Family (INF2F); the Indiana Statewide Independent Living Council (INSILC); Self-Advocates of Indiana; and The Arc of Indiana. The Arc's CEO, Kim Dodson, told WFYI the idea came out of conversations among groups that serve people across the state and that they quickly realized they shared the same long-term worries about supports.
Why the alliance formed
The timing is not an accident. The group is organizing amid a broader legal fight over federal disability protections. Advocacy groups have warned that the multistate case Texas v. Kennedy could weaken Section 504 and the Olmstead integration mandate, a concern detailed by Justice in Aging.
What Section 504 covers
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 bars discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity that receives federal funding. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently updated its regulations to clarify and strengthen how those protections work in practice. The federal Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights says the rule is intended to improve access to health and human services and to address everything from accessible medical equipment to community-based supports, according to HHS.
Alliance priorities and next steps
Alliance leaders are zeroing in on potential Medicaid and Medicare cuts as an immediate threat, since home- and community-based services are tightly linked to those funding streams. In response, the coalition plans to ramp up outreach to state lawmakers and federal officials. Its next meeting is scheduled for June 2, according to WFYI.
Legal stakes and recent moves
Advocates say the lawsuit could make it harder to enforce the right to live in the community and to secure services that help people avoid institutional settings. Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita voluntarily dismissed the state's claims in Texas v. Kennedy in early May, saying federal actions had addressed key concerns and that his office would keep an eye on future rulemaking, as reported by WBIW.
For now, the Indiana Disability Alliance is trying to turn what started as a defensive stance into a more proactive strategy: meeting with lawmakers, tracking rule changes and coordinating public education to protect services for Hoosiers with disabilities. The group says the public should expect more updates after the June meeting as budget and rule decisions move through both state and federal channels.
