Act to Boost IDEA Funding and Reduce Paperwork

Take action to support ASHA’s requests to Congress to increase funding for the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and to address the paperwork burden of school-based providers. Every year, Congress must agree on federal funding levels for the following fiscal year. Right now, funding decisions are being made for IDEA for fiscal year (FY) 2020. In letters to the House Appropriations Committee and Senate Appropriations Committee, ASHA is urging Congress to increase funding for Part B State Grants to $13.97 billion (a total that includes an increase to $441.8 million for IDEA’s Part B Section 619, the program for 3- to 5-year olds) and increase funding to $531 million for IDEA Part C, for infants and toddlers. ASHA’s request is consistent with the specific IDEA funding requests from the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Education taskforce. ASHA is also asking Congress to include report language to address the administrative burden of redundant paperwork for school-based providers who use IDEA funds and bill Medicaid. ASHA members have expressed concerns about being overwhelmed with paperwork, a concern echoed in an investigation by the U.S. General Accountability Office (GAO). A 2016 GAO investigation found that up to 35% of a practitioner’s time is spent on paperwork and administrative compliance instead of working with children. Your voice can help! Take action now by contacting your members of Congress and asking them to increase funding for ...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Tags: Advocacy News Schools Slider Speech-Language Pathology audiology Early Intervention hearing loss IDEA paperwork Source Type: blogs