ROYERSFORD PA – Although currently in what’s called an “early drafting phase,” within months state 146th District Rep. Joe Ciresi said he expects to introduce new legislation to help disabled individuals. It proposes to raise Pennsylvania’s lifetime cap on their costs of using assistive technology.
Ciresi’s announcement followed a Wednesday (March 13, 2024) tour of a high-tech, specially equipped West Pottsgrove home. The residence reportedly features devices that can be activated by its occupants’ voices alone, uses small robots for some tasks, and offers plenty of space to easily maneuver wheelchairs through doors and hallways.
Such specialized assistance can be “cost-prohibitive,” Ciresi acknowledged, and noted that state law presently includes “an individual lifetime cap of $10,000 for assistive technology purchases.” The amount is “simply not enough money to help someone live independently,” Ciresi contends, and he believes the cap should be adjusted.
The need to broaden the use of assistive technology, and its inclusion in so-called SMART (self-monitoring, analysis, and reporting technology) homes, is in part driven by a “critical” shortage of home care workers, Ciresi added.
With fewer caregivers available, he said, “we need to change the current law to make assistive living technology more affordable for Pennsylvanians with disabilities, so they can live on their own.” Either “through legislation or changes to administrative directives, we are looking to raise the lifetime cap for assistive technology,” Ciresi said.
KenCrest Services’ position
The home, at 631 E. Vine St., is owned and operated by KenCrest Services. The organization reports it is among the largest providers of community-based human services to disabled individuals in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Delaware. KenCrest said Wednesday it sought to go beyond Ciresi’s attempt to amend the law, and instead called for the cap be “removed.”
The limit, KenCrest charged in a media release, restricts the ability of disabled individuals to live independently; participate in social activities, education, and employment; “and reach their full potential.” Removing the cap “is not just about fairness, it is about economic empowerment of individuals with disabilities,” it stated.
Reportedly joining Ciresi on the tour were several other officials: local state Reps. Joe Webster, Paul Friel, and Donna Scheuren; Philadelphia Rep. Tarik Khan; local state Sen. Katie Muth; and Steve Miller, president of the West Pottsgrove Township Board of Commissioners. The KenCrest release said it “welcomes” Ciresi, Scheuren and Muth “to facilitate change” of the legislation.
Photo in collaboration with Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash+,
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