COVER 2023 Impact Report October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023 Pg. 2 Our Work 51,492 individual’s voting rights were protected through DRM’s ADA assessments. 7,750 Michigan Department of Corrections prisoners were impacted by DRM investigations and policy initiatives. 4,404 calls to DRM Information and Referral advocates. 5,582 Social media followers. 2,910 individuals were served by the Covid-19 Vaccination team. 28 monitoring visits were conducted in state psychiatric hospitals (virtually or in-person). Pg. 3 and 4 Our Stories * Due to DRM advocacy and collaboration with national partners, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court established a national legal precedent allowing students with disabilities to gain redress for discrimination without going through unnecessary and cumbersome Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) administrative procedures. The DRM Perez case takes its rightful place among the most momentous cases in DRM’s history. It is now settled law across the United States, impacting all students who have claims for damages, which IDEA cannot award. * A client called DRM because he was interested in receiving support from Michigan Rehabilitation Services (MRS) for college tuition. The client desires to work as a forensic analyst. Some miscommunication occurred between MRS and the school, which resulted in significant delay of the development of his Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE). The DRM advocate was able to work with MRS to resolve the miscommunication and the client's IPE was developed. MRS agreed to pay for the client's college tuition. * DRM was contacted by a client who communicated through an interpreter and was having difficulty receiving dialysis treatment because there wasn't an interpreter available for the entire time. A DRM attorney advocated in partnership with the guardian and client's social worker and was able to ensure the dialysis center had an interpreter assigned to the client on his treatment days. * DRM learned a client was not receiving Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) from MRS. The MRS counselor was planning to close the client’s case because they could not find a mutually agreeable time to meet. A DRM advocate contacted the MRS counselor and discussed the need for flexibility within MRS, so families and students have access to MRS services. The client and MRS were able to schedule a mutually agreed upon time. The case prompted DRM to address this concern with MRS management, ensuring counselors are available and flexible when meeting with families. * A 63-year-old woman with orthopedic disabilities and a traumatic brain injury came to DRM on three separate occasions for issues related to a $60,000 Social Security disability overpayment. She worked just above the substantial gainful activity (SGA) threshold at Walmart as a greeter. The DRM advocate was able to apply work subsidy information from 2019 to reduce the overpayment. However, Social Security lost the information, and reached out to DRM to re-obtain the subsidy form a couple of years later. The client received a notice that she still owed the overpayment, and DRM investigated and learned that client's waiver request from 2019 had not been fully processed. The DRM advocate continued to negotiate with Social Security, and the client finally received written determination that her overpayment was fully eliminated. * DRM facilitated hundreds of home-based vaccinations through the Covid-19 Vaccine Advocacy team. Some of the recipients included: o A 73-year-old man with cerebral palsy, his 75-year-old caregiver with a heart condition, and the caregiver’s 70-year-old wife with diabetes. o A 77-year-old woman with lymphedema, fibromyalgia, and arthritis who could not get out of her public housing unit. o An 81-year-old woman with end stage COPD and her 60-year-old companion with arthritis. o A 90-year-old man with orthopedic disabilities and his 86-year-old wife with an autoimmune disorder. * A 65-year-old man with orthopedic disabilities contacted DRM with an issue obtaining a reasonable accommodation allowing a ramp to be built on his home. DRM provided technical assistance on requesting reasonable accommodation and made third party contact with the landlord. The DRM advocate was able to obtain written permission for the client to build the ramp. Pg. 5 TOGETHER WE CAN DO SO MUCH MORE SUPPORT us through cash donations. Support for DRM comes in part from the generosity of your donations. LIKE us on Facebook to stay up to date with our latest news. SIGN UP. Don’t miss our monthly e-newsletter. Email rhuddleston@drmich.org to sign up. SHARE our story. Tell others about the services DRM can offer. DRM is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. Pg. 6 9 PROGRAMS OPERATED BY DISABILITY RIGHTS MICHIGAN The Protection and Advocacy for: 1. Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (PADD) 2. Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) 3. Individual Rights (PAIR) 4. The Client Assistance Program (CAP) 5. Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) 6. Voting Accessibility (PAVA) 7. Assistive Technology (PAAT) 8. Beneficiaries with Representative Payees (PABRP) 9. Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury (PATBI) Grant expenditures FY2023   Percent PADD $989,333 15.0% PAIMI $972,139 14.7% PAIR/GLADA $527,213 8.0% CAP $330,823 5.0% PAAT $180,685 2.7% PABSS $222,845 3.38% PAVA $162,003 2.5% Rep Payee $1,001,381 15.2% PATBI $152,712 2.3% State Grant $194,400 2.9% COVID Grants $1,811,973 27.5% Private Grants & Contracts $0 0.0% Donations & Miscellaneous $47,347 0.7%   $6,592,854 100.0%             Expenses 2023     Program Services $5,777,228 90%  Management & General $674,442 10%    $6,451,670   Pg.7 BACK PAGE 4095 Legacy Parkway Lansing, MI 48911 517.487.1755 ? 800.288.5923 (Voice) 517.374.4687 (TTY) Fax 517.487.0827 www.drmich.org Find us on Facebook and Instagram. 2023 Board of Directors Paul Palmer Thomas H. Landry President Immediate Past President Lansing Highland Brian Calley Amanda Bouwman 1st Vice President Adrian Portland Teddy Dorsette III Malkia Newman Detroit 2nd Vice President Pontiac Davin Hemmila Negaunee Hansen Clarke Treasurer Marie Jackson Detroit Southfield Daniel Bartz Non-voting Members Secretary Vincent Pinti Traverse City Ann Arbor Jane Shank Interlochen Disability Rights Michigan is mandated by federal and state law to protect the legal rights of individuals with disabilities in Michigan. DRM receives part of its funding from the Administration for Community Living, the Center for Mental Health Services-Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Rehabilitation Services Administration, and the Social Security Administration. This publication is made possible by support from these federal funders. The contents are solely the responsibility of DRM and do not necessarily represent the official views of the federal agencies listed above. The Annual Report is funded by the federal appropriations and grants, 94%; State of Michigan appropriations and grants, 5%; Other, 1%.