504 Democratic Club: Questionnaires (Candidate for Congress Gary L. Ackerman's response)

Candidate Name: Gary L. Ackerman

Campaign Manager: Jedd Moskowitz

Phone: 718-428-1513

Fax: 718-428-3412

Campaign Name: Ackerman for Congress

Campaign Address: P.O. Box 95, Fresh Meadows, N.Y. 11365

Contact Person: Jedd Moskowitz

Phone: 718-428-1513

Fax: 718-428-3412

Email: ackermanforcongress@comcast.net

Congressional District #: NY-5th

Please describe any experience with disability you have had in your life or career.

Due to medical circumstances, I have in the past spent weeks at a time in a wheelchair, and months at a time dependent on a walking cane.
Is your campaign headquarters accessible to persons with disabilities? If you are an incumbent, is your district office accessible to persons with disabilities? How will you incorporate people with disabilities into your campaign? Are you willing to hire and use flex-time and job-sharing if necessary?

My district office and campaign office are both accessible to the disabled. I welcome the disabled, like any other person, to work on my campaign to the greatest extent that they are able, certainly including flex-time arrangments.
What do you think of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act? What will you do to find a solution to the problem of high rates of unemployment for people with disabilities and the removal of disincentives to joining the workforce?

I voted in favor of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act and I believe Congress must take additional action to eliminate all instances where the decision to work leaves people worse off financially, or in terms of their health benefits, due to the loss of government benefits.
In 2002, the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) passed in Congress. What would you do to resolve problem areas preventing smooth transitions to new voting systems by 2006-such as accessible voting machines, ensuring that states receive the needed funds, etc.? What is your position the HAVA's requirement that by 2006 each polling place have at least one accessible voting machine?

I was a proud cosponsor of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) and was pleased to work for its passage in 2002. Congress needs to fully fund the mandates contained in HAVA, and I strongly support the goal of having at each polling place at least one voting machine that is accessible to the disabled.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act turned 29 this past year, yet funding remains below mandated levels in New York State, as in many other states. What will you do to correct this problem, and strengthen the services provided students with disabilities, so that in fact, "no child is left behind?"

Congress needs to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Like the "Leave No Child Behind Act," the promise contained in IDEA needs to be fully incorporated into the budget, and then fully funded through annual appropriations, something I have always worked to achieve while in Congress.
A bill called the ADA Notification Act has been kicking around both houses of the U.S. Congress for the past few years. It calls for amending Title III of the ADA requiring that prior to filing lawsuits, people with disabilities provide business owners with 90 days advance notice of ADA violations in writing--detailing the location of inaccessible facilities, dates when access was attempted, and facts relating to their attempt to gain access. What are your thoughts on this issue?

I have always opposed the ADA Notification Act. It is both unneccessary and creates an incentive to avoid voluntary compliance with the ADA.
Recently, there is uneven availability of Medicaid-funded attendant services in the U.S. There are "good" states (such as New York) which offer decent programs, and "bad" states (such as Florida) which offer little service. The proposed Medicaid Community Attendant Services & Supports Act (MiCASSA) would establish a national program of attendant services and supports. This means that current recipients of services will not unjustly have their hours cut, thus permitting the freedom to move to another state to live, work, and/or study. A companion piece of legislation, Money Follows the Individual, would end the bias toward institutional care by ensuring that funding for services continues when an individual leaves the nursing home and is reintegrated into the community. Do you support the passage of MiCASSA? Do you support the concept of Money Follows the Individual?

I would support the Medicare Community Attendent Services and Support Act and Money Follows the Person legislation if the legislation ensured that existing services and benefit-levels for New York would not be jeopardized. The problem of national disparities is a serious one, and Congress must act to raise the "floor" while leaving the "ceiling" unmolested. However, I will not support a "lowest common denominator" solution that will disadvantage New Yorkers in order to benefit Americans in other states.
Most health insurance plans in America treat mental disorders in an unequal fashion when compared to physical disorders. The typical health insurance plan in America authorizes unlimited hospitalization for physical disorders while limiting hospitalization for mental disorders to 30 days per calendar year. The typical insurance plan in America authorizes a broad array of outpatient services for physical insurance, but limits outpatient mental health services to 20 visits each year. What would you do to remedy this problem?

Mental health parity has always been a priority for me, and I am a cosponsor and strong supporter of H.R. 1402, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act. The bill would require group health plans to offer mental-health benefits equal to those offered for medical and surgical benefits.
Do you favor removing the Federal Government's restrictions and substantially increasing funding on stem cell research?

I strongly support removing the artificial limits on federally supported stem cell research and significantly increasing federal stem cell research funding. I was proud to vote to overide President Bush's veto of H.R. 810, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement act, legislation I have voted for and enthusiastically cosponsored.
Persons with disabilities have historically been under-represented within the Democratic Party leadership. According to the 2000 census, persons with disabilities comprised 20.6% of all residents in New York State and 23.1% of population 18 years and older. Previously, we were told that only those groups included in the Voting Rights Act were included in the goals and timetables for delegate selection. Yet the lesbian and gay communities were included for the first time at the 2000 convention and again at the 2004 convention. Would you support a campaign to set a goal that 10% of the total New York State Delegation to the 2008 Democratic National Convention be comprised of persons with disabilities?

Having 10 percent of the New York State delegates to the 2008 Democratic National Convention is a very worthy goal.

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