ACL's National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) is announcing a new funding opportunity for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.

The expansion of public access requirements, as listed in this plan, will be incorporated into a new ACL Public Access Policy. The new policy will be released by December 31, 2024, and implemented by December 31, 2025. Until the new policy is in place, ACL will continue to follow the current Public Access Plan.

The ACL-funded Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network, the nation’s first federally funded technical assistance center for those who serve grandparents and other kin caregivers and the children they raise, has announced an opportunity for states, territories, and/or large counties to apply to work with the nation’s leading experts on kinship families.

AmeriCorps and ACL have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to facilitate development of collaborative activities to help modernize the way public and private nonprofit organizations utilize volunteers — especially older adults and people with disabilities.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently released updated guidance requiring federal agencies to improve their digital accessibility for people with disabilities. Nearly half of the most popular federal government websites are not fully accessible, which prevents access to critical services and information for millions of Americans.

Every March, ACL recognizes its Senior Nutrition Program and the services it has provided to millions of older Americans since 1972. We celebrate accomplishments at the national and local levels, share information about nutrition’s impact on health and independence, and highlight critical topics in senior nutrition.

The Link Center’s Policy Academy will assist as many as five state, territory, or tribal teams in creating resources and standard operating strategies that support an inclusive, accessible 988/Lifeline and crisis response system. The Academy will train teams to develop critical in-state, cross-systems strategies that support children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), brain injury (BI), and other cognitive and/or communication disabilities or differences who need 988 or other crisis response services.

ACL’s disability network, people with disabilities, and advocates have until January 29, 2024, to submit comments on the FDA Workshop to Enhance Clinical Study Diversity, which included a session focused on inclusion of people with disabilities (with a focus on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities).

At the White House event, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that the department, through CMS, is providing additional tools that will help improve access for millions who receive Medicaid HCBS. CMS issued new guidance focused on building and maintaining worker registries so more individuals receiving Medicaid-covered services can receive care in a setting of their choice.

On November 20, a second round of ordering opened, allowing each household to place a second order to receive four more free tests. Households that have not yet placed an order can place two orders now, to receive a total of eight tests.