Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council

08/21/2026

🌩️ Emergency Preparedness and Disability: Building Resilience During Extreme Weather

The ADA National Network is hosting a free virtual webinar exploring the unique challenges people with disabilities may face during extreme weather events and power disruptions and community-driven approaches to strengthening and resilience.

The session will cover lessons from and the 2021 , as well as efforts by Upstream Access to expand backup power access for disabled Oregonians.

📅 Thursday, August 27, 2026
🕝 2:30–4:00 p.m. ET
💻 Virtual
🎟️ Free | Registration required

Presenters include Angela Frederick, Associate Professor of Sociology at the UTEP - The University of Texas at El Paso, and Erin Taylor, co-founder of AIM4A.

Register to learn more about emergency preparedness, power resilience, and disability inclusion: https://adata.org/event/1005/

Welcome to our new site! Some pages may still have layout quirks from the migration. Original site available at https://archive.adata.org

08/19/2026

Stay informed about upcoming MassHealth policy changes:

MassHealth is hosting two stakeholder webinars to provide information about upcoming federal policy changes and what they may mean for MassHealth members and partners.

The webinars will cover:
- Which MassHealth members may be impacted
-The timeline for notifying affected members
-Upcoming changes to eligibility for certain immigrants
-New work and education requirements
-More frequent eligibility renewals
-MassHealth's statewide strategy to support members and partners through these changes

Both webinars cover the same information.
📅 Tuesday, August 25 | 12:00 p.m. https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gbwJ6Of7RQmcEDWD8BFz5A #/registration

📅 Thursday, September 10 | 2:00 p.m. https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cYfx-H-PRJeGdjUIcRCcNg #/registration

Learn more about upcoming changes and how you can help spread the word: https://www.mass.gov/federal-changes-affecting-masshealth-medicaid-members

The Trump Administration is making changes to Medicaid programs across the country. Learn how they affect MassHealth members.

08/17/2026

Earlier this month, MDDC's Executive Director, Craig Hall, attended the Eastern branch of the The Council of State Governments' Executive Committee as a member and Budget Chairperson.

Founded in 1933, the Council of State Governments is the nation’s only nonpartisan organization serving all three branches of state elected and appointed officials. The mission of CSG is to champion excellence in . Members are committed to connecting, informing, inspiring and empowering public servants in all three branches of state government to put the best ideas and solutions into practice.

“The Council of State Governments is a three-branch organization that provides direct benefit to Massachusetts. In May, MDDC and The Council of State Governments hosted an in-person at the Massachusetts State House with virtual participation. As budget chairperson It is important to be prudent and oversee the finances and spending or our organization,” said Hall.

08/13/2026

Stay informed about upcoming MassHealth policy changes:

MassHealth is hosting two stakeholder webinars to provide information about upcoming federal policy changes and what they may mean for MassHealth members and partners.

The webinars will cover:
- Which MassHealth members may be impacted
-The timeline for notifying affected members
-Upcoming changes to eligibility for certain immigrants
-New work and education requirements
-More frequent eligibility renewals
-MassHealth's statewide strategy to support members and partners through these changes

Both webinars cover the same information.
📅 Tuesday, August 25 | 12:00 p.m. (Register Here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gbwJ6Of7RQmcEDWD8BFz5A #/registration )
📅 Thursday, September 10 | 2:00 p.m. (Register Here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cYfx-H-PRJeGdjUIcRCcNg #/registration )

Learn more about upcoming changes and how you can help spread the word: https://lnkd.in/gKnwB5SG

08/11/2026

Happening this Thursday!

Autism and Wandering Event in Springfield on Aug 13, hosted by Representative Puppolo. Open to caregivers, family, and self-advocates, this community event will feature a resource fair and valuable discussions on fostering safer environments for individuals with autism.

Check out this information for parents and caregivers of children with Autism with tips and resources to help keep your child safe:
https://www.mass.gov/autismwatersafety

08/10/2026

🗳️ Help shape the future of accessible voting in Massachusetts!

Secretary of the Commonwealth Bill Galvin is hosting five Equipment Vendor Fairs for people with disabilities, voters, and local election officials.

These events are an opportunity to test accessible voting equipment, ask questions, and provide feedback as Massachusetts begins the process of upgrading its existing accessible voting equipment.

Drop in anytime during the three-hour events:

📍 Middleton Town Hall
Monday, August 10 | 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

📍 Northampton Senior Center
Tuesday, August 11 | 1–4 p.m.

📍 Shaw's Center, Brockton
Wednesday, August 12 | 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

📍 Perkins School for the Blind, Watertown
Thursday, August 13 | 10 a.m.–1 p.m.

📍 Blackstone River Greenway Visitor Center, Worcester
Friday, August 14 | 10 a.m.–1 p.m.

Your feedback can help inform the state's next generation of accessible voting equipment.

Email from Massachusetts Office on Disability Test out accessible voting equipment View as Webpage   Provide your feedback: Accessible voting vendor fairs The Office of the Secretary of the Commonweal

08/10/2026

Staff members Christine Joyal and Patricia Jackson attended professional development training through the Boston chapter of the Association of Government Accountants.

Christine and Patricia received scholarships to attend. The Professional Development Training 2026 ( ) included topics such as: Culture of Accountability, Investing in Your Workforce, Identifying Fraud, and Decision Making Under Pressure.

Pictured with Christine and Patricia is Craig Hall, Executive Director, who is a past President of the AGA Boston Chapter and member of the AGA National Finance Committee. “This was a special professional opportunity for Christine and Patricia. Their commitment to improving and expanding their fiscal skill sets has a direct benefit to how the Council operates.”

08/06/2026

Just a reminder that our August Public Policy Committee meeting is in less than a week! We are looking forward to some great discussions on the latest in the realm of state and federal happenings.

MDDC's Public Policy Committee Meeting is quickly approaching on August 11th, and we invite our community members, advocates, and partners to join us for this important conversation on disability policy and advocacy.

At this month’s meeting, we will be joined by special guests sharing timely updates on key issues impacting the disability community:

📌 Massachusetts Advocates for Children will provide an update on recent changes at the U.S. Department of Education and what they may mean for students with disabilities and their families.

📌 Brianna Zimmerman from the Disability Law Center Inc. will provide a Voting Rights update, highlighting important developments related to voter access and disability rights.

The Public Policy Committee provides an opportunity for advocates, self-advocates, families, and community partners to stay informed, discuss policy priorities, and help shape MDDC’s work.

We hope you’ll join us and be part of this important conversation!
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/edqh6yh/lp/dfbb009b-8ec1-46aa-bdfc-ab2ebd824e65

07/30/2026

There's still time to share your feedback on the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council's 2027–2031 State Plan, but the public comment period ends August 2.

Over the past year, we listened to hundreds of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, family members, advocates, and community members. Their input helped shape four priority goals for MDDC's work over the next five years.

Before we finalize the plan, we want to hear from you: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/S528YGC

If you haven't completed the survey yet, please take a few minutes to review the proposed goals and objectives and share your thoughts.

Need help completing the survey? We're here to assist.

📧 [email protected]
📞 (617) 770-7676 ext. 105

Thank you for helping shape the future of MDDC's work and strengthening opportunities for people with developmental disabilities across Massachusetts.

Your voice is important!

The Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council (MDDC) is doing a survey to learn what is important for people in the developmental disabilities (DD) community living in Massachusetts.

We want to hear from people with developmental disabilities, family members, professionals, and others.
We will include information from the survey in our new Five-Year State Plan. This plan will guide our future work and how we support people with developmental disabilities (DD) and their families in Massachusetts.

Take the survey: surveymonkey.com/r/CGSXQKF

07/30/2026

Planning for the future is an ongoing process—and having the right tools and resources can help individuals and families navigate important life transitions with confidence.

Our partners at the National Collaborative for Supporting Families (UMKC Institute for Human Development) invite you to join the next Supporting Families Best Practices Series webinar:
Focusing on Future Planning for Families with a Member with I/DD
📅 Thursday, August 13, 2026
🕐 2:00–3:30 p.m. ET

This virtual session will explore practical approaches to future planning beyond legal and financial considerations, including:
-Building networks of support
-Planning for caregiving and decision-making
-Exploring financial planning strategies
-Identifying resources that help individuals and families prepare for the future

The webinar is designed for family members, self-advocates, professionals, and community partners. Register today and learn more about planning for a future built around each person's goals and values:

The Supporting Families Best Practice Series will introduce and elevate best practices related to supporting families. The series will be held quarterly in collaboration with the National Community of Practice for Supporting Families. Each session will feature a panel of individuals or entities who....