Sessions fall within five tracks:

• Policy: federal policies, regulations, and strategies to influence policy discussions
• Direct Support Services: high-quality care services to achieve quality outcomes
• Workforce: career development, training, and retention strategies
• Agency Operations: ​efficient operations, performance management, and strategic partnerships
• Innovation: non-traditional service models and emerging trends

Pre-Conference Sessions

(Requires main conference registration)

Preparing Your Agency for NEW Electronic Visit Verification Requirements ($125.00) (Agency Operations)
Sunday, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Laura Brackin, CEO, Brackin and Associates, LLC
• Jeff Case, Therap Services
• Doug Golub, President, MediSked
• John Graham, CEO & Software Architect, MITC
• Kathleen (Kitti) Gutierrez, Innovation Associate, Direct Care Innovations
• Sean Murray, Product Manager, MediSked

Electronic visit verification (EVV) is now going to play a significant role for providers of Medicaid waiver services – states are not only encouraged to use it, now new federal law REQUIRES states and providers to use EVV systems in their waiver systems or else incur penalties. The 21st Century Cures Act passed in 2016 was a large overhaul bill impacting the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), but a small section, Section 12006 of the legislation, was added to require states providing Medicaid waiver services to ensure that those services are being provided with real-time electronic verification. The new federal legislation is broad and leaves much of the implementation to be interpreted by the states which can translate to opportunities for providers, but also expensive, burdensome, and detrimental shifts for service provision. This three-hour deep dive on EVV makes sure providers are prepared for this shift happening now.

Providers Taking the Lead: Exploring Provider-led Integrated Care Approaches ($125.00) (Innovation)
Sunday, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Robert Baker, Vice President, Keystone Human Services
• George Klauser, Executive Director, Altair ACO/ Simply Connect/Lutheran Social Services
• Cindy Mahan, CEO, Friendship Community Care, Inc.
• Edward Matthews, CEO, ADAPT Community Network
• Shane Spotts, Anthem, Inc.
• Debbie Stehling, Regional Director, Friendship Community Care, Inc.

States are continuing to move toward integrated care within their Medicaid programs. Provider-led approaches are emerging as a trend with I/DD providers at the forefront, including these efforts:

• Keystone Human Services’ Adult Community Autism Program - A pioneer in the movement will share their experience managing a fully integrated, comprehensive system of care for individuals with autism.
• Altair ACO - The first social service-initiated Accountable Care Organization will share their efforts to advance a vision of a system that coordinates, evaluates, and plans financing for a wide range of services that impact health for individuals with I/DD. 
• Arkansas Organized Care Model - Born out of a provider-led legislative effort, hear about their path to advancing an approach that relies on provider-owned partnership organizations to integrate services and supports.
• New York CCO/HH Model – New York is working to bring together 750+ I/DD providers into Care Coordination Organizations / Health Homes (CCO/HHs) for team-based, holistic, integrated, and conflict-free coordination for over 100K individuals

Moving In, Moving Up and Moving On: Learning to Lead at Every Career Turn (ANCOR Foundation RLP Leadership Forum) ($125.00) (Workforce)
Sunday, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Don Tebbe

Managing your career and taking charge of your development as a leader is critical for long-term success. Also, successfully moving into and out of roles is the mark of a good leader. This beyond-the-textbook session will provide participants with empowering ideas drawn from research as well as over 1400 interviews with nonprofit executives and well over 100 organizations.

• What leaders actually do.
• Three cornerstones that you must master for career success.
• The five hidden dimensions of every leadership role, regardless of job level, and the building blocks in each.
• Moving in: Four things to set the stage for success in a new leadership role.
• Moving up: Three things you can do to grow and develop your leadership skills (especially if your nonprofit has limited or no training budget).
• Moving on: How to leave a role well and set your organization up for future success.

The ANCOR Foundation is committed to supporting the professional growth and development of the men and women who are dedicated to improving the quality of life of people with disabilities.

Breakout Sessions

Policies, Payment, Promotion: Expanding the Use of Technology in Minnesota (Policy)
Monday, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

• Barb Turner, Senior Director of Extermal Affairs, ARRM

Building an effective regulatory and reimbursement foundation at the state-level is both possible and necessary for expanding the use of technology in direct care. Despite a clear and present need for providers and states to expand the use of technology to offer independent living solutions for people with disabilities and to address a national DSP shortage, many states have struggled getting technology initiatives off the ground. Through proactive, and at times, unscripted action as well as strong collaborative relationships between providers and regulators, Minnesota has found a working formula. At the core of these efforts are pragmatic regulatory policies, incentivizing reimbursement models, and a recognition that overcoming the inertia of a 50+ year static service model takes a bit more than passing legislation. Hear how Minnesota’s waiver management and rate setting system has been designed to support and incentivize technology use.

Interests to Engagement: The Next Level of the CMS Rule (Policy)
Monday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Laura Brackin, CEO, Brackin and Associates, LLC
• Nancy Robertson, Consultant, Brackin & Associates, LLC

Individuals with a disability need to have meaningful days that ultimately add up to a meaningful life. The problem is that there are many challenges providers face in creating a meaningful day for a person, such as existing staffing ratios, lack of funding, transportation, coordination of groups, facilities/buildings, limited community-based options, and medical complexities or behavior issues that make community integration somewhat challenging. Many providers hope that some of the challenges will be addressed over the next few years as states transition into compliance with the CMS HCBS rule. However, there are things that providers can do NOW to develop meaningful days for individuals, despite the challenges. The take-away that attendees will receive from this session is greater understanding of how to address current challenges so that they can create meaningful days for individuals. Attendees will receive an easy to use tool that will help them go from "Interests to Engagement."

Leveraging I/DD Data to Maximize Opportunities (Policy)
Monday, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Amie Lulinski, Research and Development Coordinator, Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities
• Laura Vegas, Director, MCO Business Acumen, NASDDDS
• Katy Stafford-Cunningham, INARF

Whether through the National Core Indicators project, the Coleman Institute, or other I/DD data sources like the University of Minnesota Research and Training Center on Community Living, there is a wide variety of information available regarding I/DD services and supports across the country. This data can be an important tool both in your system advocacy efforts, as well as in your efforts to build and grow your organization. Join us to learn about these various data sources and how they are being used by providers, state associations, and state agency partners.

ICF Updates (Policy)
Tuesday, 8:30am – 9:30am

• Melissa Rice, Health Insurance Specialist, Division of Continuing Care Providers, Quality Safety and Oversight Group, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 

Join a discussion on latest updates and developments related to intermediate care facilities (ICFs).  Session will cover the latest trends nationwide, CMS activities, training opportunities, and class action lawsuits. 

Interdisciplinary Team Roles in a Comprehensive Mental Health Assessment (Direct Support Services)
Monday, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

• Robert Fletcher, Founder and CEO-Emeritus, NADD

It is important to understand the key components of a comprehensive mental health assessment to prevent under-diagnosis, over-diagnosis or misdiagnosis of an individual with IDD who exhibits challenging behaviors. The service coordinator, other team members, and the mental health clinician all have a role in the state of the art assessment and diagnostic practices necessary for an accurate mental health diagnosis. This session will discuss best assessment practices, how to manage a mental health assessment, and the roles of the service coordinator and interdisciplinary team.

The Roots Project. A model for serving complex MH/IDD (Direct Support Services)
Monday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Che Walker, Executive Clinical Officer, Partnerships in Community Living
• Destree Rudolph, Roots Project Clinical Supervisor, Partnerships in Community Living

Provider organizations in Oregon are faced with insufficient funding, tools, and expertise related to serving people with complex behavioral, mental health and IDD. Available tools include the Positive Behavioral Support model, however we have found this to fall short in instances of complex mental health needs. To address this, we have developed a support approach that intermingles classic support ideas with an educational service methodology. We believe that focused behavioral change occurs most successfully when people are supported and taught to manage their own internal stress response. We feel that people are capable of much more than environmental modification and restriction, and that the preferred approach is to educate and teach distress tolerance. Our intention is to help people to establish the tools they need to build a better life. The outcome is a more interconnected person, living the life they wish to live, in the least restrictive setting possible.

An Organizational Journey Toward Person-Centeredness (Direct Support Services)
Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Amanda Faulkner, Executive Director, Frontier Community Services
• Kim Champney, Consultant, Champney Consulting
• Lizette Stiehr, Executive Director, Alaska Association on Developmental Disabilities

As the system has become more complex, as the workforce has been stretched to meet needs, and as funding has plateaued, it’s increasingly common that person-centered means the team plans for and delivers services with the person in mind, but people themselves are not necessarily making the decision along the way. “You don’t know what you don’t know” is just one of the learning moments experienced by an executive director of an Alaskan service provider organization during an intentional, and at times painful, culture shift toward a more person-directed paradigm. In addition to sharing the many "learning moments" during the journey, this session provides a case study that uses John Kotter's 8-Step Process for Leading Change as a framework for this organization's change process. Participants will experience using Audience Response Technology as a way of engaging stakeholders in the conversation.

Naomie’s Story: Scenes from the new INTELLIGENT LIVES Documentary (Direct Support Services)
Tuesday, 1:30PM - 2:30PM

• Dan Habib, University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability

Approximately 6.5 million Americans are identified as having an intellectual disability, and most live segregated lives based on low expectations. Only 17% of students with intellectual disabilities are included in general education classrooms alongside their non-disabled peers, and as adults, just 15% are employed. Dan Habib will share the story of Naomie Monplaisir, 25, who attended a segregated high school and sheltered workshop in Providence, R.I. The trajectory of Naomie’s life changed in 2014, when the U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit against Rhode Island resulted in the nation’s 1^st statewide settlement to address the rights of people with disabilities to work in the broader community. Naomie’s story represents the national push to enable people with disabilities to obtain competitive integrated employment.

Inclusive Emergency Preparedness for ICFs (Direct Support Services)
Tuesday, 1:30PM - 2:30PM

• Marcie Roth, CEO, Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies

With the implementation of the CMS Emergency Preparedness Rule in November 2017, there has been renewed focus on ICF emergency preparedness practices and protocols.  This session will provide attendees with tools and resources to develop not just compliant emergency preparedness plans but to also think about inclusive plans.  Session will include a discussion of the larger issues associated with disability accessibility before, during, and after disasters; identify promising practices and strategies for meeting the CMS requirements to increase the safety of ICF residents, staff, and visitors; and learn about local and national resources to support ICFs to address the requirements.

Benefits Beyond a Paycheck (Workforce)
Monday, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

• Carrie Arnold, Chief Human Resources Officer, Sunshine Communities
• Deb Rasmusson, Chief Program Officer, Sunshine Communities

You’ve heard of tech companies that keep stocked refrigerators at work or allow pets in the office to attract and keep staff. But are these the benefits that really matter? At this session, find out what benefits are most desirable to employees, and hear first-hand how one nonprofit reduced employee turnover, by getting to understand their workforce better and  assessing what daily instability in the lives of it’s employees was really costing. You'll come away from this session learning more about the impact of economic class and daily instability on your organization’s workforce, and how to use this knowledge to support your employees, create a fantastic culture and improve the lives of those you support through innovative programs.

The Person-Centered Workplace: Empowering People, Changing Lives (Workforce)
Monday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Nikki Jones, Assistant Director of Employee Development and Engagement, St. Louis Arc
• Chris Devine, Director of Human Resources, St. Louis Arc
• Stephanie Scott, Director of Quality Enhancement, St. Louis Arc

As our field continues to face a staffing shortage, employee retention is at the forefront of conversations. One way to address this issue is to create a person-centered workplace culture for employees. For the St. Louis Arc, this process was initiated by accreditation and our strategic planning process. There were many questions: how do we brand our culture? How do we involve the people we support in recruiting, hiring, and retaining staff? How do we build a positive relationship with employees so they feel valued? This session will explore how the St. Louis Arc is working to transform its workplace culture. Through person-centered initiatives intentionally implemented by an organization, a culture can be changed and result in a positive experience for everyone.

• Leave with cost-effective ways to promote a person-centered experience
• Understand ways to include people you support
• Explore the utilization of data to track progress of initiatives and success​

Why Is Training for Front Line Supervisors So Important? (Workforce)
Monday, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Claire Benway, University of Minnesota ICI/RTC on Community Living
• Barb Kleist, University of Minnesota ICI/RTC on Community Living

Front Line Supervisors have complex and difficult jobs. They are supervisors of a workforce that is often under trained and has an extremely high turnover rate creating a revolving door of constant vacancies. As a result, supervisors have a group of new employees whom they are responsible to train. Additionally, supervisors often supervise people that they do not see on a regular basis and may only engage when there is a problem. Many supervisors are promoted because they were good at direct care. Often, they feel ill-prepared to be effective supervisors. Organizations struggle to develop and maintain effective training programs for supervisors, resulting in supervisors’ feeling they were promoted into a role with insufficient training and support. Research suggests that what supervisors learn often occurs through trial and error. Tools to assist organizations to better prepare, support, and value FLSs. A self-evaluation of their supervisor training program. FLS Training Resources.

Certificates of Achievement in Action – One Agency’s Experience (Workforce)
​Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Melissa Hecht, Product Manager, Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, Relias
• Precious Myers-Brown, Regional Director for DC/MD, St. John's Community Services
• Cherie Young, Staffing and Training Coordinator, St. John's Community Services

This time last year, ANCOR, along with our Platinum Partner Relias, introduced Certificates of Achievement as a cost-effective way for organizations to access online learning in three areas where members said they needed it most. Now, staff can receive certificates to show their learning as: a community inclusion specialist, a behavioral specialist and/or a human resources professional focused on I/DD. St. John’s Community Services integrated the Certificates of Achievement into their organization’s professional development program. Hear first-hand from members of the St. John’s team why they chose the certificates to complement their staff training, how they operationalize the idea and maintain momentum, and what outcomes (for staff, the organization and people supported) can be shown from the efforts.

Employment First Provider Transformation & Data Collection (Agency Operations)
Monday, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

• Ali Sayer, Vice President, Economic Systems Inc.
• Richard Davis, Policy Advisor, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP)
• Thomas Wilds, EFSLMP Subject Matter Expert, EconSys

Provider transformation and data collection are critical elements in Employment First systems-change. For organizations interested in diversifying their services to provide expanded community-based options for individuals with significant disabilities, this session is for you!  Come learn about investments of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) to provide community rehabilitation providers access to high-quality technical assistance, training and ongoing coaching from executives who understand the level of complexity involved and effective strategies for model conversion from facility-based work or day habilitation centers. The session will also include examples of simple, cost-effective web-based data collection tools from Alabama, Arkansas, and Tennessee utilized to improve outcomes through the Employment First State Leadership Mentoring Program (EFSLMP).

Relationships as an Outcome in Managed Care Programs (Agency Operations)
Monday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Patricia Nobbie, Disability Policy Engagement Director, Anthem, Inc.
• Donna Elbrecht, President/CEO, Easter Seals Arc of Northeast Indiana
• Kim Opsahl, Director of State Partnerships and Special Projects, ANCOR

Identifying outcomes for managed long-term services and supports is an on-going dialogue within the disability community. A key theme from these discussions is finding outcomes that incorporate both health and quality of life. Join us to explore the concept of relationships as an outcome that bridges health and quality of life, as well as an approach to developing effective supports. Specifically, we will:

• Discuss the role of relationships on health and quality of life;
• Explore approaches – like the LifeCourse Framework - that promote relationships as a central component in building effective supports;
• Consider the role of business acumen in promoting the value-add of relationships to payers and funders; and
• Share your perspectives on ways to effectively demonstrate development of relationships and measures that can assess their impact on health and quality of life.

The Power of Partnership: Collaboration Goes A Long Way (Agency Operations)
Monday, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Rachel Miller, Senior Project Manager, Client Services Foothold Technology
• Michele Meyer, Director of Quality Assurance and Compliance, Jewish Service for the Developmentally Disabled
• Alice Siegel, Senior Vice President, Programs and Services, The Arc of Bergen and Passaic Counties

Managing change can be stressful and difficult. Careful planning, collaboration, and combined vision can help make it a positive experience. Attend this session to hear the story of a group of 18 New Jersey agencies who banded together to create a cross-agency collaborative to tackle the shift to a Fee-For-Service model in their state. Based on lessons learned and a shared experience, presenters will share practical and sometimes funny tips on how the transition provided agencies with an opportunity to evaluate operations and improve collaboration among fellow service providers. Presenters will outline how they assembled the team, challenges they faced along the way, how partnership led to better procedures, and how the collaborative created a unified voice to advocate with state partners, and work with its technology partner to improve service delivery. Attendees will walk away with a roadmap for implementing stronger collaborations.

An Organizational Journey Toward Person-Centeredness (Agency Operations)
Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Amanda Faulkner, Executive Director, Frontier Community Services
• Kim Champney, Consultant, Champney Consulting
• Lizette Stiehr, Executive Director, Alaska Association on Developmental Disabilities

As the system has become more complex, as the workforce has been stretched to meet needs, and as funding has plateaued, it’s increasingly common that person-centered means the team plans for and delivers services with the person in mind, but people themselves are not necessarily making the decision along the way. “You don’t know what you don’t know” is just one of the learning moments experienced by an executive director of an Alaskan service provider organization during an intentional, and at times painful, culture shift toward a more person-directed paradigm. In addition to sharing the many "learning moments" during the journey, this session provides a case study that uses John Kotter's 8-Step Process for Leading Change as a framework for this organization's change process. Participants will experience using Audience Response Technology as a way of engaging stakeholders in the conversation.

Collaborating to Promote Competitive Integrated Employment: Research, Policy and Practice (Agency Operations)
Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Donna Martin, M.Ed. Executive Director Community Provider Network of Rhode Island (CPNRI)
• John Butterworth, Ph.D. Director of Employment Systems Change and Evaluation Institute for Community Inclusion
• Rie Kennedy-Lizotte  Director of Employment Policy NASDDDS

Panelists will discuss how federal and state partners work together to identify and promote policies, priorities, and investments in efforts to promote competitive, integrated employment for people with I/DD. They will discuss national trends in the employment of people with I/DD, and address research and practice in improving employment support services and implementing guidance from CMS and the WIOA. Panelists will also discuss state I/DD agency efforts around the country to include characteristics and examples of high-performing employment systems. Finally, they will lead a discussion on ways a national providers association can partner in collaboration with state entities to promote competitive, integrated employment in their communities.

Lessons from the Disability Business Acumen Resource Center Learning Collaborative (Agency Operations)
Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Erika Anderson, Senior Director of Disability Network Business Acumen, NASUAD
• Laura Vegas Director, MCO Business Acumen, NASDDDS
• Kim Opsahl, Director of State Partnerships and Special Projects, ANCOR

In the last year, the Disability Business Acumen Resource Center has facilitated a learning collaborative focused on increasing the capacity of ANCOR members and other disability community based organizations (CBOs) to develop and implement sustainable business practices, as well as to be build and implement integrated care approaches. Of the five State Learning Collaborative Teams, three – Missouri, New Hampshire, and New York – are focused on applying these lessons to CBOs serving individual with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Join us to learn about their experiences and, more importantly, how they can inform your organizations efforts to build relationships with integrated health care entities; develop and structure community-based networks; engage in strategic business planning to respond to performance-based payment methodologies; and to develop systems and processes to efficiently use resources and demonstrate value.

Dissecting Value to Discover Influence (Innovation)
Monday, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM 

• Pritpal S. Tamber, Co-Founder and CEO, Bridging Health & Community

Building on his keynote, Pritpal S. Tamber will look under value-based health care’s hood to surface the process and assumptions that have taken it from an idea into operational reality. In so doing, and in collaboration with participants, he’ll seek to shine a light on possible strategies and tactics for ANCOR’s community to consider in their work to bring a broader appreciation of their work. 

Alternative Housing/Person Centered Planning in Action (Innovation)
Monday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Joseph Mengoni, VP of Residential & Clinical Services, UCP Seguin of Greater Chicago
• Monica Pineda, Senior Loan Officer, MB Financial
• Josef Farkaschek, Public Works Crewmember, Village of North Riverside

Organizations are unable or unwilling to expand residential services to meet the growing demand due to financial instability and need to look for more creative ways. In addition, with the new CMS Waiver rules and programs needing to be more person centered and person controlled, homeownership will become the new service model of the future. Why can't people with disabilities own their own homes? Why doesn't supplemental income from Social Security qualify as earned income? These are some of the questions we were facing with trying to meet one individuals goal of owning his own home and once we found the right mortgage specialist all these obstacles were knocked down and his dream became a reality. In addition the nation is facing a shortage of DSP's and when individuals become part of their communities it's easier for natural supports to take over in place of DSP's.

International Services: Not for the Faint of Heart (Innovation)
Monday, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

• Charles Hooker, President and CEO, Keystone Human Services
• Ludmila Malcoci, PhD, Regional Director for KHSI, Central and Eastern Europe and Executive Director, Keystone Moldova
• Genevieve Fitzgibbon, Deputy Director, Keystone Human Services International

There are many challenges inherent in developing services internationally for people with disability. These crucial community supports need to be sustainable and funded for the lifetime of the people served. Coordination and collaboration between government, provider organizations, funders, and people with disabilities, is paramount. The issues of compliance with new laws and regulations tax the organization. In providing global leadership and advocacy in the world of intellectual disability, we all have the opportunity to help shape public policy, and to lead change through innovation and knowledge-sharing. Presenters will share experiences from Russia, India, Azerbaijan, and Moldova, in a discussion addressing:

• How we started and sustain our international efforts;
• Why and how organizations might want to contribute to the development of regulations/legislation favorable for the creation of an inclusive community;
• Lessons learned and how these can be utilized to build a better system of services and supports in the United States.

Collaborating to Promote Competitive Integrated Employment: Research, Policy and Practice (Innovation)
Tuesday, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM

• Donna Martin, M.Ed. Executive Director Community Provider Network of Rhode Island (CPNRI)
• John Butterworth, Ph.D. Director of Employment Systems Change and Evaluation Institute for Community Inclusion
• Rie Kennedy-Lizotte  Director of Employment Policy NASDDDS

Panelists will discuss how federal and state partners work together to identify and promote policies, priorities, and investments in efforts to promote competitive, integrated employment for people with I/DD. They will discuss national trends in the employment of people with I/DD, and address research and practice in improving employment support services and implementing guidance from CMS and the WIOA. Panelists will also discuss state I/DD agency efforts around the country to include characteristics and examples of high-performing employment systems. Finally, they will lead a discussion on ways a national providers association can partner in collaboration with state entities to promote competitive, integrated employment in their communities.

Using Data to Transform Lives: Developing a Population Health Profile (Innovation)
​Tuesday, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

• Patricia Lyons, Ph.D., LISW-S Executive Director, Center for Epidemiological Research on Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (CERIIDD)
• Lisa Mathis, Ph.D., Chief Operations Officer, Center for Epidemiological Research on Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (CERIIDD)
• Christine Touvelle, Assistant Director of Research, Center for Epidemiological Research on Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (CERIIDD)

The lack of epidemiological and actuarial knowledge on individuals with I/DD may contribute to poorer health outcomes and inadequate access to health care services (Kerr et al. 2003; Krahn et al. 2006). The Center for Epidemiological Research for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (CERIIDD) is an new innovative research organization developed from a state providers organization. CERIIDD’s primary focus is to analyze Medicaid and other data sets to gain a better understanding of the intersection of acute health care, behavioral health care, and long-term services and supports (LTSS). CERIIDD studies the social and environmental variables that result in disparities in access and outcomes for individuals with IDD. CERIIDD’s research results influence IDD public policy at the state and national level. Participants will engage in discussion of how CERIIDD collects and critically evaluates data unique to the I/DD population and offers solutions to inform individuals with I/DD, policy makers, payers, and providers.