The wonderful people at the ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia, Inc. (ECNV) have a Travel Training program for people with disabilities who want to learn to travel safely and independently using public transportation in the Washington Metropolitan area.

Through the multi-day program that is comprehensive and individualized, the individual will learn a variety of travel skills that will facilitate them to ride their local transportation independently. The travel trainers will work with the individual to learn transit routes to anywhere they want to go.

Call the ECNV Travel Trainers at 703-525-3268 to start the process.

The ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia, Inc. (ECNV) is a community- based resource and advocacy center managed by and for people with disabilities. ECNV promotes the independent living philosophy and equal access for all people with disabilities. ECNV’s website is http://www.ecnv.org/.

Metro is reminding riders that priority seats located near the center doors of every rail car are meant for people with disabilities and older adults.As part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), public transit authorities are required to make priority seating available for people with disabilities and older adults.

While the ADA requires Metro to provide priority seating, it does not allow Metro to enforce it. Therefore customers are asked to be courteous to fellow passengers, pay attention to their surroundings, and keep priority seats available for people who need them. Metro also is encouraging customers who need a seat to be proactive and ask for one.

For more information about accessibility in the Metro system, visit http://www.wmata.com/accessibility or call 202-962-1100 (TTY 202-962-2033).

Access to affordable health care through the Medicaid program is one of the great benefits afforded to most recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI). In many states, full Medicaid coverage is often equal to, or even better than, many private health insurance plans, allowing SSI beneficiaries and other Medicaid recipients to effectively manage their illness or disability.

However, many Medicaid recipients don’t realize that their health insurance coverage may not provide a full set of benefits should they require care while out of state. For example in some states Medicaid only covers out-of -state emergency room visits to stabilize emergency conditions. Should a beneficiary need to be admitted to a hospital in another state or if he must receive essential, regular psychiatric care or medications from an out-of-state provider, some states will not pay for the services through Medicaid. In these situations, a caregiver or other family member is often required to sign an agreement to pay for the services before the person with special needs can receive care.

Since Medicaid is administered as a joint program between the state and federal governments, each individual state has its own rules regarding out-of-state Medicaid coverage. If a loved one with special needs is planning to take an out-of-state trip, or if you live near your state border and travel between states for work or recreation, it makes sense to find out your states out-of-state Medicaid rules. By investing the time now you could save thousands of dollars in medical bills down the road.