State Bill 1017 Threatens the Education of Oklahoma Students with Disabilities

“The true measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members.” This powerful quote is most often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi. I think of it often when I hear about injustices or slights regarding people with disabilities. I want to believe a strong, healthy, fair government will protect those most need it. I want to trust that those in power also have hearts and believe in basic fairness and kindness. My naive trust is shattered when I hear about a proposed bill in our state that will hurt those students most in need.

State Bill 1017

State Bill 1017, proposed by State Senator Dusty Deevers (Republican-District 32), has recently drawn the attention of families with children with special needs. Here is the bill analysis.

SB 1017 provides that the state Medicaid program may cover educationally-necessary school-based services but prohibits the Health Care Authority from school-based services more broadly than the measure’s definition of such services or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The measure defines school-based services as specially designed instruction and services that are educationally necessary for the eligible student to receive a free and appropriate public education, but does not include medically necessary services. The measure also prohibits the Authority from covering school-based health care that is not educationally necessary.

(Prepared by Kalen Taylor)

The interpretation is that the parents are financially and logistically responsible for any therapy deemed unnecessary for educational purposes. The line between medically necessary and educationally necessary is blurry and often overlaps. Who is to define that, and why must it be arbitrarily separated?

IDEA – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

The life of a parent with a child with special needs is often complicated. If you’ve ever had a child who has an IEP (Individualized Education Plan), you know that being an advocate for your child can be an exhausting endeavor. Sometimes, it is obvious what they need, and it seems unbelievable that it must be a struggle to get those services. Other times, the needs are so overwhelming that you depend on the professionals to guide you through the special education maze. The school is supposed to be part of your team and help your child attain their maximum potential.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law that provides free, appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services for those children. Those related services include but are not limited to, speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, counseling, and assistive devices.

For most families, these services guaranteed by IDEA are essential to the emotional, mental, and physical development of their children with disabilities. The services are not a luxury but a lifeline. People with disabilities are entitled to education and any therapy that helps them achieve their goals of living life to their maximum potential.

What could possibly go wrong?

If parents become financially and logistically responsible for necessary therapies for students, many students will not receive them. A few barriers to access include finances, transportation, and access to therapies when parents are not working.

I spoke with Lauren Pool, who has a daughter currently attending a local public school and receiving several types of therapies.

She said, “I’d like to point out that these rights have already been fought for, and it’s an unusual kind of cruel to start chipping away at those rights.

It is an extreme privilege to believe that the services outlined in the proposed bill are the sole responsibility of parents and are unrelated to ensuring a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. Parents like myself will have to reconsider whether or not their child can safely attend school, children in need will go without crucial services designed to set them up for individualized success, families will be faced with new financial and logistical burdens, and overall, an entire community will fail.

With ongoing discussions of a Department of Education dismantling at the federal level, it’s more important than ever that we maintain rights already fought for and won in order to legally protect the people IDEA is meant to serve. It is a civil obligation for lawmakers to ensure that this bill does not make it past the committees it is currently assigned to.”

Therapists provide vital services

Lauren also pointed out that the therapists are trained in their specific areas and are vital to the education process:

“How will her teachers properly set up her desk? Her chair? How will they know how to set up the restroom in an accessible and SAFE way? That’s not their responsibility. Their responsibility is to teach her, and to adapt education to her specific needs in the least restrictive environment.

Physical therapy comes in, assesses, and says, ‘Here is Lincoln’s ability. Here is what we need to do to adapt this environment to meet Lincoln’s individual needs. She needs this desk, this chair. Here is how you will safely transfer her from her chair, into her walker, onto the toilet, etc.’

Then occupational therapy comes in, and they say, “Hey, this pencil and this visual field don’t look right because I am medically educated, and my job is to point these things out. Let’s fix this with this pencil and this black background. In the cafeteria, she needs to be using this fork, or else an adult needs to feed her because she can’t use that fork because of her disability. So she gets a fork that works, like the other kids get forks that work for them.’

Then speech comes in and says, ‘Wow, her language and verbal skills are great. We don’t need to be involved in this IEP. We have other kids to service.’

A teacher cannot be responsible for just knowing these things, and frankly nor can parents. We rely on professionals specifically trained for their areas.”

The ARC of Oklahoma

The ARC of Oklahoma is a non-profit advocacy group that works with and for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. The action alert they sent out states, “Senate Bill 1017, by Senator Dusty Deevers (R-Elgin), would remove critical school-based services from students with disabilities by blocking Medicaid from covering essential supports like speech therapy, occupational therapy, counseling, and nursing care.

This bill forces families to find and pay for these services outside of school, after hours—making it harder for kids to get the help they need to learn and thrive.

Even worse, the bill’s author, Sen. Dusty Deevers, has questioned whether too many children are on IEPs despite no evidence to support this claim. Every child deserves the support they need to succeed, and SB 1017 directly threatens that right.”

The ARC of Oklahoma urges concerned citizens to contact their State Senators.

Future of State Bill 1017

This is only a proposed bill that may not even make it out of committee. It will be revised and look different if it makes it to a vote. However, it is essential to stay informed and make your voice heard. Contact your State Senator and express your support for students with special needs. To build a strong state, we must include everyone. Oklahoma’s education system is not doing well; we’re currently ranked 49th in the country. Rather than spending our money on Bibles (which can be accessed free online), let’s implement the lessons of kindness found within that great book. Change is necessary. Let’s work to become a society that treats its most vulnerable citizens with respect, care, and inclusion.

How to find your state senator: Contacts | Oklahoma Senate

Editor’s Note: On Feb. 5, The Arc of Oklahoma posted this update: “On Wednesday, Senator Deevers said in a news release that he was pulling the SB 1017 after hearing from parents, speech therapists and education advocates.

While he pulled the bill, he is requesting an audit to make sure school-based services are serving children with disabilities efficiently and effectively.”