Arc must hire more non-disabled employees or risk losing funding

Uses thrift store to find gainful employment for disabled workers

A new federal rule will force the Cajun Village thrift store in Boutte to hire non-disabled employees if it wishes to continue to receive funding from Medicaid.

According to Arc of St. Charles Parish Executive Director Victoria Bryant, this change has already forced other Arc programs in Louisiana to shut their doors.

Bryant said that roughly 80 percent of the Arc’s funding comes from Medicaid waivers. Currently, the Arc is reimbursed for having disabled Medicaid recipients work at the thrift store.  The mission of the Arc is to find gainful employment for disabled children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They do this by hiring disabled employees at their thrift store and using those employees for paper shredding and reconditioning Mardi Gras beads.

The new rules stipulate that organizations billing for Medicaid waivers must have the disabled person in a facility that employs both disabled workers and higher proportion of non-disabled people.

Bryant explained that the Arc, in an effort to give each of those under its care the “productive day with meaningful work” mandated by the federal government, often divides a project among multiple disabled people that normally could be done by a single person. As a result, there’s little room for additional help.

Further exacerbating the woes of the Arc are its lease payments. Currently, the Arc leases the building on 13432 Highway 90 in Boutte for $4,700 per month. Under the terms of the lease, maintenance and property taxes must be paid by the Arc, in addition to the monthly rental amount.

Bryant said the Arc just received a property tax bill for $7,300, nearly double what it paid last year.

In preparation for the new rules, Bryant said the Arc needs the support of the parish to help place disabled people in work positions throughout the community, and alleviate the strain on the thrift store.

Bryant said she feared that losing the thrift store would present a major setback for those under her care, particularly for higher-functioning employees.

“We’ve seen some growth in individuals that may have had some behavioral challenges that, because they have such a structured organized day [through Cajun Village], you don’t see [those issues] anymore,” Bryant said. “It’s meaningful to them. That’s why we’re continuing to fight to say ‘hey these programs are so needed.’”