Weekly Edition 7.8.25

This Week's Coverage

This week brought significant policy shifts and breakthroughs for the disability community. President Trump signed his tax and spending package into law with steep Medicaid cuts that could impact millions, while New Jersey advocates secured temporary state funding relief but fear looming federal reductions of $3.6 billion annually. Meanwhile, researchers published promising findings on schema therapy for individuals with subthreshold autistic traits and depression, offering new treatment options for this underserved population, and more.

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The Big Idea

This week’s featured story: a closer look at developments making waves in the I/DD community

💰The Fourth of July just got more expensive for taxpayers. President Trump signed his sweeping tax and spending package into law during a patriotic White House ceremony on Friday, fulfilling what he called the "largest tax cut in the history of our country." The legislation passed by razor-thin margins in both chambers—51-50 in the Senate with Vice President Vance casting the tie-breaking vote, and 218-214 in the House just one day before Trump's July Fourth deadline.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the mammoth package will increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion over the next decade while an estimated 11.8 million people could lose health insurance coverage. The bill extends Trump's 2017 tax cuts, temporarily slashes taxes on tips and overtime pay, and includes hundreds of billions for military spending and mass deportation plans. To help pay for these initiatives, the legislation makes steep cuts to Medicaid, SNAP food assistance, and clean energy funding.

Recent polling data reveals the bill faces significant public opposition, with a Quinnipiac University poll showing 53% of registered voters oppose the legislation while only 27% support it. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries delivered a record-breaking nine-hour floor speech opposing what he called Trump's "one big, ugly bill," arguing it won't meaningfully make life more affordable for everyday Americans.

The signing ceremony featured military flyovers and jubilant Republican lawmakers, but experts point to the legislation's potential long-term fiscal impact on families who rely on federal safety net programs. Just one day after passage, Republicans are already discussing potential changes to the law, with Vice President Vance suggesting Trump is "always willing to have a conversation in order to make things even better." If you would like to read more, check out the original article.

Moments That Matter

Celebrating the everyday victories, breakthrough achievements, and inspiring individuals

💃A dance documentary proves movement tells the story words cannot. A powerful new documentary called "Room to Move," executive produced by Amy Schumer, follows choreographer Jenn Freeman as she navigates a later-in-life autism diagnosis while creating her first solo evening-length work. According to the film review, Freeman had always possessed extraordinary dance talents and an ever-present need to move, but struggled to exist harmoniously in a world that seemed to assault her senses at every turn. The documentary, which premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival, takes viewers on Freeman's personal journey as she reflects on childhood memories to understand her autism spectrum disorder diagnosis. Director Alexander Hammer captures Freeman's collaboration with Tony Award-winning choreographer Sonya Tayeh as she creates "Is It Thursday Yet?" - a work that confronts her diagnosis head-on. Critics praise the film for its beauty, honesty, and authenticity in spotlighting the neurodivergent brain in motion, noting that it will raise awareness about autism while helping to de-stigmatize the condition. If you would like to read more, check out the original article.

Across The Nation

From Capitol Hill to community centers: the national updates shaping our collective future

🥼A therapy breakthrough for those caught between worlds. Researchers successfully applied schema therapy to help a 39-year-old woman with subthreshold autistic traits and recurrent depression, demonstrating that specialized interventions can work for individuals who fall between diagnostic categories. According to the detailed case study, the client initially resisted terms like "autistic traits" but gradually accepted her characteristics through specific discussions about sensory sensitivity, communication challenges, and camouflaging behaviors she used to fit into social situations. The three-phase treatment included psychoeducation about autism spectrum differences, imagery rescripting to address childhood trauma from an abusive environment, and behavioral pattern-breaking interventions to foster healthier relationships. Experts note that the intervention remained effective at an eight-month follow-up, suggesting that promoting self-understanding of autistic traits combined with experiential techniques like imagery work can be particularly valuable for individuals with subthreshold symptoms who often struggle with complex psychosocial difficulties but may not qualify for traditional autism services. If you would like to read more, check out the original article.

💵New Jersey catches a break while Washington threatens a catastrophe.
New Jersey disability advocates are breathing easier after securing state funding protections, but their relief may be short-lived as federal Medicaid cuts loom on the horizon. According to state officials, the proposed federal cuts could slash $3.6 billion annually from New Jersey's Medicaid program, potentially forcing 350,000 residents to lose healthcare coverage. The Congressional Budget Office projects that Republican plans to cap federal Medicaid spending could save up to $900 billion nationally over the next decade, but experts warn there's no way to achieve these savings without dramatically reducing services for vulnerable populations. New Jersey's Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman emphasized that programs like NJ FamilyCare aren't just safety nets—they're lifelines that enable children to receive medical care and allow older adults and people with disabilities to live independently in their communities. If you would like to read more, check out the original article.

Community Catalyst

Local Innovation Worth Spreading: See how local changes are creating ripples of progress nationwide

👨‍🌾A tractor accident sparked a movement that's changing thousands of lives. When Indiana farmer Bill Gundrum became paraplegic in a pickup truck accident in 1979, Dr. Bill Field at Purdue University saw an opportunity to solve a problem that had personal meaning to him. According to Field, who grew up working for a dairy farmer with polio, he and his team retrofitted Gundrum's tractor with a school bus lift, allowing the farmer to return to work with renewed purpose and pride. That moment of innovation led to the creation of the Breaking New Ground Resource Center at Purdue, which eventually became the foundation for the National AgrAbility Project when Congress included funding in the 1990 Farm Bill. The program now serves farmers across 22 states, recognizing that agriculture has one of the highest disabling injury rates of any industry. Research shows that 13,600 farmers have been helped through the program, which provides assistive technology and support to get disabled farmers back to work, and the initiative was recently recognized on Forbes' first-ever Accessibility 100 list. If you would like to read more, check out the original article.