Senator CRANSTON. H.R. 8395 provides that section 4 funds be appropriated, "as necessary," for spinal cord injuries. Would you support specific authorization of funds rather than that language? Mr. WHITTEN. Yes. In fact, we are recommending specific appropriations. Senator CRANSTON. Can you recommend the precise figures at this point? Mr. WHITTEN. I think we have suggested tentatively that there probably ought to be 3 or 4 million the first year. The situation can be sized up at that time. Senator CRANSTON. You may want to submit the answer to this question in writing. What I want to ask is: Do you agree with the present definitions of "handicapped individuals," and "severely handicapped individuals,” in H.R. 8395, under title I and section 306 of title III? Mr. WHITTEN. Yes; I do. Remember, they have been very carefully worked out. Every word has some meaning. I will be glad to confer with you at any time you like for more detailed discussion of why certain words are used in preference to certain others. Senator CRANSTON. If you will submit for the record a written detailed answer. Mr. WHITTEN. Yes. (The information subsequently supplied follows:) CORNELIUS L. WILLIAMS 500 Morgan's Arcade Huntington, West Virginia 25701 Director E. B. WHITTEN Assistant Director Senator Alan Cranston United States Senate 2102 New Senate Office Building Dear Senator Cranston: With this letter, I am sending you a copy of a memorandum We appreciate very much the thoroughness with which you With best wishes, I am Sincerely yours, Mitter E. B. Whitten Executive Director EBW: ak BOARD OF DIRECTORS Mae Allan • T. S. Allegrezza⚫ E. Russell Baxter · Richard D. Burk Stanley Crow • Bill Elkins • August W. Gehrke ⚫ Sidney S. Goodman Vernon E. Hawkins Sidney Houben⚫ Jack H. Hutchison⚫ Sidney Kumin⚫ Richard A. LaPierre, W. Leggett⚫ Daniel C. McAlees⚫ H. Paul Messmer Louis Y. Nau · Yoji Ozaki · Sol Richman · Brockman Schumacher · W. Newton Smith • Jerry L. Starkweather • Evelyne R. Villines "DEDICATED TO THE REHABILITATION OF HANDICAPPED PEOPLE" THE DEFINITIONS OF THE HANDICAPPED INDIVIDUAL AND Prepared for Subcommittee on the Handicapped of This memorandum is a response to a request by the Subcommittee on the Handicapped of the Senate Committee on Labor and Public Welfare for additional comments relative to the definitions of the "handicapped individual" and the "severely handicapped individual" in HR 8395. The Handicapped Individual (Title I, Page 26) Under the present law, the handicapped individual means "any individual who is under a physical or mental disability which constitutes a substantial handicap to employment, but is of such a nature that vocational rehabilitation services may reasonably be expected to render him fit to engage in a gainful occupation". This definition has resulted in a three-prong approach to determining eligibility for service. (1) The individual must have a physical or mental impairment. (2) The impairment must be a substantial vocational handicap. (3) There must be a reasonable expectation that the person can be rehabilitated. While the state agency cannot abrogate its responsibility for determining who is eligible and who is not, it depends heavily on an examining physician or physicians to advise on this score, and the medical report form used by the agency has a section in which the physician is asked to make a prognosis of employability. The House bill, HR 8395, revised the definition of the handicapped individual. In this bill, (Page 26, Line 19) the handicapped individual means "any individual who (1) has a physical or mental disability which - 2 constitutes a handicap to employment, and, (2) can reasonably be expected The significant change is to benefit from rehabilitation services". substituting the words "benefit from" for the words "may reasonably be expected to render him fit to engage in a gainful occupation." As explained in the House report, this change is expected to result in acceptance for vocational rehabilitation services more severely handicapped individuals who can "benefit from" vocational rehabilitation services, but who might not have been served under the somewhat more restrictive definition. The report makes clear, however, that "benefit from" means that his "handicap to employment is diminished" by the provision of such services. This appears to be about as far as one could go in liberalizing the definition of the handicapped individual and maintain the goal of employment following services. There does not seem to be any significance to the fact that HR 8395 omits the word "substantial" before the word "handicap" in the first part of the definition, since it is certainly not the purpose of the House to encourage acceptance of individuals without substantial handicaps. Neither does there appear to be any significance to omitting the word "vocational" before the words "rehabilitation services" in the last line of the definition, since the only services listed in the title are vocational rehabilitation services. If the Senate Committee feels that the definition is weakened by the omission of these two words, we shall not oppose their inclusion. Extended Evaluation The language in the sentence beginning on Page 26, Line 22, has been in the law since 1965. At that time, an effort was made to include in 3 the legislation a section authorizing a program for the severely handicapped, such as is found in Title III of HR 8395. There was strong support for this effort in the rehabilitation constituency and in the committees of Congress, but the Administration opposed it. The result was a compromise of a kind which permits vocational rehabilitation services to be provided for specified periods during which it is ascertained whether it reasonably may be expected that such individuals will be rendered fit to engage in a gainful occupation through the provision of such services. This section has been useful in securing entry to the system for some severely handicapped individuals who would not have been served. It is encouraging that about one-half of such individuals have been found to have vocational rehabilitation potential and have been moved into preparation for employment. Most of the remainder have benefited, but not vocationally. If Title III is included in HR 8395, the value of this extended evaluation section is doubtful, since it would be possible to begin services for those now being served under this section either under Title I, Vocational Rehabilitation Services, or Title III, Comprehensive Services for the Severely Handicapped. Leaving this language in the bill, however, will not do any harm, and we are not suggesting its removal. In summary, the definition of the handicapped individual in Title I of HR 8395 is a satisfactory one, broad enough to encourage liberal acceptance practices, yet retaining the current emphasis on preparation for employment. The Severely Handicapped Individual Title III authorizes services to severely handicapped individuals for |