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Less than half of the 2.25 million adults in the US who live with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) were part of government programs that helped people receive assistance, such as Medicaid and Medicare.
To ensure healthcare providers can connect people to much-needed services, join UT Health San Antonio’s webinar, “From Healthcare to Policy—Exploring Medicaid and Medicare Access for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD),” at 2 p.m. Central on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026.
Webinar host Dr. Amelie Ramirez, leader of Salud America! and the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio, will join experts from the National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF), a representative from Genentech, and organizations working to improve quality of life for individuals with I/DD, their families, and caregivers.
Together they will explore how to navigate the changing climate of government-assisted healthcare, build literacy and competency around Medicaid and Medicare for I/DD populations, and improve access to care through policy and system changes.
This webinar is sponsored by the National Hispanic Health Foundation and Genentech.
Learn about the Speakers for this Webinar on Care for I/DD Adults
Here are the panelists for the webinar.
Panelist presentations and discussion will be moderated by Dr. Amelie Ramirez.
Amelie G. Ramirez, DrPH (moderator), an internationally recognized researcher in health promotion and behavioral change, is director of Salud America! and leader of the Institute for Health Promotion Research in the Department of Population Health Sciences at UT Health San Antonio. She has spent over 30 years directing research on human and organizational communication to reduce chronic disease and cancer among all people, including cancer risk factors, clinical trial recruitment, tobacco prevention, and obesity prevention. She also is associate director of cancer outreach and engagement at the NCI-designated Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio.
Elena Rios, MD, MSPH, MACP, is the founder and president of the National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF) and is on the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, Better Medicare Alliance, Natural Resources Defense Council, and others.
More panelists to be announced soon!
Behind the Webinar Series on I/DD
“From Healthcare to Policy—Exploring Medicaid and Medicare Access for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD),” is part one in a two-part series of webinars on I/DD and Medicaid/Medicare access.
Sponsored by the National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF) and Genentech, this pair of webinars are being produced in response to the health insurance crisis because of recent changes to government-assisted health care access.
The changes, which include significant cuts to programs, increased hurdles to program participation and renewal, and there are more deterrents for expansion of eligibility, are slated to cut the health care coverage of 14 million Americans.
Many of these people are Latinos and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The second webinar in this series, “How to Support Caregivers and Families of Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD),” will focus on caregivers and families struggling to navigate the changes to Medicaid and Medicare enrollment for I/DD adults.
That webinar is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, at 6 p.m. Central time.
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