,,iii  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session 
,s4 ,,res4 #ggf  ,,in ,,the ,,senate    
,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states  ,november 
#ag1 #bjbj,mr4 ,cardin 7for himself1    
,ms4 ,collins1 ,mr4 ,king1 ,mr4 ,brown1 
,mr4 ,markey1 ,mr4 ,murphy1 ,mr4        
,menendez1 ,ms4 ,warren1 ,ms4           
,klobuchar1 ,mr4 ,blumenthal1 ,ms4      
,hassan1 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,mr4 ,van ,hollen1
 ,mr4 ,casey1 ,ms4 ,baldwin1 ,mrs4      
,murray1 ,ms4 ,rosen1 ,mr4 ,kaine1 and  
,ms4 ,smith7 submitted the following    
resolution2 which was considered and    
agreed to  ,,resolution  ,designating   
the week beginning ,september #ac1      
#bjbj1 as ,national ,direct ,support    
,professionals ,recognition ,week4      
,whereas direct support professionals1  
including direct care workers1 personal 
assistants1 personal attendants1 in-home
 support workers1 and paraprofessionals1
 are key to providing publicly funded1  
long-term support and services for      
millions of individuals with            
disabilities2 ,whereas1 during the      

,coronavirus ,disease #bjai 7referred to
 in this preamble as ,,covid-#ai7       
pandemic1 many direct support           
professionals continue to arrive for    
work every day in order to ensure the   
health and safety of individuals with   
disabilities2 ,whereas direct support   
professionals provide essential services
 that ensure all individuals with       
disabilities are-- 7#a7 included as a   
valued part of the communities in which 
those individuals live2  7#b7 supported 
at home1 at work1 and in the communities
 of the ,united ,states2 and  7#c7      
empowered to live with the dignity that 
all people of the ,united ,states       
deserve2 ,whereas1 by fostering         
connections between individuals with    
disabilities and their families1        
friends1 and communities1 direct support
 professionals ensure that individuals  
with disabilities thrive1 thereby       
avoiding more costly institutional care2
 ,whereas direct support professionals  
build close1 respectful1 and trusting   

relationships with individuals with     
disabilities and provide a broad range  
of personalized support to those        
individuals1 including-- 7#a7 helping   
individuals make person-centered        
choices2  7#b7 assisting with personal  
care1 meal preparation1 medication      
management1 and other aspects of daily  
living2  7#c7 assisting individuals in  
accessing the community and securing    
competitive1 integrated employment2     
7#d7 providing transportation to school1
 work1 religious1 and recreational      
activities2  7#e7 helping with general  
daily affairs1 such as assisting with   
financial matters1 medical appointments1
 and personal interests2  7#f7 assisting
 individuals in the transition from     
isolated or congregate settings or      
services to living in the communities of
 their choice2 and  7#g7 helping to keep
 individuals with disabilities safe and 
healthy during the ,,covid-#ai pandemic1
 including by volunteering to quarantine
 with individuals whom they care for to 

reduce spread of the disease2 ,whereas  
there is a documented critical and      
increasing shortage of direct support   
professionals throughout the ,united    
,states2 ,whereas the majority of direct
 support professionals are employed in  
home and community-based settings1 and  
that trend is expected to increase over 
the next decade2 ,whereas many direct   
support professionals-- 7#a7 are the    
primary financial providers for their   
families2  7#b7 are hardworking1        
taxpaying citizens who provide a        
critical service in the ,united ,states2
 and  7#c7 continue to earn low wages1  
receive inadequate benefits1 and have   
limited opportunities for advancement1  
resulting in high turnover and vacancy  
rates that adversely affect the quality 
of support1 safety1 and health of       
individuals with disabilities2 and      
,whereas the ,supreme ,court of the     
,united ,states1 in ,olmstead v4 ,l4,c41
 #ebg ,u4,s4 #eha 7#aiii7-- 7#a7        
recognized the importance of the        

deinstitutionalization of1 and          
community-based services for1           
individuals with disabilities2 and  7#b7
 held that1 under the ,americans with   
,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4 
#abaja et seq471 a ,state must provide  
community-based services to individuals 
with intellectual and developmental     
disabilities if-- 7,a7 the              
community-based services are            
appropriate2  7,b7 the affected         
individual does not oppose receiving the
 community-based services2 and  7,c7 the
 community-based services can be        
reasonably accommodated after the       
community has taken into account the    
resources available to the ,state and   
the needs of other individuals with     
disabilities in the ,state3 ,now1       
therefore1 be it  ,that the ,senate--   
7#a7 designates the week beginning      
,september #ac1 #bjbj1 as ,national     
,direct ,support ,professionals         
,recognition ,week2  7#b7 recognizes the
 dedication and vital role of direct    

support professionals in enhancing the  
lives of individuals with disabilities  
of all ages2  7#c7 appreciates the      
contribution of direct support          
professionals in supporting individuals 
with disabilities and their families in 
the ,united ,states2  7#d7 commends     
direct support professionals for being  
integral to the provision of long-term  
support and services for individuals    
with disabilities2  7#e7 encourages the 
,bureau of ,labor ,statistics of the    
,department of ,labor to collect data   
specific to direct support              
professionals2 and  7#f7 finds that the 
successful implementation of public     
policies affecting individuals with     
disabilities in the ,united ,states can 
depend on the dedication of direct      
support professionals4