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National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR)

NIDDR* is the lead U.S. federal agency supporting disability research. Located within the Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, NIDDR develops and implements long range plans for rehabilitation research, coordinates the work of all federal agencies supporting or conducting such research, and disseminates research results to businesses, professionals, and people with disabilities.¹⁰

The U.S. Congress has assigned NIDRR considerable responsibilities under the ADA. Specifically, 15 grantees receive funds from NIDDR to provide information, training, and technical assistance to businesses and agencies with duties and responsibilities under ADA. In addition to 10 regional Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers, two National Peer Training Projects provide education about the ADA. While these ADA technical assistance activities include information on psychiatric disabilities, in general, they have had little impact on consumers and employers. Recognizing that more technical assistance is necessary, NIDRR recently provided funds for a resource center on psychiatric disabilities organized and coordinated by the Washington Business Group on Health (WBGH), a non-profit Washington based national health policy organization which represents numerous major American corporations and public systems in all segments of U.S. business and government, and one of the leading NGOs focusing on the impact of depression in the workplace.¹¹

*Historically, psychiatric disabilities have not been the prime focus of NIDRR's program; its research portfolio spans all disabilities. In 1992, approximately 5.6% of its annual budget went to psychiatric disabilities. However, recently NIDRR has increased its commitment to psychiatric disabilities. NIDRR, along with the Center for Mental Health Services, funds two rehabilitation and training centers that focus on severe and chronic mental disorders: Boston University's Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Thresholds National Research and Training Center in Chicago, Illinois. Both of these rehabilitation and training centers have employment and mental illness among their focuses.

Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS)¹²

CMHS is the federal government's leading administrator of funds devoted specifically to mental health services. The largest portion of its budget funds mental health block grants, i.e. the federal support of community mental health and social service programs. With its focus on community services and consumer participation, CMHS has the potential to be a leading provider of services and technical assistance regarding employment, the ADA and psychiatric disabilities. Though employment issues have not been a top priority for CMHS, it does sponsor several programs and activities focused on employment. Among these, the Community Support Program (CSP), is perhaps most significant in terms of consumer advocacy and generating awareness of mental health issues.

The community support program

CPS has concentrated primarily on people with severe psychiatric disabilities, who are not institutionalized but living and working in communities. It is a leader in federal support for the psychiatric consumer movement. For example, CSP funds two national consumer self-help centers: Project Share in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the National Empowerment Center in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Each center conducts technical assistance activities related to employment and reasonable accommodations specific to ADA compliance. For example, the National Empowerment Center conducted a national teleconference with consumers and consumer organizations in approximately 30 States to educate them about the ADA and to discuss how to ask for reasonable accommodations.