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Fighting the Good Fight - Scott Lay
One of the state slogans for Oregon is: “We Love Dreamers”. For Scott Lay, dreaming about the day when Oregon would welcome and accommodate workers with disabilities was not enough and he has devoted his life to making that dream a reality. After breaking his neck in a diving accident in 1969 (narrowly escaping being sent to fight in Vietnam), Scott has made it his mission in life to facilitate the dreams of people with disabilities to work and live in the communities of their choosing.
In 1998-99, Scott was instrumental in Oregon becoming the first state in the nation to develop what is commonly known as the Medicaid Buy-In program (called the Employed Persons with Disabilities or EPD in Oregon). Scott acknowledged that people, like himself, with significant disabilities need Personal Attendant Services and health care coverage beyond what many private employer-based insurances would provide (if employers offered ANY health insurance) in order to work. The problem for many with disabilities was that earnings from employment would disqualify them from Medicaid eligibility- often the only option for people needing Personal Attendant Services.
As with most disability advocates, the personal is political. Scott had been active in college disability politics and after receiving both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree at Portland State University; he worked in a variety of state positions. He was appointed to the Governor’s Oregon Disability Commission and gained insight into state policy, recognizing that the system was designed as an impoverishment model- not one that promoted self-sufficiency. Scott set out to change the system and became one of the first in the country to recognize that being able to work and maintain Medicaid coverage was an essential first step towards ending the cycle of poverty. Scott recognized that while not a typical “asset building” program, access to health insurance and policies that promote employment provide the basis for individuals to move towards a more economically self-sufficient life- especially for people with disabilities. In 1992, Scott was named the Disabled Oregonian of the Year and because of his leadership in the helping develop the Ticket To Work and Work Improvement Act (TTWWIA), he was invited by the White House to witness the signing of the legislation at the FDR memorial.
In 1995, Scott was appointed to a State committee on Work Incentives that included advocates, policymakers and field staff. Their task was to design a program that would allow people with disabilities to work without loosing their Medicaid coverage. Scott established his own consulting firm called Engyma Enterprises and as a consultant to the state wrote more than 17 drafts of what eventually became the first Medicaid Buy-In program in the country. Later, as an employee of the state Disability Employment Policy Unit, Scott leveraged money from the Medicaid Infrastructure Grant to provide training to benefits planners, Oregon Advocacy Centers, eligibility workers, Centers for Independent Living and others on ways for people with disabilities to access a variety of work incentives- including the Buy-In.
While the job titles have changed throughout his career, the one constant for Scott has been his commitment as a disability advocate. Today, Scott serves on the Leadership Council of the Medicaid Infrastructure Grant II for Competitive Employment as the representative for people with disabilities. He has helped guide Oregon state Individual Development Account policy to become more inclusive and beneficial for people with disabilities and has insisted that asset building programs be incorporated as another tool in the work incentive toolkit. Oregonians with disabilities are quite fortunate to have Scott Lay fighting for economic empowerment, indeed the entire disability community is lucky to have such a brilliant pioneer leading the way towards a more equitable future.