ANCOR American Network of Community Options and Resources

06/03/2026

05/22/2026

ANCOR is deeply saddened by the passing of former liaison and consultant, Diane McComb. Diane’s career in service to people with disabilities began when she was 24-years-old, as the Executive Director of the Caroline Center, in Caroline County, Maryland. Throughout her several decades in the field, she championed the rights of people with disabilities to be included in all aspects of life and community. Diane didn’t stop there; she continued to look for ways to make a difference, and eventually found herself working closely with ANCOR.

During her many years working alongside staff at ANCOR, Diane shaped our State Association Executives Forum—a major component of the ANCOR network that provides state association executives a community, and helps elevate their voice.

Even in her well-earned retirement, Diane continued to support ANCOR’s mission by helping to lead our grant work with Puerto Rico, aimed at strengthening the provider network in the U.S. Territory.

“I can’t express enough what an incredible human being [Diane] is,” wrote ANCOR CEO Barbara Merrill, “she personifies person-centeredness. So much so that Diane was inducted into the ANCOR Foundation’s Legacy Leaders Circle in 2015, and in honor of her work, ANCOR’s Association Executive Star Award was named the Diane McComb Association Executive Star Award. “Diane’s dedication to improving the lives of people with disabilities has inspired so many of us,” Barbara wrote in remembrance, “grounding us, supporting us, and making us laugh when times are tough.”

ANCOR COO & Foundation Director, Gabrielle Sedor, recalled Diane’s welcoming nature and eagerness to do the work. “When I was a young professional, Diane welcomed me with warm and open arms. Being able to work and collaborate with her on various projects has been a highlight of my career.”

Longtime ANCOR member and former Board President, Robert Budd, said, “Diane‘s passion and loving way will continue to inspire our field, our agency, and me personally, for generations to come.”

Former State Association Executive and longtime ANCOR member, Ann Hardiman, recalled, “Diane was the most dedicated person I know. Devoted really. To her work and people with disabilities, to her family, friends and colleagues. The powerful and positive light of Diane will stay with us, but we will miss her so much in our world.”

Read more: https://www.ancor.org/connections/in-memoriam-ancor-remembers-diane-mccomb/

05/19/2026

Today in The Hill, ANCOR CEO Barbara Merrill, Easterseals President and CEO Kendra Davenport, and United Cerebral Palsy Interim President and CEO Diane Wilush put a spotlight on the caregiver workforce crisis and why policymakers must invest in community-based services.

Click below to read our op-ed ⬇️

This workforce and the home and community-based care system that supports them is in crisis.

04/30/2026

ANCOR is proud to support the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Access Act reintroduced yesterday by Rep. Debbie Dingell and Jan Schakowsky. This bill will make much-needed investments into the Medicaid HCBS system, while addressing systemic barriers that have kept community-based supports out of reach for hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities.

Learn more ⬇️

Today, U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell introduced the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Access Act and the Long-Term Care Workforce Support Act, two separate pieces of legislation to strengthen home care access and the caregiving workforce.  Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Access...

04/29/2026

04/27/2026

Thank you Rep. Debbie Dingell, Congresswoman Lateefah Simon, and U.S. Rep Brittany Pettersen for honoring the work of direct support professionals (DSPs) by introducing a resolution designating April as .

With the direct support workforce in crisis, it is essential to uplift the crucial role of DSPs and their work to empower people with disabilities to live life with dignity and self-determination.

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Democratic Women's Caucus Caregiving Task Force co-chairs Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06), Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12), and Brittany Pettersen (D-CO-07) introduced a resolution establishing April as Care Workers Recognition Month to honor the roles and contributions of care wo...

04/23/2026

“They didn’t just denigrate family caregivers, they denigrated the work of the professionals in our fields by suggesting that all home- and community-based services could just be done by family caregivers, and it should all be done for free," said ANCOR CEO Barbara Merrill in this NBC News article by Mike Hixenbaugh.

Read more about the disability community's response to Secretary Kennedy's remarks about Medicaid community-based services:

Advocates for disabled people and those who care for them said they were insulted by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s allegations that the programs are "rife with fraud."

04/17/2026

“During Care Workers Recognition Month, Secretary Kennedy repeated statements from this administration that Medicaid HCBS programs are simply paying for services that should be provided for free by family members—a viewpoint that woefully diminishes the crucial work of millions of direct care workers and implies that instead family members should remain out of the workforce to care for a loved one or relative," said ANCOR CEO Barbara Merrill in response to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s remarks in front of the House Ways and Means Committee yesterday.

Click below to read her full statement.

The undervaluing of HCBS demeans the very real, complex, and difficult work that caregivers—whether paid or unpaid—provide.

04/15/2026

ANCOR is proud to support the SSI Savings and Efficiency Act introduced today by Representative Sharice Davids and Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon. This bill will provide a common-sense fix to enable people with disabilities and older adults to access the support they need to remain in their homes.

Learn more ⬇️

04/03/2026

“We are deeply troubled by continued threats to critical home- and community-based services (HCBS), especially the White House’s recommendation to reduce HHS funding and eliminate the Administration for Community Living. Amplifying our concerns are recent statements from administration officials questioning the importance of federal funding for these crucial services."

Cutting more funding from Medicaid—after decades of underinvestment and on top of significant cuts included in H.R. 1—creates great uncertainty for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), their families, and the community providers who support them.