18 Aug 2026 Former Congressman Molinaro: It’s Time to Think Differently—and Fix America’s Disability System

We are delighted to welcome former Congressman Marc Molinaro to Able Americans’ Campaign to Fix the Disability System. In the commentary below, Rep. Molinaro explains why he’s joined our efforts.

For millions of Americans with disabilities and their families, the hardest part of daily life is often not the disability itself. It is the system built around it.

Rep. Marc Molinaro

It is a system of complicated applications, outdated rules, disconnected agencies and benefits that too often disappear when someone takes a job, moves across a county or state line, changes schools or reaches a new stage of life. Families must tell the same story and submit the same paperwork again and again—only to be sent to another office, another program or another waiting list.

We can do better. That’s why I am proud to join forces with Able Americans’ Campaign to Fix the Disability System and its growing coalition of people with disabilities, families, advocates and leaders committed to building a system centered on independence, opportunity and dignity.

For me, this work is personal. As the father of a daughter with a disability, I have seen both the extraordinary potential of those with disabilities and the unnecessary obstacles families are forced to navigate. I also know from my service at every level of government that those barriers are not inevitable. When government listens to people with lived experience, works across party lines and measures success by real outcomes, we can replace frustration with opportunity.

That belief inspired ThinkDIFFERENTLY, the initiative I launched in New York as Dutchess County Executive in 2015. It began with a simple challenge: focus on people’s abilities, remove barriers and make every part of community life more welcoming and accessible. We brought families, service providers, schools, employers, first responders and local governments to the same table. We expanded inclusive recreation, employment and educational opportunities; improved access to services; and encouraged communities to consider people of all abilities in every decision they made.

ThinkDIFFERENTLY grew beyond Dutchess County because it addressed a truth families everywhere understand: people do not live their lives inside a government program. They live in communities. They go to school, work, use transportation, build relationships, save for the future and pursue the same American dream as everyone else. Public policy should support that life—not divide it into bureaucratic silos.

I carried that lesson with me to Congress. There, I worked with Republicans and Democrats to advance practical reforms that removed barriers and held government accountable. The bipartisan Think DIFFERENTLY Transportation Act pressed Amtrak to meet its obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. My Think Differently Database Act created the framework for one national, accessible resource connecting individuals with disabilities and caregivers to services in their own communities. I also advanced proposals addressing accessible air travel, special education, emergency preparedness, healthcare and employment.

Each effort started with the same question: Why should people with disabilities have to fight the system before they can pursue a full life?

The experience I gained as a mayor, state legislator, county executive, member of Congress and federal transportation administrator has reinforced one lesson: fixing the disability system will require action at every level of government.

First, we must create a truly portable benefits system. Essential supports should follow the person—not be trapped inside a ZIP code, agency, school, provider network or job classification. Moving to a new county or state, entering college, starting a job or changing employers shouldn’t force someone to begin again or risk losing the services that make independence possible.

Portability does not mean a one-size-fits-all system. It means continuity, coordination and choice. It means modernizing rules so people can work, save through tools such as ABLE accounts and build financial security without being punished for their success. It means better alignment among Medicaid, home- and community-based services, vocational rehabilitation, education and workforce programs. It means greater efficiency and use of tax dollars. Most importantly, though, it means putting individuals with disabilities in control of their own goals and supports.

Second, we must cut red tape. Government should remember information so families do not have to repeat it. Agencies should share information securely—with the individual’s consent—rather than requiring duplicative evaluations and paperwork. Applications should be accessible, understandable and available through a clear front door. Eligibility decisions should be timely, and families should be able to see where an application stands instead of navigating a maze of unanswered calls.

Third, we must measure what matters. Success is not how many forms an agency processed or how much money a program spent. Success is whether a person found a job, entered an inclusive classroom, secured reliable transportation, obtained needed care, moved off a waiting list, built savings or lived more independently.

This is not a Republican or Democratic cause. Disability touches every family, community and political party. Some of the most meaningful progress I made in Congress came through bipartisan partnerships grounded in a shared conviction that dignity and independence should never be partisan.

Americans with disabilities do not need more promises layered onto a broken structure. They need leaders willing to listen, simplify, coordinate and act. They need a system that sees their strengths, respects their choices and travels with them through every stage of life.

I am proud to stand with Able Americans and this coalition in the Campaign to Fix the Disability System. Together, we can cut through red tape, make benefits portable and build a government that works as hard as the families it serves.

It is time for America to ThinkDIFFERENTLY—and act purposefully.

Former Congressman Marc Molinaro represented New York’s 19th district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2023-2025 and then served as administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. He is now a proud member of Able Americans’ Campaign to Fix the Disability System.