Joe Palm, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regional director for Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska, returned to St. Louis on May 20, 2024, to tour Paraquad and recognize its ongoing work to support seniors and people with disabilities.
“I knew Max Starkloff, the founder of Paraquad, and I have always been proud to see the progress and amazing work happening here,” Palm said.
“Centers for Independent living have changed the landscape for people with disabilities. As an HHS regional director, I can elevate their needs and concerns to help them keep going.”
President Biden appointed Palm HHS Region 7 director in May 2022. In addition, recently he was also appointed the Regional Director for HHS Region 2, which encompasses the states of New York and New Jersey and the territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, in addition to eight federally recognized tribes.
He previously served as chief of the Office of Minority Health at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and was a key advisor to the director on various health matters that affect minorities.
Palm supervised the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) grant-funded opioid and homicide prevention program and advised and facilitated the creation of hundreds of mobile COVID-19 testing and vaccination sites across Missouri in uninsured and underserved communities.
Alison Barkoff, who leads the HHS Administration for Community Living and accompanied Palm on the tour, said agencies like Paraquad are essential in all communities.
“I was so pleased to see firsthand the work Paraquad does to help people maintain their independence” she said.
“Centers for independent living, like Paraquad, provide a variety of services to support people with disabilities and older adults who want to live in their own homes and communities.
“Without such supports people can end up − unnecessarily and at a greater cost − living in institutions such as nursing homes.”
The Administration for Community Living provides funds that help support hundreds of centers of independent living nationwide. It oversees programs and funding that support older adults and people of all ages with disabilities to live where they choose, with the people they choose, and with the ability to participate fully in their communities.
Also visiting Paraquad were ACL Regional Administrator Cynthia Brammeier, and Melanie Highland Director of Missouri’s Division of Senior and Disability Services, Missouri Department of Health.
