August 2023 Advocacy Update
Roll on Capitol Hill
The 2023 Roll on Capitol Hill (ROCH) was June 18-21 in Washington DC. ROCH is United Spinal’s annual policy event that supports key advocacy priorities for it’s membership and the broader disability community. The goal is to ensure that legislators include wheelchair users and all people with disabilities in policy debates on Capitol Hill. Many advocates from Massachusetts attended. Mary Cooper, one of our long time Peer mentors, and her daughter represented SCIboston. Below are some great pictures that she shared with us of the event (click on the phone now to see the full image). Some of the things that Mary and her daughter advocated for were:
H.R. 1267,and S. 535, the Air Carrier Access Amendments Act. It is time for the govt’ to provide consumer protections and assistance in Air Travel for passengers with disabilities.
Disability Access to Transportation Act. H.R. 3845 and S. 1813, to stabilise increased accessible transportation options for people with disabilities.
Disability Community Independence. It is time to get rid of “In the home” only language when describing wheelchair needs. We need wheelchairs for the home as well as in the community.
To learn more about ROCH you can visit the event page here
From The Disability Policy Consortium
Call for Stories: Ambulances Not Providing Help With Stairs
Thanks so much to everyone who's written in about your experiences with DNRs and Bank Accessibility! We're still working on those issues, so please get in touch if you have an experience to share. This week, however, we're turning our attention to another matter: people with disabilities and seniors who are stuck in inaccessible housing, and who can't get help getting to medical appointments.
Specifically, Kay Lazar at the Boston Globe is looking into the issue of ambulance providers and medical transportation companies no longer being willing to assist people getting up and down stairs in order to get to key medical appointments. Many people wind up trapped in inaccessible housing due to disability, especially new or worsening disabilities. In the medium to long term, the answer is obviously to relocate that person to accessible housing, something we've fought hard to make possible through our Housing Advocacy Leadership Team with BCIL. In the short term however, people stuck in these situations still need to be able to get to critical medical appointments. In the past, this could apparently be done by ambulance providers, but this seems to have perhaps changed since the pandemic.
Have you or a loved one experienced issues getting help up and down stairs in order to attend medical appointments? If so, what impact has that had? If you have a story, please email Kay Lazar at kay.lazar@globe.com. This story has to be wrapped up in the next 24-48 hours, so please email ASAP!
ANNOUNCEMENT: MassHealth Members Must Confirm Their Eligibility
In the News:
Healey: 300,000 people will likely get dropped from MassHealth this year
More than 2.3 million Bay Staters currently receive state-sponsored health insurance through MassHealth, up 31% since before the pandemic.
"More than 2.3 million Bay Staters currently receive their health insurance through MassHealth, up 31% since February 2020, Gov. Maura Healey’s office noted in a Wednesday press release. That higher figure comes partly as a result of federal continuous eligibility requirements that lasted throughout the COVID-19 public health emergency, according to the release.
However, with the emergency declaration set to expire on May 11, MassHealth is beginning to re-determine whether its members are still eligible. State officials project that enrollment will eventually shrink to around 1.9 million members during the 2024 fiscal year, the State House News Service reported.
“We know what we’re facing right now this spring with redetermination. We know the work that we need to do,” Healey said at a press conference Wednesday announcing the state’s 2024 budget proposal.
Of the enrollment projections, she added: “I think those numbers reflect our best educated estimate of what is necessary and appropriate to meet this moment and the needs of folks who have been accessing MassHealth.”'
To read the whole article follow this link: https://www.boston.com/news/health/2023/03/02/masshealth-redetermination-maura-healey-300000-estimate/?amp=1
Ask Your Legislators to Co-Sponsor the Wheelchair Warranty Bill (H.378/S.152)
We need your help to build support for the wheelchair warranty bill (H.378/S.152)! Please use the "Take Action" form below to reach out to your state legislators and ask them to co-sponsor the bill. If they are already co-sponsoring, you'll be able to thank them instead. We encourage you to add a personal story and make the email your own, because legislators want to hear why the bill is important to you!
H.378/S.152, "An Act expanding wheelchair warranty protections for consumers with disabilities", will build on the existing wheelchair warranty law to cover more people and hold wheelchair companies accountable to consumers. Click "Learn More" below for more details.
If you would like to do more you can testify on this bill, please contact the Disability Policy Consortium, and they'll be happy to work with you to help prepare testimony and keep you updated on when the hearing is/other actions!
For more info contact Harry Weissman at hweissman@dpcma.org or 617-977-4084.
From United Spinal National
Come join and collaborate with other advocates the third Tuesday of every month! Times alternate each month between 5pm and 1pm ET.
Support Safe Air Travel for Wheelchair Users
This is our moment to push for legislation that will create new protections for airline passengers with disabilities, and make meaningful policy changes to bring greater accountability and improve the air travel experience for wheelchair users. United Spinal Association supports the Air Carrier Access Amendments Act (H.R. 1267/S. 545), which has been introduced by Representative Dina Titus and Senator Tammy Baldwin.
Support Disability Community Independence Now
Our community knows how important the right wheelchair is to our independence. We urge the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to open the comment period for Medicare coverage of standing systems; lift the ‘in the home’ restriction on coverage of mobility devices and conduct a full review of current mobility device coverage, coding and payment policies.
We Need Accessible Ground Transportation
Thirty-three years after the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), individuals with disabilities continue to face systemic discrimination and a lack of accessible transportation options. Transportation is a core component of independent living. United Spinal supports the Disability Access to Transportation Act.
Advocacy Program Working Groups
Also, we are still looking for participants for our working groups. Information on each of the four working groups can be found on the webpage, along with the form to sign-up to participate. Please contact Steve Lieberman at slieberman@unitedspinal.org or Annie Streit at astreit@unitedspinal.org if you have any questions. We are extremely proud of the growth of this dedicated network of advocates!
U.S. Department of Transportation Finalizes Rule on Accessible Airline Lavatories for Wheelchair Users
On the 33rd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced a new rule which requires airline lavatories to be more accessible. This rulemaking, authorized by the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), would require airlines to make lavatories on new single-aisle aircraft large enough to permit a passenger with a disability and attendant, both equivalent in size to a 95th percentile male, to approach, enter, and maneuver within as necessary to use the aircraft lavatory. Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg previewed this rule at a White House ADA Anniversary event earlier this month.
“Traveling can be stressful enough without worrying about being able to access a restroom; yet today, millions of wheelchair users are forced to choose between dehydrating themselves before boarding a plane or avoiding air travel altogether,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “We are proud to announce this rule that will make airplane bathrooms larger and more accessible, ensuring travelers in wheelchairs are afforded the same access and dignity as the rest of the traveling public.”
The rule can be found at https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/latest-news and at regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2021-0137.
For information about airline passenger rights, as well as DOT’s rules, guidance and orders, the Department’s aviation consumer website can be found at https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) RADx Tech Publishes Comprehensive Best Practices for the Design of Accessible COVID-19 Home Tests
Available now and hosted by the U.S. Access Board, the Best Practices for the Design of Accessible COVID-19 Home Tests document aims to ensure that more people can access and use COVID-19 home tests, including those who have no vision or low vision, have a reduced range of dexterity or motor skills, and are aging.
This comprehensive Best Practices document details recommendations for test designers and manufacturers to create user-friendly and accessible COVID-19 home tests. While the initial focus is on COVID-19 testing, the ergonomic and accessible design principles outlined can also be applied to home tests for other diseases and conditions.