While it is great that a group has taken up the job of trying to help the disabled community to make good decisions on which games play well and which ones that are missing basic help for them, all game companies should think of the ADA during design phase. Typically it is not difficult to add difficulty levels or to add closed captioning since the characters are speaking the words anyways. Changes to keep colorblind players happy is also a relatively simple process because there are well known color combinations that cause grief and those could be easily changed in the graphics engine without any other modifications to how the game plays or how it looks.

One would think that game companies would want to add to the number of customers that can purchase and play their games if the work to do that is easy and cheap. But instead the game companies completely ignore the disabled community because there is no one to club them over the head to let them know that we exist. The lawsuit against Sony will wake that company up, but what about the others? The idea is to get them to make minor changes without pricing the company into bankruptcy because of legal costs or dramatically increased development costs. This could be fixed by adding a few disabled people to the testing teams so that fixes can be worked on right away and the company can get write-ups in disability magazines and websites saying they are working with the community to make their products available. This would open up a brand new market for arcade games to people that would love to play and pay for them but can’t because they are unplayable. But with a few changes we all can have fun on our computers and game consoles.

 Further problems were found in availability of clinics, tests for medical conditions and pills to control long term conditions. The disabled ran a much greater risk of hearing and visual problems as well as hypertension, obesity and a lack of instructions on how to deal with medical conditions. This creates an environment where those with good medical insurance have access to doctors that are trained to help their patients over a wide range of issues where the disabled typically have to deal with newly graduated doctors that do not have the training or experience to work with those with complicated medical issues. Since the medical infrastructure of the United States is on treating a problem rather than prevention, medical care is much more expensive than virtually anywhere else in the world.

Rather than working to make sure people do not get the flu or popular issues like hypertension or smoking, the medical community and insurance companies waits until the patient is severely sick before they get the care they need. This means that more disabled die or end up with additional medical conditions as compared to the able bodied that have corporate based medical insurance. Many pills are not available on Part B Medicare because they are new and expensive, and most companies have virtually non-existent system to help pay for drugs. This is especially true for those with chronic pain, where most pain medication is prohibitively expensive. As the body requires higher and higher doses to get the same pain relief level, stronger medications are required – that are not covered. Even if the medications are covered, the patient is only covered for the first $2700, after that the patent is on their own for the next $2000 before catastrophic care kicks in.

 This all creates an environment where preventative care is non-existent and only very expensive care is available. While this care is great for those that can afford it, for those that are either on Medicare or no plan at all live in excruciating pain or with out of control blood pressure because there is no treatment that the poor can afford. While there may be plans to help the public, the ADA is typically ignored by companies and cities that find it is easier to get sued than it is to build to code. We all need to work together so that the laws are followed and actually help the disabled to live a more normal life.

The American Red Cross is soliciting donations for help in Georgia. Feel free to help, but I have some questions I wish they would answer about their services to evacuees with disabilities:

Do evacuees in wheelchairs who seek shelter in Red Cross shelters in Georgia have accessible beds available to them, as required by the ADA?

 In Miami-Dade County, they don’t. They plan to get some, and plan to borrow some, but right now, 19 years after the passage of the ADA, they don’t have any.

Do evacuees who are deaf or hard of hearing who use sign language have access to qualified interpreters in shelters, in the event of a medical emergency, as required by the ADA?

 In Miami-Dade County, they don’t.

Miami-Dade County only offers “volunteer” interpreters, who lack knowledge of how to interpret the necessary medical terminology that would be required in such a situation. The Red Cross tells us: “We are a volunteer organization, so we use volunteers.” 19 years after the passage of the ADA, and the collection of millions of dollars in donations, they are still exploring ways to comply with the ADA.

Do evacuees who have mental illnesses, autism, or cognitive disabilities have a quiet area in the shelter, as a reasonable modification of policy?

In Miami-Dade, they don’t.

Under the ADA, the Red Cross and the County with whom they partner are both liable for the civil rights violations that occur in emergency management.

In its solicitation for donations, the Red Cross says that “Officials estimate more than 1,500 people may be seeking shelter.” Some of those evacuees are people with disabilities. What is the Red Cross doing to serve them? Where are the accessible beds? Where are the qualified sign language interpreters? How much of the money donated to the Red Cross, instead of to disability organizations serving evacuees with disabilities, actually go to serving evacuees with disabilities?

Are Counties that partner with the Red Cross aware that under the ADA they can be held liable for the failure to serve people with disabilities in general needs shelters operated by the Red Cross? Are they aware that under the Rehabilitation Act, they risk a cutoff of federal funding for violations of the ADA by the Red Cross?

Let’s never forget what happened to evacuees with disabilities in New Orleans with disabilities. As related in testimony before Congress by Marcie Roth:

On the morning of August 29th, I received a call that I will never forget and once I tell you about it, I hope you will never forget it either. My friend and colleague, former appointee to the Social Security Administration, Susan Daniels called me to enlist my help because her sister-in-law, a quadriplegic woman in New Orleans had been unsuccessfully trying to evacuate to the Superdome since Saturday. In my naiveté I thought a few phone calls to the “right” people would help, and I was sure I knew who to call. After many calls to the “right” people, it was clear that this woman, Benilda Caixetta, was NOT being evacuated. I stayed on the phone with Benilda for most of the day, assuring her that I was doing all I could to make sure help would be coming as soon as possible. She kept telling me she had been calling for a ride to the Superdome since Saturday, but, despite promises, no one came. The very same paratransit system that people with disabilities can’t rely on in good weather was what was being relied on in the evacuation. It’s no surprise that didn’t work.

I was on the phone with her that afternoon when she told me, with panic in her voice, “the water is rushing in” and then her phone went dead.

We learned five days later that she had been found in her apartment, dead, floating next to her wheelchair. http://www.spinalcord.org/news.php?dep=1&page=0&list=643

Marcie described the Red Cross’ efforts as follows:

“As well as the disability community came together to try to take care of “our own”, we have been excluded from the larger relief community and told that we would just be “in the way” and “make things worse”. I received report after report about the Red Cross shelters turning people with disabilities away or separating them from caregivers and service animals, then sending them to nursing homes when they couldn’t maintain their independence. When I inquired about the sheltering needs of people with disabilities, one Red Cross operations official told me “we aren’t supposed to help those people, the local health departments do that. We can’t hardly deal with the “intact” people. Don’t you understand that we’re taking volunteers off the street to run these shelters?”” http://www.spinalcord.org/news.php?dep=1&page=0&list=643

When the disability community, and their allies, are asked to donate to the Red Cross, don’t donors deserve some assurances that the donations will help evacuees with disabilities? Shouldn’t some of the donations be dedicated to purchases helping evacuees with disabilities? Shouldn’t some of the money go to purchasing the services of qualified sign language interpreters, video remote interpreting (VRI), accessible beds, and other services needed by evacuees with disabilities?

Can’t the Red Cross do a better job of planning on behalf of evacuees with disabilities? Can’t the Red Cross do a better job of serving evacuees with disabilities? Shouldn’t the counties that partner with them and the donors who support them demand that the Red Cross prioritize serving people with disabilities?

As for me, I will donate to the Red Cross when the Red Cross shows its commitment to the disability community.

Marc

See http://www.spinalcord.org/news.php?dep=1&page=0&list=643 for Marcie Roth’s testimony before Congress. Also  See Transcript of Hill Briefing on Disaster Response (11.10.05) (Word Document)

See Transcript of Hill Briefing on Disaster Response (11.10.05) (PDF Document)

Marcie Roth was subsequently appointed by President Obama to serve as FEMA’s Senior Advisor on Disability Issues.

If the many laws that Mr. Kennedy championed never became laws, we would all be living in a much different America. The Senator proved that one person could make a major difference in congress and America. We at SCRN ask you our readers to call or write your congressmen to let them know how you feel about the issues of the day. Most probably believe that Washington D.C. is too impenetrable or that no one wants to hear from them. Nothing is further from the truth and Senator Kennedy proved it every day. We called our congressman about two weeks ago to get information about a town hall meeting and to discuss our medical system. The person on the phone was helpful and sent to a another person who listened to what we had to say and asked good questions back. This is not the way indifferent people work, these folks want to do the right thing and the only way they know how is to listen to you. It is hoped that this death gives you a few moments to think about what our government provides to us and what can be done better. Sure things are frustrating and everything may not go your way but that is not a reason to give up. The disabled have usually had to deal with way more than a bad day and we all need to do our part. Democracy is not a spectator sport and Senator Kennedy was there to make the important votes, even when he was very sick for the last year of his life. Lets all take the opportunity to do better than we have before, help those around us and let your officials that you pay know what is on your mind. That way we all win with a better country and you knowing that you helped to make a difference – just like Ted did for all those years in the senate.

A possible solution would be to call the hard of hearing using a TDD so that they know that there is danger that needs to be addressed. With TDD calls and large text messages on all cable and satellite channels will go a long way to keep the hard of hearing safe. New technologies will certainly make it easier to let the various disabled communities that they are in danger and must take shelter. It is also important to push the meteorologists to give the communities more time to deal with tornadoes, hail, lightening, or other dangerous issues that must be handled. Those in wheelchairs could take considerable time to get down stairs to the point where the storm will always hit before the disabled can get to safety in their basement. We need to let the FCC and our congressmen how important it is to keep everyone safe during an emergency and that all groups need to be thought of for any alarm system. Forgetting about the disabled communities will guarantee that we will have casualties that could have easily been avoided. This is why the disabled must become activists in their communities so officials are reminded of who needs to be protected.

Obviously there are serious problems with how disabled people are treated by company employees. It is not this man’s fault that he is disabled or that he requires a powered chair to get around. He has the right to be anywhere that an able-bodied person is and should not have to worry about physical torture. Crashing carts into this man because he can’t get out of the way fast enough is truly disgusting. One wonders exactly the kind of people are hired by a ghoulish company and how they stay employed. If there was ever a group that needed anger management classes as well as classes on how to deal with people different than themselves, it is this group on the train. There is no excuse for this disabled man to dodge trays and eggs thrown at him as he moves from train car to train car. I seriously doubt that these employees would like to be treated as they treated this man on this trip.

This is also a good time to talk about getting an ADA type law in the UK. Disabled people have been on the bottom rung of society for too many years. Most of us had good paying jobs and paid our taxes until we were injured to the point that we could no longer work. At that point society has a responsibility to take care of their own, now just whoever is strong and beautiful today. That type of thought died out when the Nazis were defeated in 1945. Disabled people are just like anyone else, they just need equipment and help to move around from place to place. Most of us don’t want the able bodied help or pity — but we do want to be on the same level as everyone else. We should be able to get into buildings and homes without any special equipment. Taxis should be modified so they can take a wheelchair. The disabled as demanded to go back to work regardless of their injury, but society makes no attempt to help make that happen. Helping a disabled person get through a manual doorway not only helps them, it helps you to be a better person.

Most medical insurance plans in the US allow you to go to any doctor you want to without having to plead your case. Note that if the physician is out of network you may have to pay more to see them, but you can see them. If the busted and broken US medical system can do this simple procedure then why is it impossible on Malta. The squeaky wheel gets the oil in the US,and lawsuits usually get company and government’s attention. While it is good to see that at least one disabled person is going to go after the establishment, it would be more helpful if all complained together. But we have the same issue here where nobody wants to get involved. Evidently the disabled are not pissed off enough to start to take action on their own. Until that day happens, they can expect to be taken advantage of and to have little control over what happens in their lives. I’ve certainly had enough, how about you?

"Hear our voice, Respect our choice!" and "My body, my choice where I want to live" were among signs articulating the sentiment of the 2,000 Georgians gathered at the State Capitol Feb. 25 to heighten public awareness and to communicate support to legislators for increased services for people with disabilities. Disability Day at the Capitol was attended by a number of Barrow Countians, including students from Apalachee High School. The occasion provided a chance for Partners, general education students partnering with special education students, to learn about the Olmstead decision, a 1999 victory in the judicial system which paved the way for Americans with disabilities to be a part of community life rather than remaining institutionalized. The presentations informed about the 10-year anniversary of the Olmstead decision. Georgia native Lois Curtis, the surviving plaintiff in that U.S. Supreme Court case, was involved in the event.

Partners for Disability Day at the Capitol event

For Apalachee High School students participating in Disability Day at the Capitol, it was a chance to visit the gold-domed State Capitol for the first time, while it was a repeat performance for others. According to Amy St. Clair, the visit was a real eye-opener for the general education students to see the limitations placed on fellow students in special education and on adults with disabilities. The presentations informed about the 10-year anniversary of the Olmstead decision. Georgia native Lois Curtis, the surviving plaintiff in that U.S. Supreme Court case, was involved in the event. It was that 1999 victory in the judicial system which paved the way for Americans with disabilities to be a part of community life rather than remaining institutionalized.

"I am glad to see them get that out of it, too," said St. Clair. Kristin Aldridge and Dennis Whitley were two of the general education students attending. Aldridge has been involved with Partners since her freshman year and had a special education insignia on her class ring. Whitley got active last year. Both are interested in pursuing careers as special education teachers with Whitley hoping to also be a coach. For Joseph Emmett, eating at the Varsity was a real treat as he ordered up onion rings, a hamburger and Diet Coke while it was a hamburger, fries and sweet tea for Kerri Powell. Both Emmett and Powell had been to the Disability Day at the Capitol before but for Aldridge and Whitley, the experience reinforced the need for advocacy on behalf of those with disabilities. "We need to spread the word that we need to do more to see that [people with disabilities] are better treated," said Aldridge and Whitley. "They really are treated differently and have it a lot harder than they should," said Whitley. "They don’t get treated equal and I know I wouldn’t like it if I was in their situation." For Aldridge, exercising one’s right to vote is an important part of seeing possible change happen. "I’ll certainly be voting," said Aldridge. "We have a good group," said St. Clair of the Partners program which teams the special education students with general education students to share social opportunities and involvement in activities including ball games. Tailgating before football games, bowling, a Valentine’s dance, a Christmas social with Winder-Barrow High School students and other activities are held. A monthly meeting also bonds the students together as friends. It is all about learning that the differences are not that important in the scheme of things and sharing experiences which make students more alike than different. A mutual respect and admiration can be developed as each see the obstacles each other must overcome. For Powell, who has some back pain when standing for long periods of time, the length of the speeches proved challenging as did the number of steps leading into the Capitol. More ramps would make the state building more user-friendly to those with disabilities, she said. "Going through security was kind of scary," said Powell. Wider doors are also needed, noted Emmett.

The group signed their name to the large banner which was to be displayed. Powell is one of the school’s Special Olympics athletes who competed in snow skiing in Boone, N.C., last year. Her first time as a skier, she took fifth place. A number of cameras were taken along for the day with students making their pictures made with the statue of Richard B. Russell and with one of the speakers, Brad Cohen, author of "Front of the Class: House Tourette Syndome Made Me the Teacher I Never Had." That book was the subject of a 2008 CBS Hallmark Hall of Fame movie. It was Brad’s speech which several found the most inspiring. He talked about the opportunities he didn’t have because of the lack of understanding about his Tourette Syndrome. "I would recommend that other students go along on this trip," said Aldridge.

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State seeks input on special education; Comment sought on federal grants application The Georgia Department of Education has posted its annual application for federal grants that assist with the education of students with disabilities and will be seeking public comment on the application throughout April. In Fiscal Year 2009, school systems in Georgia received more than $300 million in grants under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and is anticipating another $310 million in IDEA funds through the federal stimulus package. In order to continue to receive that funding, the state must post its Annual State Application for IDEA Grants Funds for public review for 60 days. The state must also have a 30-day public comment window. Georgia’s Annual State Application for IDEA Grant Funds has been posted on the GaDOE’s website at this location:

http://www.gadoe.org/ci_exceptional.aspx?PageReq=CIEXCIdea

The public comment period will run from April 1 through April 30. Written comments should be sent to:

Nancy O’Hara
Director Division for Special Education Services
1870 Twin Towers East Atlanta, GA 30334

Comments can be e-mailed to: nohara@doe.k12.ga.us

We won’t ruin all the surprises in the story but those of us in wheelchairs will find it very easy to get around. Stores must have doors that open automatically and there are actually parking spots so we can get in and out of our car. While it is always good news that countries "get it" and want to help the disabled, why is it such a bit surprise? Many countries do nothing for the disabled and in fact treat us as second class citizens. Once again we need to prove ourselves to the populace that we can work, take care of our families, and pay our taxes like everyone else. When will all major cities do what Vancouver has done?

It never ceases to amaze me how the able bodied find new and ever more disgusting ways to take advantage of the disabled. No one wants to see us, but at the same time we are discredited for trying to take care of their families. More work obviously needs to be done to check up on the disabled working for companies to make sure that they are not being taken advantage of. Also, it is important for families to watch over their disabled members to make sure that everyithing is done as expected. It is sad that you cannot trust anyone with anything, especially those that cannot defend themselves.