We will keep expanding our
geographical presence as best we can as we continue to receive requests for
information and assistance from around the country and internationally. Please notify us if you become aware of
situations where access continues to be denied.
We remain solidly in the forefront of the fight for accessibility.
The following is a brief listing of the cases that
have been settled since our last newsletter:
Government
Florida Department of
Transportation, St. Augustine,
Florida
Hospitals
|
Northlake
Surgical Center
|
Atlanta
|
GA
|
|
Lawnwood Medical
Center
|
Fort Pierce
|
FL
|
|
Florida Surgery
Center
|
Altamonte Springs
|
FL
|
|
North County Surgicenter
|
Palm Beach Gardens
|
FL
|
|
Central Florida Surgicenter
|
Lakeland
|
FL
|
|
Same
Day Surgicenter
|
Orlando
|
FL
|
|
Southern
Hills Hospital & Medical Center
|
Las Vegas
|
NV
|
|
Hendersonville Medical
Center
|
Hendersonville
|
TN
|
|
Horizon Medical
Center
|
Dickson
|
TN
|
|
Englewood Community
Hospital
|
Englewood
|
FL
|
|
Fawcett Memorial
Hospital
|
Port Charlotte
|
FL
|
|
Gramercy Outpatient
Surgery Center
|
Houston
|
TX
|
|
Green Oaks
Hospital
|
Dallas
|
TX
|
|
North Florida
Regional Medical
Center
|
Gainesville
|
FL
|
|
Oakhill Hospital
|
Brooksville
|
FL
|
|
Delray Medical
Center
|
Delray Medical
Center
|
FL
|
|
Garden Grove Hospital
& Medical Center
|
Garden Grove
|
CA
|
|
Hilton Head
Medical Center
|
Hilton
Head
|
SC
|
|
Los Alamitos
Medical Center
|
Los
Alamitos
|
CA
|
|
San Dimas Community
Hospital
|
San Dimas
|
CA
|
|
Sierra Vista Regional
Medical Center
|
San Luis Obispo
|
CA
|
|
South Fulton
Medical Center
|
East Point
|
GA
|
|
USC University
Hospital
|
Los Angeles
|
CA
|
|
Florida Medical
Center
|
Ft. Lauderdale
|
FL
|
|
Park Plaza
Hospital
|
Houston
|
TX
|
|
Sierra Medical
Center
|
EL Paso
|
TX
|
|
St. Francis
Hospital
|
Memphis
|
TN
|
|
St. Louis University
Hospital
|
St. Louis
|
MO
|
Additionally,
a settlement hearing was held on June 13th in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of
Texas in Dallas
regarding the following Crestwood Healthcare, L.P. hospital cases:
|
Medical Center
Enterprise
|
Enterprise
|
AL
|
|
San
Angelo Comm. Medical Center
|
San Angelo
|
TX
|
|
Denton Comm.
Hospital
|
Denton
|
TX
|
|
Brownwood Regional
Medical Center
|
Brownwood
|
TX
|
|
Flowers Hospital
|
Dothan
|
AL
|
|
DeTar
Hospital Navarro
|
Victoria
|
TX
|
|
Gadsden Regional
Medical Center
|
Gadsden
|
AL
|
|
Crestwood Medical
Center
|
Huntsville
|
AL
|
|
DeTar
Hospital North
|
Victoria
|
TX
|
|
Abilene Regional
Medical Center
|
Abilene
|
TX
|
|
Jacksonville Medical
Center
|
Jacksonville
|
AL
|
The judge
took these cases under advisement, and we expect a favorable decision in the
near future.
Sports Arenas
Lazy E Arena, Guthrie, Oklahoma
Stores
Dollar General Stores (5) in the
cities of Enid, Gore & Stillwater, Oklahoma
NOTABLE CASES – There are some cases that are
especially important because of their value as precedents or because they
remove significant numbers or types of barriers. Several of those types of cases are listed
below. Please remember that most
defendants in non-class action cases insist on confidentiality as a condition
of signing settlement agreements.
Therefore, we cannot discuss those cases by name, although they number
quite a few. However, several of them
are included in the cases listed above.
1.
Hospitals – The numbers of
individual hospital cases that have been settled or are moving rapidly toward
settlement continues to increase every week.
The 19 Tenet Healthcare Corporation (Tenet) facilities listed in the
prior section (which encompasses over 5300 beds) had Fairness Hearings held on April 25th and May 18th. A Fairness Hearing was held on June 13, 2007,
regarding nine more medical facilities in Texas
and Alabama. We are awaiting the Court’s decisions on
entering judgment.
We continue to be
actively involved in cases involving medical institutions because of our strong
belief that they constitute one of the most important ways to enhance the
quality of life of the disabled community.
We want to give much deserved
praise to the firm of de la O, Marko, Magolnick and Leyton, and particularly to
their associate, Charles D. Ferguson,
for their stellar work in pursuing all the hospitals listed above and many
others still in the pipeline!
________________________________________________________________
2.
City of Miami, Florida – With
respect to this case, the defendant, Florida Department of Transportation
(FDOT) continues to meet its obligations in fulfilling its settlement
commitments. In the year ending June 30,
2006, FDOT completed work implementing ADA
improvements on 18 state highway projects within Miami-Dade County. In these projects FDOT created or replaced 610
ramps, 386 driveways (totaling 118,377 sq. ft.) and 308,781 sq. ft of sidewalks. The total cost of the 18 projects was $3,505,775. This represents a substantial increase from
the previous report for the year ending October 31, 2005. Kudos to the FDOT!
3.
City of Sonora, California – The city is working hard to live
up to its promise to make all of its facilities, programs and services ADA-compliant. Our attorneys recently received a full
self-evaluation and transition plan from Sonora’s
attorney. Our attorneys and our local
expert are thoroughly evaluating the plan.
Their initial view is that the plan appears comprehensive, and the City
is in the process of modifying its properties consistent with the plan’s parameters. This is another step in Sonora’s realizing its desire to become a community
that guarantees the opportunity for participation by its disabled community in the
city’s activities and affairs.
4.
Emory University – In
this case, “Access Now”® and member
Kami Barker sued Emory
University and its architects
and engineers for denial of access in university housing projects. We settled with Emory for ADA and other accessibility violations. After a trial in August, 2006 before an Atlanta jury, a verdict for liability and damages was
returned against the builders, Trammel Crow Residential, but not against the
architects, Niles Bolton
Associates. The outcome was less favorable
than we had expected, and we filed post-judgment motions that have yet to be
decided. If they are unsuccessful we are
contemplating an appeal. We will keep
you informed as to any further developments in this groundbreaking case (the
first jury trial under the Fair Housing Act.)
Many kudos here to Matthew Dietz of the law firm of Matthew W. Dietz,
P.L., for his diligent pursuit of this particularly difficult and complicated
case!
5.
Busch Gardens – The Anheuser-Busch Company
continues to move forward in its trail-blazing manner in bringing its
facilities into compliance with the A.D.A.
In one of our recent newsletters we told you about the magnificent work
they have done at SeaWorld in Orlando,
Florida. On May 24th we were delighted to be treated
to a video presentation of what they have accomplished at their huge and famous
Busch Gardens
in Tampa, Florida. They have not only met the standards, they
have exceeded them in several instances, using imagination and “thinking
outside the box”.
Once they were launched into the
accessibility sphere, they moved ahead with self-motivated initiative, under the
supervision of one of the nation’s most outstanding A.D.A. architect/consultants,
and they have succeeded in making Busch
Gardens a model of
accessibility. The Busch company’s
enthusiastic embrace of A.D.A. compliance issues has been exemplary and gratifying. We hope our members will avail themselves of
and enjoy all that is offered at their theme parks. (in this case kudos are due to Gregory Schwartz, our attorney in this matter, of
the law firm of Schwartz, Zweben & Slingbaum, LLP and Larry M. Schneider,
AIA, the consultant mentioned above, for their fine and diligent work!)
Access Now, Inc.® also
filed suit in Washington
State as reported in the
following article.
Lawsuit
by Access Now, Inc.® claims Vancouver
violating disability laws
By
David Bowermaster
Seattle Times staff reporter
The city of Vancouver,
Wash., has
been sued in federal court for a long list of alleged violations of the
Americans with Disabilities Act and other statutes. Access Now, a national civil-rights group
based in Florida, filed the lawsuit on behalf
of Michelle Beardshear, a 26-year-old Vancouver
resident and a paraplegic who must use a wheelchair to get around the city.
The suit contends that many Vancouver streets,
sidewalks and structures are insufficiently accessible to people with
disabilities. Consequently, the suit claims the city has violated Washington state laws against discrimination, as well as
the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA), which
was enacted in 1990.
Ted Gathe, Vancouver city attorney,
said Thursday he could not comment because he was not aware of the
lawsuit. "Apparently the city has
not been served, or if it has, the suit hasn't made its way to my office,"
Gathe said.
Catherine Chaney, a Seattle-based
attorney who is serving as local counsel for Access Now, filed the suit
Wednesday in U.S. District
Court in Tacoma. Neither Chaney nor Stephan Nitz, a
Florida-based attorney for Access Now, could be reached for comment.
The lawsuit cites
federal rules that require "newly constructed streets, roads and
highways" to contain curb ramps or slopes, as well as ADA guidelines on
everything from signs at parking spaces to grab bars in restroom stalls. "The city of Vancouver has discriminated ... by denying
plaintiffs the use and benefit of the sidewalks, streets, intersections, public
parks, facilities and parking within the city," the suit claims.
Public facilities specifically
mentioned in the lawsuit as violating the ADA
include Vancouver's
City Hall, Police Department, two public libraries and four city parks.
David Bowermaster: 206-464-2724 or dbowermaster@seattletimes.com
CLASS ACTIONS – Class actions
affect a large number of disabled persons, usually because a large number of
facilities are involved. We still have class
actions pending against Victoria’s
Secrets, T.J. Maxx, the cruise line industry and cases against five hospital
chains which encompass many, many individual hospitals. These cases move slowly, but there is
progress to report in two of them:
Arby’s: “Access Now”® brought suit against
Arby’s, based on the A.D.A. non-compliance of approximately 773 of its restaurants
in the United States, Puerto Rico and U.S. territories. Arby’s has agreed to remove architectural
barriers in its restaurants, which will allow the disabled better access to
this restaurant chain.
We recently completed our first
post-settlement inspections of the Arby’s in Orlando
and Indianapolis. Our attorneys and experts will be receiving
the first set of remediation plans shortly, and they will be conducting more
post-remediation inspections shortly thereafter. We
will continue our fight for greater public accessibility in restaurants and
other retail establishments across the United States. Here, all due praise goes to Josh Entin and
Bob Switkes, of the firm of Rosen, Switkes and Entin, PL.
Dollar & Thrifty Rent-a-Car: On
December 7, 2006, a Miami
federal court judge approved a heavily negotiated class settlement agreement
and consent decree with Dollar and Thrifty rental car companies (now
consolidated in a 2006 merger). The settlement agreement contemplates the
most comprehensive accessibility program ever implemented in the rental car
industry with what is believed to be the third largest rental car company in
the United States.
The agreement contemplates remediation of all Dollar/Thrifty owned or operated
facilities, accessible transportation from airports to vehicles, accessible
vehicles for disabled drivers and anticipated policies and procedures to
operate in tandem with the physical barrier removal program. The settlement
is being implemented and is expected to be completed within 5 years. This
case was a cooperative effort between Access Now® and Fred Shotz,
who is an individual named plaintiff in the case and founder of a sister
organization, All Disabled Americans. Fred's tireless efforts were
instrumental to the outcome, and he is owed a debt of gratitude by all
travelers with disabilities.
HCA Hospitals: The case against the Ambulatory Surgery
Center Group, Ltd. involves 10 of the hospitals listed above. The Fairness Hearing was held on September 19th,
and we are awaiting the judge’s decision.
Tenet Hospitals: There was a consolidated
Fairness Hearing held on April 25th encompassing 19 Tenet facilities
nationwide. Again, we are awaiting the
judge’s decision on whether to approve the proposed settlement.
Triad Hospitals: The case against the Ambulatory Surgery
Center Group, Ltd. involves the 10 hospitals listed above. The Fairness Hearing was held on September 19th,
and we are awaiting the judge’s decision.
These hospital settlements
will make a great difference to members of our community. THE 29 FACILITIES HAVE A TOTAL OF 5300
BEDS IN EIGHT STATES. The
settlements show that the ADA
can work when there are dedicated advocates and attorneys using it for our
benefit.
________________________________________________________________
LITIGATION BY OTHERS: We want to keep you informed about important
recent litigation around the country, of which you might not be aware, as well
as update information from December’s newsletter affecting the rights of the
disabled. We think it is important for
our members to keep abreast of successes realized by and within the disabled
community, whether accomplished by “Access Now”® or by other
organizations. We are all in this fight
together!
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GOVERNMENTAL NEWS:
Disabled Council Member a Rarity
BY Michael Kay
Daily Cal Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
It’s Tuesday night and the Berkeley
City Council is about to begin the evening’s business—but as usual,
Councilmember Dona Spring is at home in front of her TV. Spring is attending by teleconference, as she
has done almost exclusively since late 2005, when the obstacles to attending
meetings became too onerous for Spring, who has used a wheelchair for the past
two decades. The council member has
fought rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune
system attacks its own tissues, since she was a 19-year-old junior at UC
Berkeley. Difficulties like sorting through last-minute additions to the
council docket—her disease has limited the use of her hands—finding a
wheelchair-accessible taxi for late-night rides home and pain from hours of
sitting upright led the 54-year-old to start staying home after serving on the
council for more than 10 years. “I used
to not drink during meetings”—which can stretch to six hours—because of the difficulty
with going to the bathroom, Spring said. “All things made it increasingly
easier to do it from my home.”
But even teleconferencing has had its glitches. While Spring’s voice
normally booms from the council chamber’s speakers, at a February meeting this
year, problems with the sound system forced her to follow the proceedings while
on the phone with the city clerk. “It
was very frustrating,” she said. “I couldn’t speak directly to the council.”
Spring’s participation in council meetings via teleconference is unique,
say local city officials and representatives of organizations for the
disabled. City clerks in Albany, Concord, Hayward, Richmond and Walnut Creek said while
teleconferencing is available in their cities—as required by law—it has only
been used when officials were traveling.
“I don’t know of any other cities offhand that might be doing that,”
said Hayward City Clerk Angelina Reyes. “Another
first for Berkeley.”
Clerks could recall only a handful of other current or former council members
with known disabilities, a reality that seems to hold true across the political
landscape. In the California legislature, for example, there
is currently one member with a hearing impairment. There has not been a legislator who used a
wheelchair since 1998, according to the California State
Assembly’s Office of the Chief Clerk.
Yet official data is nearly nonexistent, with many government agencies and
disability groups saying they are not aware of any data on politicians with
disabilities. Neal Albritton, deputy
director of the State Independent Living Council, guesses the proportion of
elected officials with disabilities is equal to the nationwide rate of 20
percent, but that most are hidden. “A
lot of people just don’t bring it up, and a lot of people won’t talk about it
or disclose it,” Albritton said. Most
observers attribute the reluctance to the conventional political view of
disability as a sign of weakness. “The
problem with politics is that everyone is a macho man or woman,” said Shawn Casey
O’Brien, a political activist and radio talk show host who has cerebral palsy.
Spring herself was not inclined to run for public office until she watched
her one-time boss and fellow wheelchair user Michael Winter run for a council
seat in the mid-1980s. “I never dreamed
that someone in a wheelchair could run for council, could run for public
office,” she said. Running for the first
time in 1994, Spring went door to door in her wheelchair and ended up earning a
narrow victory over the incumbent. Since then she has held her seat with often
enviable ease, winning 72 percent of the vote last year. “Being physically there at a meeting isn’t as
important (to constituents) as being able to get on the phone and talk to me,”
she said.
There is no known cure for the rheumatoid arthritis that afflicts Spring,
and for those in whom the disease shows up in the first two decades of life,
like Spring, there is “increased risk” of other complications, said John
Imboden, a professor at UCSF and chief of rheumatology at San Francisco General
Hospital. But the joint and tissue
inflammation and pain it causes can be reduced effectively through extra rest,
proper diet and new medications, he said.
Spring has a rigorous treatment schedule, but time and her work on the council
have still taken a toll. She has had more than 15 surgeries to help fight the
effects of the disease and estimates she has a fourth of the energy she had
when she was first elected. For now, she is unsure whether she will run for
another term in 2008. “I’m really
surprised that I’ve been able to do it with this level of disability,” she
said. “I’ve just kept making adaptations.”
Michael Kay covers city
government. Contact him at mkay@dailycal.org.
(c) 2005 the Daily Californian ●
Berkeley, California
● dailycalifornian@dailycal.org
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From:
owner-stevegoldada@SteveGoldADA.com
Sent:
Tuesday, January 09, 2007 11:15 AM
To:
stevegoldada@stevegoldada.com
Subject: Medicaid Funds to Keep Persons Out of
Institutions –
Information
Bulletin #187 (1/07)
Section
6086 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 has not received much attention. It offers States a new opportunity to provide
a full (or partial) range of community-based services for seniors and people
with disabilities. Beginning now,
January, 2007, States can use this new statutory provision without applying for
a Medicaid waiver.
Here
are some important aspects of Section 6086:
1. It applies to seniors and people with
disabilities with incomes up to 150% of the poverty level: $14,700 for a single
person and $19,800 for a couple. These
income levels are higher than many States now provide for either MA
community-based waiver services or MA state plan services, and could help many
seniors with regard to Social Security.
2. Because no waiver application is required,
there is no excuse that the process is too complicated.
3. These services can be targeted to persons
BEFORE they go into a nursing home. This is important because, nationally,
11.8% of the persons IN nursing homes went into them directly from their own
homes and had NOT been receiving any home health services before entering the
institution; that's nearly 155,000 people in nursing homes as of 9/30/06! Why should anyone be admitted to an
institution without at least being offered and provided community-based
services?
4. There is no requirement under Section 6086 that
persons even meet nursing home level of care criteria.
5. There is no "cost neutrality"
requirement that MA waivers have.
6. States can limit the number of persons who
will receive these services, so States will be able to monitor and control the
financial aspects of offering and providing the services.
7. States can concentrate the Section 6086
services in areas of the State that historically have high concentration of
nursing home enrollments.
8. These services can be consumer directed.
Has
your State started to offer Section 6086 community-based services?
Will
your State offer them? If not, how can
your State continue to complain about MA expenditures, when it will not
implement a program that will save MA costs by preventing many of the 11.8% of
the persons entering nursing homes?
[Your State’s specific percentage of persons admitted to nursing homes
without receiving any home health services can be found at http://www1.cms.hhs.gov/apps/mds/
res3.asp?var=AB2&date=16]
Steve Gold, The Disability
Odyssey continues: Back issues of other
Information Bulletins are available online at http://www.stevegoldada.com with a searchable Archive at
this site divided into different subjects.
___________________________________________________________________
THOUGHT PROVOKING QUESTION AND
ANSWERS
We received this from
one of our members, from something which he had read:
“Why on earth would
God choose a spokesperson, Moses, who stuttered and could hardly talk?” The following possible explanations were
offered for the divine choice. Take the
time to examine each alternative as you pause during your busy daily routine:
- The fact that God’s chosen
spokesperson is a stutterer is a reminder to us that no one is perfect.
- That Moses stuttered was proof
to everyone that Moses was a human being, not a God.
- People have to listen more
closely to someone who has a speech impediment.
- If people accepted the Torah,
it would be because of its contents and because of their faith; no one
could later say that they accepted the Torah because they were swept away
by Moses’ oratory or his charisma.
- Perhaps God chose Moses, not
in spite of but because of his handicap, in order to teach us that all
human beings are capable of rising above their handicaps and living
productive lives despite them.
- Finally, is it possible that
the lesson God intended in choosing Moses was that people with
disabilities should not be ignored or considered less human than others?
Which possibility do
you think is correct? Or is there more
than one justifiable answer to this query?
This is another thought-provoking
article:
Design
for Everyone, Disabled or Not
By LISA CHAMBERLAIN
The New
York Times
Published: January 7,
2007
ST. LOUIS – Sharon M. Brown cried tears of joy the first time she took a shower
without assistance in her new apartment.
She had not been able to do anything more by herself than take sponge
baths since she was hit by a drunken driver six years ago, further complicating
the multiple sclerosis that had been diagnosed years earlier. For someone who had once hiked 100 miles of
the Appalachian Trail, she never thought
taking a shower would be such a milestone.
Ms. Brown’s apartment building — which has bathrooms that are
accessible to people in wheelchairs, including roll-in showers — is a milestone
itself. The building, 6 North, opened in March 2005, and it was the first
large-scale residential building in the country where all the units were built
using what are called universal design principles. While building codes set a minimum standard
regarding accessibility, universal design is a relatively new concept that seeks
to go beyond those codes to make the built environment usable by all people
without the need for adaptation. This might include kitchen islands with
adjustable-height countertops, front-loading washers and dryers, roll-in
showers, and no-step entrances, eliminating the need for ramps. But the important point, according to
universal design advocates, is that it looks and feels like a normal apartment
building. Rather than relying on designs that can segregate people according to
their disability (impaired vision versus low mobility, for example), the intent
of universal design is to create products and environments usable by as many
people as possible, including people with no disabilities at all. Universal design is increasingly available,
but few if any other large-scale buildings have used the concept throughout an
entire building.
Colleen Starkloff and her husband, Max, who was paralyzed in a diving
accident as a young man, wanted to build a national model of universal
design. Through Paraquad, a nonprofit
organization they formed in 1970, they had been searching for a developer who
would undertake a universal design project.
It was 2003 when Richard D. Baron, the chairman and chief executive of
McCormack Baron Salazar, a nationally known builder of mixed-income urban
developments, contacted them with what he thought might be a potential site for
the project. “He called me and
said: ‘I think I have a good site. How many units do you want to be universal
design?’ I said: ‘Richard, I want all of them to be universal
design. That’s the point: universal.’
And he kind of hesitated and said, ‘O.K., we’ll make it work.’ ” Mr. Baron hired Andrew Trivers, founding
architect of Trivers Associates, to create a mixed-use environment for non-disabled
people as well as people with a wide range of disabilities. The building, in a St. Louis neighborhood
called the Central West End, is 95 percent leased, with only 20 units occupied
by people with disabilities, which is fine by Ms. Starkloff. “The whole point is
integration,” she said.
For Jacqueline Benoit, integration meant more than living next door to
people without disabilities, but being able to live with and take care of her
son Johnathan again. Ms. Benoit was on her way to work four years ago when a
driver struck her car. After six months of intensive care, she was able to
breath on her own again. But the accident left her partially paralyzed, and she
was sent to nursing homes for three years while her son stayed with relatives.
Ms. Benoit and Johnathan, now 7, moved into a two-bedroom, two-bath
apartment in 2005, which includes subtle design features like door handles
instead of knobs for easier grasping, a dishwasher and oven that are set into
the wall and raised about 18 inches off the ground (a usable height for people
standing and sitting), and a stove with control knobs in front of the unit
rather than toward the back. The design features make life more manageable for Ms.
Benoit, but the building also offers something for Johnathan. “He loves the weight room,” Ms. Benoit
said. “We go together and I work on my
arm. I’m happy to be alive and be able
to take care of my son.”
Before designing 6 North, Mr. Trivers had never used universal design
principles, but now he is a convert.
“This is the future,” he said. “People are living longer and because of
health care technology, they aren’t dying from accidents and disabilities the
way they used to. So the question is,
how do you design so it doesn’t look like it is for or is only usable by
someone with a specialized need?”
Richard C. Duncan, the senior project manager for the Center for
Universal Design, said: “Most people
think U.D. is a term that is synonym with accessible design. But it has this other element that is
different: a social equity
component. That is an invisible part of
the product. “So, for example, a ramp is
very difficult to integrate into the design of a building,” he continued. “We advocate for entrances that are step
free, that everyone can use, whether you have a problem with stairs or you’re
just carrying packages.”
Mr. Duncan
toured 6 North when it opened with other disability advocates and developers, and said the building was serving as a
model. “And that is progress because
what we don’t want are one-off projects, but full integration,” he said. Most “handicapped accessible” buildings, he
also pointed out, have two different apartment designs: “normal” units and
accessible units for people with disabilities.
“And neither are in fact very user friendly,” he said. “The point of universal design is integration
of design principles into all aspects of the built environment so as not to be
obvious for one or another.”
For instance, at 6 North, what looks like interior decoration is
actually intentionally contrasting colors to allow people with limited vision
to navigate the space. In the hallways,
carpeting in front of apartment entrances is darker to signal the door’s
location. Next to each entryway is a
small shelf, which looks like a nice design detail but is also a handy spot for
people to put down mail or packages while they open the door. This is, of
course, equally convenient for a parent carrying a baby or people with partial
paralysis.
Jacquelyn Kish is one such person with partial paralysis, the result of
a brain aneurysm and stroke she suffered 18 months ago. She moved into 6 North recently in order to
resume rescuing injured or abandoned animals, which she was forced to give up
when she was in a nursing home and lost her house as a result.
“I was told I shouldn’t leave the nursing home until I could walk,” Ms.
Kish said while petting one of her rescued cats. “But I was determined to live on my own
again. I can do that here.”
As for Ms. Brown, living independently is more important than having
hiked on the Appalachian Trail. “Being able to take care of yourself — you
don’t appreciate that until you’re told you can no longer do it,” she said.
“NEWS YOU CAN USE”
These items were brought to our
attention by our members:
1. Animals prescribed
by doctors for elderly may trump bans by resident associations
·
When a companion animal is prescribed by a doctor as a
medical necessity, the ADA
says that resident association bylaws may have to take a backseat. The companion animal is likely to be seen as
a “reasonable accommodation” for an elderly resident inasmuch as it will allow
him or her to have a better quality of life than would be the case without the
accommodation. More than 20 years ago
HUD recognized the value of companion animals for its elderly public housing
tenants and changed its regulations to allow them.
2. Aventura mayor
synchronizes lights and adds timers for crossing walks.
·
Susan Gottlieb, the mayor of Aventura, Florida,
has instituted a system of synchronized
crossing lights to make it easier for pedestrians to safely cross the
street. This innovation has been
especially helpful for those whose disabilities make it more difficult to
navigate crossing lights.
3. SmartNAV
·
This is from one of our members who suffers from severe
MS: The SmartNAV by NaturalPoint (a
company founded in 1997 to develop computer control devices for people with
disabilities) is a hands free ergonomic mouse for people with Carpal Tunnel
Syndrome, Repetitive Strain Injury and other special needs. Users can Increase productivity by simply
moving their heads to control their computers with this ergonomic mouse
alternative. Find out more at http://www.naturalpoint.com/smartnav.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
We hope that the
foregoing has helped you to achieve a fuller understanding of our work. Although much has been done, much more needs
to be done. The population of the U.S.
has just recently grown to 300,000,000 people and, given the ever-growing
percentage of those with disabilities, the need for greater and
further-reaching compliance with the A.D.A. continues to make itself all the
more obvious and necessary. It is our
fervent hope to continue to take part in this effort. With your help and encouragement we shall
persevere in making ever-greater strides in that direction.
“ACCESS NOW”®
OPERATES ENTIRELY ON PRIVATE CONTRIBUTIONS. WE HOPE THAT YOU SHARE OUR ENTHUSIASM FOR OUR
WORK AND THAT YOU MIGHT BE MOVED TO MAKE A DONATION TO HELP US CONTINUE. IT WOULD BE DEEPLY APPRECIATED!
Thank you all and
please:
IF YOU HAVE A
CHANGE OF POSTAL ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER OR EMAIL ADDRESS, PLEASE, PLEASE LET US
KNOW SO THAT WE CAN KEEP OUR FILES UPDATED AND SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO
COMMUNICATE WITH YOU.
BEST WISHES FOR
CONTINUED PROGRESS IN ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES!
****PLEASE DON’T
FORGET THE MEMBERSHIP FORM!!!****
Access Now, Inc.®
Phyllis F. Resnick,
President
