History shows that market forces alone
are not enough to ensure accessibility for people with
disabilities. Legislation, regulations, and standards are
necessary for programs, products and services to be accessible
to and usable by people with hearing loss. Over the past
two decades several laws have been passed to eliminate
discrimination on the basis of disability and to enhance
accessibility to public places, work places, telecommunications,
schools, government and businesses. HLA, together with
other consumer and professional organizations, works not
only to pass legislation to improve the quality of life
of people with hearing loss but also to push for implementation
and strong enforcement of the laws.
=
Hearing Loss Association of America sponsors national forum on disability issues featuring 2008 presidential candidates (invited). July 26, 2008 Columbus, Ohio 12:30 - 3:30 PM, ET.
Hearing Loss Association of America is pleased to count ourselves among the more than 60 sponsors of the National Forum on Disability Issues. The event will be held on July 26, 2008, the 18th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act in Columbus Ohio. Presidential Candidates have been invited to attend and the forum is open to over a 1000 people in the disability community. CART will be available, as will sign language interpreters. We are able to sponsor this important event thanks to a generous donation from former president of HLAA, Marcia Finisdore.
Event Summary:
The National Forum on Disability Issues, featuring the 2008 Presidential Candidates (invited) is a historic, nonpartisan forum on national disability policy to be held on July 26, 2008 in Columbus, Ohio at the Conference & Technology Center of the First Church of God - an accessibility-friendly venue that will accommodate our large numbers of attendees.
The forum will feature time slots for the presidential candidates to individually present their visions for the future of disability policy in America (including employment, healthcare, long-term community-based supports, transportation, education, etc.) followed by questions by Judy Woodruff, news anchor and journalist ("The News Hour with Jim Lehrer"), who will act as the moderator.
This presidential candidates forum builds on the success of our November primary-focused forum in New Hampshire, where the disability community made history with its first-ever disability presidential candidates forum with participation from seven presidential candidates, five of them in person.
Unique Qualities:
This is a historic, nonpartisan, cross-disability event - THE disability event of this election cycle through which the candidates can reach voters with disabilities, their families, caregivers, advocates, and friends
Over 1,000 in-person from Ohio and surrounding states
Tens of thousands listening and watching via simultaneous webcast from across the country at webcast "viewing parties"
The forum will also be broadcast live start to finish over all Ohio radio reading services, giving access to the event to people with disabilities who don't have a computer and aren't able to attend to attend the event in person
Coincides with 18th anniversary of the ADA, making this a ready-made event to commemorate our great civil-rights law
The event has garnered the sponsorship of over 60 national, state, and local disability-related groups, making this a truly community-owned event
Several major disability veterans groups are sponsoring this event
AARP is sponsoring this event
News anchor and journalist Judy Woodruff (PBS, "The News Hour with Jim Lehrer") is moderating the event
Candidates' speeches and answers to questions will be simultaneously captioned and translated by American Sign Language interpreters at the event
Other Important Facts:
The disability community is a large constituency, representing over 50 million Americans, over 37 million of whom are voting age and approximately 31 million Americans have a hearing loss. Add to that figure our friends, families, caregivers, and supporters, and the importance of addressing disability policy issues becomes even clearer.
Hearing Loss Association of America, with our chapter members across the country are proud sponsors of this event. We would like to see both candidates have an opportunity to present their positions at this important event.
=======================
The Americans with
Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008 passes the United States
House of Representatives by huge margin: 402-17!
The Americans with Disabilities Act has transformed the
nation since its enactment in 1990. The ADA was intended
to protect people with disabilities from discrimination at
work and in public life. Unfortunately, over the last
decade Supreme and lower court decisions have excluded large
groups of people with disabilities from receiving the employment
protections. Men and women, veterans, young adults,
aging Americans – the backbone of communities and
families – are caught in a Catch-22 and are often treated
as “too disabled” to work but ruled “not
disabled enough” to be qualified for equal rights under
the ADA. Further, these judicial restrictions block
people with conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes, multiple
sclerosis, cancer, heart disease and bipolar disorder – those
whom Congress clearly intended to protect under the ADA in
1990 – from seeking protections against employment
discrimination under the ADA. The ADA Amendments
Act of 2008 will re-establish these protections.
On Wednesday, July 18, the House Education and Labor Committee
and the House Judiciary Committee substituted the proposed
language crafted by the disability and employer community
for the original language, and passed the bills out of committee
by overwhelming vote. The House Judiciary Committee was unanimous
in its support for the bill as amended (27-0), and the Education
and Labor Committee passed it 43-1. Only Representative Tom
Price (R-GA) opposed the bill in committee.
Hearing Loss Association supports the bill as amended. Employment
issues are a real concern to people with hearing loss. We
want to see people with hearing loss get the accommodations
they need to get the job and to stay on the job. We believe
this bill will help make that happen.
What follows is the letter we sent to Speaker Pelosi in
support of the ADA Amendments Act of 2008.
We urge you to write your representative in support of this
bill today!
June 23, 2008
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Office of the Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515
Via fax 202-225-4188
RE: Support the ADA Amendments
Act of 2008
Dear Madam Speaker:
The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) urges you
to support the ADA Amendments Act of 2008.
The Hearing Loss Association of America is the largest consumer
membership organization for people with hearing loss in the
United States. Our mission is to open the world of communication
for people with hearing loss through information, education,
advocacy and support. We support the Consortium for Citizens
with Disabilities (CCD) – a coalition of over 100 national
consumer, advocacy, provider, and professional organizations
who advocate on behalf of people of all ages with physical
and mental disabilities and their families to urge passage
of the ADA Amendments Act this session.
CCD has joined with this nation’s most prominent business
trade organizations – including the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, Society
for Human Resource Management and HR Policy Association -
to help secure the promise of the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA). The U.S. House Judiciary and House Education
and Labor Committees overwhelmingly supported the ADA Amendments
Act of 2008. As you consider this legislation
on the House floor, our alliance of disability, business,
faith, veterans, and civil rights advocates urge
you to pass the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 as
reported out of committee, without amendments.
The Americans with Disabilities Act has transformed the
nation since its enactment in 1990. The ADA was intended
to protect people with disabilities from discrimination at
work and in public life. As Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner
stated at the House Judiciary Committee mark-up, “The
ADA has been one of the most effective civil rights laws
passed by Congress. Its continued effectiveness is
paramount to ensuring that the transformation that our nation
has undergone continues in the future and that the guarantees
and promises on which this country was established continue
to be recognized on behalf of all its citizens.”
Unfortunately, over the last decade Supreme and lower court
decisions have excluded large groups of people with disabilities
from receiving the employment protections. Men and
women, veterans, young adults, aging Americans – the
backbone of communities and families – are caught in
a Catch-22 and are often treated as “too disabled” to
work but ruled “not disabled enough” to be qualified
for equal rights under the ADA. Further, these judicial
restrictions block people with conditions such as epilepsy,
diabetes, multiple sclerosis, cancer, heart disease and bipolar
disorder – those whom Congress clearly intended to
protect under the ADA in 1990 – from seeking protections
against employment discrimination under the ADA. The ADA Amendments
Act of 2008 will re-establish these protections.
Hearing Loss Association of America has heard directly from
our supporters that employment issues are a real concern
to them. Veterans returning from Iraq have hearing
loss in significant numbers (http://www.asha.org/about/publications/leader-online/archives/2006/060321/060321g.htm)
and baby boomers are beginning to age into hearing loss. In
fact, Newsweek predicted there would be some 78
million people with hearing loss of all ages in 2030 (Newsweek,
June 2005). Many of these people want to work and are
able to work with accommodations on the job.
The employer and disability community believe that there
is an opportunity in this Congress to improve the ADA and
address issues that have been raised by court decisions. The ADA Amendments
Act of 2008 is the product of meaningful negotiations
and discussions with experts in the disability community,
business and employer groups, Members of Congress, and congressional
staff. This legislation strikes a good balance between
protections for individuals with disabilities and the interests
of business and employers. All involved have worked
to craft legislation that will ensure all Americans have
a fair opportunity to secure employment.
Hearing Loss Association supports this legislation in concert
with CCD and many other national disability and business
organizations. The employer and disability communities understand
the benefit of this legislation for both employers and employees
because it puts more Americans to work. We
urge you to support the ADA Amendments Act of
2008 as reported out of committee without amendments.
Sincerely,
Brenda Battat
Executive Director
=======================
ACTION ALERT!
21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility
Act HR 6320 Introduced
The 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility
Act is being introduced TODAY in the House of Representatives
with bipartisan sponsorship by Ed Markey (D-MA) and Heather
Wilson (R-NM). Hearing Loss Association of American
is one of over 200 organizations that are part of the Coalition
of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT). We strongly
support the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility
Act.
IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED:
Call or fax today to encourage your member of Congress to
become a sponsor of this bill.
The top priority today is to get the support of members
of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which must
be the first to pass the bill. Your calls and faxes are needed! The
official list of committee members is at:
Please contact them today if you can; if not, within the
next week. We've already had hearings with this committee,
so members should have basic knowledge of the need for this
bill.
If you don’t have a representative sitting on the
House Committee on Energy & Commerce, you can still encourage
your local representative to sign on at any time, the sooner
the better. If you want to contact to your own Congressional
representative, and are not sure who it is, click on the
following: https://forms.house.gov/wyr/welcome.shtml This
will take you to a link that allows you to send a note to
that individual.
When you contact your representative, mention why this is
important to you: e.g. you, a friend, a family member, neighbor,
co-worker, etc. needs the accessibility protections it will
provide, many of which we once had and are now in danger
of losing.
Give an example or two such as: no video news reports with
captions on the web, the critical need for technology for
individuals who are deaf and blind, ensuring that phone-type
products for the internet are hearing aid compatible.
The message is: We need this bill so that we are not
left behind as technologies continue to advance. We
want the same access to video programming and communications
as everyone else has. Please support this law to bring
the laws protecting access by people with disabilities into
the 21st Century.
21st Century Communications and Video
Accessibility Act of 2008
HR 6320
COMMUNICATIONS ACCESS
Requires access to phone-type
equipment and services used over the Internet
Current law: Section
255 of the Communications Act only requires access to telecommunications
product and services
Adds improved accountability
and enforcement measures for accessibility, including a
clearinghouse, outreach, and reporting obligations by providers
and manufacturers
Requires phone-type products
used with the Internet to be hearing aid compatible (HAC)
Current law: HAC
is required on all wireline and many wireless phones
Allows use of Lifeline and Link-up
universal service funds (USF) for broadband services
Current law: Discounts
are only available for products, services on telephone network
Allocates up to $10 million/year
from USF for equipment used by people who are deaf-blind
Requires support for real-time
text data transmissions to facilitate access to next generation
9-1-1 systems by people with hearing loss
Clarifies scope of relay services
to include calls between and among people with disabilities and
requires Internet-enabled service providers to contribute
to the interstate relay fund
Current law: interpreted
by FCC to only cover calls between people with disabilities
and people without disabilities; only PSTN-based and VoIP
service providers must contribute
VIDEO PROGRAMMING ACCESS
Requires closed captioning decoder
circuitry in all video programming devices, including PDAs,
computers, iPods, cell phones, DVD players, TIVO devices
and battery-operated TVs
Current law: Decoder
circuitry is only required on TVs with screens at least 13
inches
Extends closed captioning obligations
to television-type video programming distributed over the
Internet: covers web-based video services that offer
previously shown television programs and live video
streaming that would otherwise be covered by the FCC’s
captioning rules
Current law: Closed captions
required on most televised analog and digital broadcast,
cable and satellite TV shows
Requires easy access to user
interfaces (controls) on video programming devices by people
with disabilities, including audio output for people who
are blind and visually impaired and one-button access on
remote controls to closed captioning and video description
functions
Restores FCC’s video description
rules and applies them to digital programming
Requires access to televised
emergency information via audio output for on-screen text
by people who are blind or visually impaired
Requires audio access to on-screen
program selection menus displayed on video programming
devices for people who are blind or visually impaired
======================
Equal Access to Technology
for People with Hearing and Vision Loss COAT Hearing on the Hill
By Lise Hamlin Director of Public Policy and State Development
May 1, 2008, Washington, D.C.: The U.S.
House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce,
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet held
a hearing on “draft legislation enhancing access to
broadband technology and services for persons with disabilities.” The
draft legislation is titled, “21st Century Communications
and Video Programming Accessibility Act.”
Hearing Loss Association of American and many HLAA chapters
are founding members of the Coalition of Organizations for
Accessible Technology (COAT). COAT has been a champion of
the draft legislation since its release in December. The
nearly 200 members of COAT agree that legislation that ensures
equal access to technology for people who are hard of hearing,
deaf, blind and who have low vision is long overdue.
The Congressional hearing room was packed with disability
advocates, industry representatives and interested parties.
Spotted in the audience were many members of the COAT coalition,
including representatives and members of Hearing Loss Association,
Communication Services for the Deaf, the National Association
of the Deaf, American Association of People with Disabilities,
American Association of Deaf-Blind, Alexander Graham Bell
Association for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing, American
Council of the Blind, American Foundation of the Blind, VITAC,
and Snap! VRS. Also attending was I. King Jordon, past president
of Gallaudet University, who was recognized and welcomed
by the chair of the subcommittee, Representative Edward Markey,
and by Ranking Member Cliff Sterns.
Chairman Markey set the tone, opening the hearing with comments
that the regulations as they stand now are antiquated in
the face of rapid advances in technology. He noted that technology
is only good if we can access it, and as the population ages
there will be more of us who need to find ways to access
new technology.
Chairman Markey also mentioned that the resistance coming
from the communications industry was “eerily similar” to
opposition he faced when battling to enact the original closed-captioning
law in 1990, with the help, he noted, of I. King Jordon and
other disability advocates.
The chairman recalled, “We were told that mandating
closed captioning would add $20 to the price of a TV set
and that it was overly burdensome, would crush the industry,
it would take a lifetime and a fortune to caption all the
movies and television programs out there….today, not
only is it indispensable to millions of individuals who are
deaf or hard of hearing, but closed captioning is used by
immigrant families to help them learn the language and seen
in sports bars across the country…and it didn’t
cost remotely $20, it cost about $1 per TV.”
Members of the subcommittee who spoke indicated the draft
legislation provided a way that new technology could include
people, and ensure that when it comes time to access new
technology, no one is left behind.
Witnesses
Witnesses at the hearing speaking for COAT were: Russell
Harvard, deaf actor who played in the movie There Will
Be Blood, Jamaal Anderson, professional football player
for the Atlanta Falcons and son of Glenn Anderson, Ph.D.,
past chair of Gallaudet University Board of Trustees. Sergeant
Major Jesse R. Acosta, U.S. Army, veteran of the war in Iraq
where he was blinded while on active duty testified on behalf
of the Americans Council of the Blind and who is a member
of COAT.
The COAT witnesses testified with passion and a good dose
of humor. They spoke of the burdens faced when accessing
new technology.
Russell Harvard recounted the problems in the early days
of captioning when the close- captioned decoder boxes his
family purchased often overheated, making captions unreadable
for their favorite programs. That didn’t change until
Congress required all televisions over 13” include
a decoder chip. In the same way, the new legislation would
bring Internet access by ensuring captioning on the Internet
and devices smaller than 13” being able to decode
the captions. For Russell Harvard, access to movies and
television is not simply an issue of enjoying the same
entertainment as everyone else, it’s a matter of
being able to have access to the tools of his profession.
Jamaal Anderson spoke poignantly of his recent draft
onto the NFL team. Video clips of the draft selection were
posted on the web, but without captions, forcing his father
to find someone to act as an interpreter to watch his own
son. Jamaal urged support for equal access to mainstream
Internet products included in the draft legislation as
well as inclusion of broadband services for Lifeline and
Link-Up services, and hearing-aid-compatible telephones
that connect to the Internet.
Sergeant Major Jesse Acosta was amazed that his-30-year
old Chrysler LeBaron included technology that would voice
when the systems needed maintenance, but that he could
not get voice access to products like DVRs and cable boxes. This,
he said was “beyond me.” He felt that the legislation
would be a big step forward by allowing more devices to
be accessible to people who are blind or have low vision
with video description, with the possibility of creating
way for onscreen emergency information presented in text
to be voiced, and to allow audio output for on screen menus.
Other witnesses were: Larry Goldberg, director, Media Access,
WGBH Boston; K. Dane Snowden, VP, External and State Affairs,
CTIA, The Wireless Association; and Ken Nakata, Director
of Disability Initiatives & Government Compliance for
BayFirst Solutions LLC.
Larry Goldberg from WGBH provided videos that demonstrated
captioning on the web and video description. He noted that
the courts had overruled the FCC’s video description
requirement, arguing that Congress hadn’t clearly
stated its intention to require description. The new legislation
would clarify Congress’ intent. He also noted that “many
hurdles remain to make captioning of web-based media as
pervasive as it is on television.” In his testimony
and the questions from the members following his testimony,
it was clear that market pressures often don’t help
the community of people with disabilities achieve equal
access.
Dane Snowden emphasized the work the wireless industry
has already done to provide access to people with disabilities.
He argued against the use of the “readily achievable” as
the standard in any new legislation; that the legislation
should not be enforced by “private right of action” litigation
(i.e., the right of individuals to bring a case to court),
and that the legislation should not impose new reporting
requirements on either service providers or manufacturers.
He said, “As currently drafted, the proposed legislation
would unnecessarily burden the industry with little countervailing
benefit to the disability community.”
Ken Nakata indicated he supported the goals of the legislation
but argued against including a private right of action
and he argued against holding industry to a high standard,
the “undue burden” standard, to ensure that
equipment and services are usable by people with disabilities.
Chairman Markey’s questions after the panel spoke
focused much attention on the wireless lobby, asking carriers
and device manufacturers to help him set a deadline under
which to work out new standards governing communication access
for people with disabilities. “It’s amazing how
much can get done under a deadline,” Markey said.
Snowdon, representing the wireless industry, indicated their
willingness to work with the subcommittee.
At the end of day, it was clear that the subcommittee and
even witnesses were aware that it was not a matter of whether
this kind of legislation would move forward, but when.
Congress
holds Hearings May 1 on Communication Access in the Internet Age
House Subcommittee on Telecommunications
and the Internet
Hearings On Draft Legislation Enhancing Access to Broadband
Technology and Services for Persons with Disabilities
WHEN: May
1, 2008, 9:30 AM
WHERE: Room 2123 Rayburn
House Office Building
Advocates are encouraged to attend this hearing and help
pack the room. Celebrity witnesses will be testifying regarding
their concerns about the absence of hearing aid compatibility
of "Internet" phones, a lack of video description
on television, so little captioning of Internet videos, the
absence of funds for phone equipment for deaf-blind persons,
and about other inaccessible communication technologies.
The proposed legislation, the subject of the panel, reflects
the agenda of the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible
Technology (COAT) http://www.coataccess.org/node/1 a
coalition formed in March 2007 of over 185 affiliate members.
Hearing Loss Association is a founding member of COAT, and
many of our chapters belong as local members. If you want
more information about joining COAT, contact Lise Hamlin
at LHamlin@hearingloss.org
Sign language interpreters will be present and the hearing
will be captioned both in the hearing room and on the Internet
broadcast.
The final list of celebrity panelists who support the proposed
legislation or "Witness List" will be released
soon.
TAKE ACTION: If you cannot attend, please
be sure to call your House member who may be on the Committee
and ask them to attend this important Hearing to learn more
of our concern about people with disabilities left behind
as communication technologies migrate to the Internet. View
a list of Representatives, their telecom staffers and phone
numbers, or call via House switchboard at 202-224-3171 (voice)
or 202-224-3091 (TTY).
Please let Lise Hamlin LHamlin@hearingloss.org know
if you are planning to attend the House Hearing on Thursday
May 1st, in Washington DC.
ACTION ALERT! OUR FRIENDS
NEED OUR HELP!
ASK CONGRESS TO SUPPORT TRAINING OF REALTIME WRITERS TODAY!
Our friends at the National Court Reporters Association
(NCRA) report:
NCRA's effort to secure passage of legislation to provide
training for realtime writers has reached a critical juncture.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a version of the
Higher Education Reauthorization bill that includes language
to create a grant program to train realtime writers to provide
captioned information and communication for people who are
deaf and hard-of-hearing nationwide.
The Senate earlier passed its own version of the bill containing
numerous differences from the one passed by the House. The
Senate and House are currently meeting to reconcile the differences
between the two versions and compile one final bill to be
voted on and sent to the President for his signature or veto.
The Senate twice before has unanimously passed a Training
for Realtime Writers bill, only to see the House fail to
act. So it is vital that NCRA members write to your respective
Members of Congress to express your support for keeping our
realtime writer training language in the final Higher Education
Reauthorization bill.
Please, take just a couple of minutes to go online and e-mail
your support to Capitol Hill.
HLAA has long supported training of realtime writers. The
more trained realtime writers, the more likely people with
hearing loss will get the kind of access we need.
Send in a letter of support to by using the following text
and simply adding your name and address and your representative’s
name, or draft your own letter and email it to your representative.
Don’t know who your representative is? Not sure how
to find him or her? Just go to the following website
to contact your representative: http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml
Whatever you do, be sure to send your letter soon!
Sample letter:
[Your information to be inserted here]
Firstname Lastname
123 Street Address
MyCity, St 12345
April 25, 2008
[Your Congressional Representative’s
information should be here]
The Honorable Firstname Lastname
123 Street Address
Washington, DC 12345
Dear [Official's Title and Name should be inserted here]:
I am writing to urge you to keep the Program to Promote
Training and Job Placement of Realtime Writers in the final
version of the conference bill on the Higher Education Reauthorization
Act.
The language creates competitive grants for court reporting
programs nationwide to support realtime writing and captioning
initiatives to provide access for people with hearing loss.
Funding for these programs will help ensure that there are
enough realtime writers and captioners to meet the requirements
mandated by the 1996 Telecommunications Act, and thereby
provide full and effective communication access to the 30
million deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans who depend on
these services.
As you may know, the 1996 Telecommunications Act requires
100% of all new programming to be captioned by 2006. The
closed captioning and CART (Communication Access Realtime
Translation) services that court reporters provide to the
deaf and hard-of-hearing community are essential to meeting
this promise made by Congress. These services allow 30 million
deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans to access vital information
immediately. If this language is not included in the final
bill, the needs of the deaf and hard-of-hearing community
will not be met and, in some cases, programming of critical
live news (in the case of severe or dangerous weather or
national disasters) may not be available to that community,
putting Americans at risk.
[If you have a story about how CART has helped you, include
that here]
Thank you for your attention to this request. I hope that
you will work with your colleagues to ensure that this essential
communication access is provided for and the language remains
in the final version of the bill. Congress has a great opportunity
to provide grants to train these reporters and ensure that
the deaf and hard-of-hearing community has full access to
all television programming.
The cited statutes may be accessed
by going to http://www.gpoaccess.gov.uscode/index.html and
entering into the “Search” box, the title
number, the letters “USC” and the section
number (e.g., 47USC255).
Telecommunications Act of 1996, as amended (Sections
255 and 713). (Regulated by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC))
Section
255 (47 USC § 255)requires manufacturers
of telecommunications equipment and providers of
telecommunications services to ensure that such equipment
and services are accessible to and usable by persons
with disabilities, if readily achievable. Products
and services covered include telephones, cell phones,
pagers, call-waiting, and operator services. The
FCC regulations are found at Title 47,
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 6 and 7 (47
CFR Parts 6 and 7).
Section
713 (47 USC § 613)requires the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to issue
regulations to ensure that video programming is fully
accessible through closed captioning, with limited
exceptions. The FCC regulations are found at 47
CFR Part 79.
Television Decoder Circuitry Act (47 USC §§ 303(u)
and 330(b)). (Administered by the Federal Communications
Commission)
This legislation amended the Telecommunications Act
to require all televisions with screens larger than 13
inches (diagonally), and digital television receivers
that are 7.8 inches or larger (vertically), and cable
boxes be manufactured with internal circuitry that can
receive, decode, and display closed captions.
American with Disabilities Act (ADA) (42 USC §§ 12101 et
seq.). The ADA prohibits discrimination
on the basis of disability in employment, Sate and
local government, public accommodations, commercial
facilities, transportation, and telecommunications. Requirements
regarding employment are addressed below. The
ADA requirements regarding telecommunications are
codified as section 255 of the Telecommunications
Act, discussed above.
To be protected by the ADA, one must have a disability
or have a relationship or association with an individual
with a disability. A person with a disability is
defined as one who has an impairment that substantially
limits a major life activity (e,g., hearing), that substantially
limited a major life activity in the past, or one who
is regarded or treated by others as if the impairment
(e.g., hearing loss) is substantially limiting.
This determination is made on case-by-case basis. Under
current law, if a person uses a “mitigating device” such
as a hearing aid or cochlear implant, that may be considered
in determining if the protections of the ADA are available.
Title
I: Employment (42 USC § 12111 et seq.) (Regulated
by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC))
This title of the ADArequires employers
with 15 or more employees to provide qualified individuals
with disabilities an equal opportunity to benefit from
the full range of employment-related benefits, including
hiring, promotions, training, pay, and social activities. It
requires that employers make reasonable accommodation
to the known physical limitations of otherwise qualified
individuals, unless it results in undue hardship. The
EEOC regulations are found at 29 CFR Part
1630.
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (Sections
501, 503, 504 and 508) Section 501(29
USC § 791) (Regulated by the EEOC)
This section requires affirmative action and nondiscrimination
in employment by Federal agencies. Regarding employees
with disabilities (the definition is the same as under
the ADA), Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodations
unless doing so would impose an undue hardship. The
EEOC regulations are found at 29 CFR § 1614.203.
Section 503 (29 USC § 793) (Regulated by the Department of Labor, Office
of Federal Compliance Programs)
This section requires affirmative action and prohibits
discrimination by Federal government contractors and
subcontractors. The implementing regulations are
found at 41 CFR § 60-741.
Section 504 (29 USC § 794) (Regulated separately by more than 20 agencies
for federal financial assistance programs)
This section provides that qualified individuals with
disabilities hall not “excluded from, denied the
benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under” any
program activity that receives Federal financial assistance
(e.g., Federal grants). Each Federal agency has
its own Section 504 regulations and is responsible for
enforcing them.
Section 508 (29 USC § 794d)requires Federal
electronic and information technology to be accessible to people with disabilities,
including employees and members of the public.
Hearing Aid Compatibility Act (47 USC § 610) (Regulated by the Federal Communications Commission)
This section of the Telecommunications Act requires
all telephones manufactured or imported for use in the
U.S. and all essential phones, such s those provided
for emergency use, be compatible with hearing aids. In
2003, by regulation, the FCC set a 5-year timetable for
the development and sale of digital wireless phones that
are compatible with hearing aids and cochlear implants. The
regulations, found at 47 FCR § 20.19,
are undergoing revision, and an adjusted timetable is
expected to result.
Fair Housing Act (42 USC §§ 3601 et
seq.) (Regulated by the Department of Housing and
Urban Development)
This legislationprohibits discrimination
in any aspect of selling or renting housing to deny a
dwelling to a buyer or renter because of the disability
of that individual, an individual associated with the
buyer or renter, or an individual who intends to live
in the residence. The Department of Housing and Urban
Development regulations are found at 24 CFR
Parts 100 et seq..
Air Carrier Access Act (49 USC § 41705) (Regulated by the Department of Transportation)
This statute prohibits discrimination in air transportation
by domestic and foreign air carriers against individuals
with physical impairments. Requirements cover a
wide range of issues, including the requirement that
passengers with hearing impairments must be given timely
access to the same information provided to other passengers
both at the airport and on the airplane. The type
of information includes safety, gate assignments, and
delayed flights. The Department of Transportation
regulations are found at 14 CFR Part 382.
Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped
Act (42 USC §§ 1973ee et seq.) and
Help America Vote Act (42 USC §§ 15301 et
seq.) generally that polling places and voting
machines across the U.S. be accessible to people with
disabilities.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(20 USC §§ 1400 et seq.) (Regulated by the Department of Education)
This legislation requires public school systems to provide
a “free, appropriate public education” to
children who need specialized services because of a disability. It
establishes procedures for developing an individual education
program and identifying needed support services for individual
children. The Department of Education regulations
are found at 34 CFR Part 300.
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HR 2329.
HEARING AID ASSISTANCE TAX CREDIT ACT. WHAT IS IT EXACTLY?
HR 2329 provides a tax credit of up to $500
per hearing aid, available once every 5 years, towards the
purchase of such hearing aid, available to: 1) individuals
age 55 and over, or 2) those purchasing a hearing aid for
a dependent.
Currently 1.28 million Americans of all ages
purchase hearing aids each year, with some individuals requiring
two devices, bringing the total number of hearing aids purchased
across all age groups to approximately 2 million. This number
has remained constant over recent years.
HR 2329 would provide a potential benefit to
a population of around 2 million individuals, many of who
cite financial reasons as the primary barrier to treatment,
and would be available once every 5 years. HR 2329 is not
intended to cover the full cost of hearing aids, but will
simply provide some measure of financial assistance to the
groups who are most in need of these devices but are unable
to afford them: those approaching or in retirement, and families
with children.
Why do we need this special tax treatment for
hearing aids?
• While 95% of individuals with hearing
loss could be successfully treated with hearing aids, only
22% (6.35 million Americans) currently use them according
to the most recent ‘MarkeTrak’ report, the largest
national consumer survey on hearing loss in America.
• It is estimated that there are 31 million Americans
with hearing loss. Included in this figure are 1 million children
under the age of 18 with a diagnosed hearing loss who are
not now using a hearing aid, and around 9.7 million Americans
age 55 and over.
• 40% of individuals with hearing loss have incomes
of less than $30,000 per year. A Department of Commerce study
indicates that the overall family income of people with hearing
loss is almost half that of the general population.
• 30% of those with hearing loss cite financial constraints
as a core reason they do not use hearing aids, according to
a MarkeTrak report.
• The average cost for a hearing aid in 2002 was over
$1,400, and almost 2/3 of individuals with hearing loss require
two devices, thereby increasing the average out of pocket
expense to over $2,800.
• Hearing aids are not covered under Medicare, or under
the vast majority of state mandated benefits. In fact, 71.4%
of hearing aid purchases involve no third party payments,
which place the entire burden of the hearing aid purchase
on the consumer, according to ‘MarkeTrak’.
As of October 2007 HR 2329 had 60 cosponsors and the Senate
Bill, S 1410 had 7. To see if your Senator or Congressional
Representative is a co sponsor of the Hearing Aid Tax Credit
go to
