Advocacy – Page 70 – Delaware Association of the Deaf (DAD)

March 21, 2022

FCC Video Programming Accessibility Public Forum

Monday, March 28 | 1:00 – 3:45 pm ET
Watch the public forum.

The Federal Communications Committee’s (FCC’s) Media Bureau and Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau will co-host this second accessibility-related Forum focused on issues surrounding audio description.

Consumers currently watch a large volume of video programming online, but the availability of audio description online is inconsistent, even for video programming for which an audio description track already exists. The Video Programming Accessibility Forum – Online Audio Description will explore the state of audio description availability for online video programming, including current best practices and technical issues to overcome. The Forum also will explore ways to enhance accessibility, such as voluntary actions to promote online audio description.

The Forum will include two panels that will feature speakers such as television, cable, and online video programming distributors, as well as consumer advocates. Please see the Public Notice for the full agenda.

This is a public event and will be streamed live on fcc.gov/live and the FCC’s YouTube channel. We encourage the public and interested stakeholders to engage in this discussion by sending questions during the event to livequestions@fcc.gov . Commission staff will enter information about the panel, including all relevant public notices, the agenda, and a link to a video recording of the event, into the public record for this proceeding.

The meeting will be webcast with open captioning and sign language interpreters at www.fcc.gov/live.

** DAD Note: You may recall the recent Superbowl and other shows had captioning issues. This meeting is a good opportunity to highlight that the ‘automatic’ voice/audio captioning (aka: ASR) is unreliable and that we should go back to the old way using CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation) which produced more accurate captioning. Show producers wanted to save money and fought for ASR so this is your opportunity to highlight issues. **

March 14, 2022

TDI Now Accepting Applications for its 2022 Scholarship Program

** ASL Version can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRfnUbJc9Es. **

Scholarship Open to Graduating Deaf and Hard of Hearing High School Seniors- Deadline to Apply: May 13, 2022

Now in its fourth year, the TDI Communication Access Scholarship Program is accepting applications. This program is available to all deaf and hard-of-hearing students graduating from high school this year. The scholarship application encourages deaf and hard-of-hearing students to innovate and bring forth ideas for addressing the communication challenges that the deaf and hard-of-hearing community faces.

“We hope that through disbursing scholarship, more deaf and hard of hearing youth leaders are given a headstart to making an impact on advocating for accessibility, equity, and inclusion in information and communications technology,” said Mei Kennedy, TDI Scholarship chairperson. “Last year, we awarded six outstanding individuals and hope to see a growing number of applicants.”

“We are thrilled to continue providing scholarships to students pursuing their post-secondary education. TDI appreciates Ultratec, Sorenson, ZP Better Together, and Hamilton‘s continued support to this program ” noted Eric Kaika, CEO of TDI

All deaf and hard of hearing graduating high school seniors can apply online at TDIforAccess.org/Scholarship before May 13, 2022. Applications can also be mailed and must be postmarked by the deadline. Applicants will be notified before September of the award.

For full scholarship details on eligibility, requirements, and application, visit TDIforAccess.org/Scholarship

Source: https://tdiforaccess.org/tdi-now-accepting-applications-for-its-2022-scholarship-program.

February 14, 2022

HHS Issues New Guidance for Health Care Providers on Civil Rights Protections for People with Disabilities

Today, the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has issued new guidance to health care providers on civil rights protections for people with disabilities. The guidance, issued by HHS’ Office for Civil Rights, makes clear that in light of the continuing public health emergency, when resources can be scarce, it is vital that individuals with disabilities are not prevented from receiving needed health care benefits and services as this violates federal civil rights laws.

“Our civil rights laws stand no matter what, including during disasters or emergencies, and it is critical that we work together to ensure equity in all that we do for all patients,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “The pandemic has shone a light on the disparities in our health care system and provided us with a new opportunity to address them in a meaningful way. Protecting people with disabilities from being discriminated against in crisis situations is a critical part of this work, and we are continuing to evaluate our operations Department-wide to ensure accessibility.”

In today’s guidance, HHS clarified that federal civil rights laws apply to health care providers, including those administering COVID-19 testing, medical supplies, and medication. These rules also apply to entities providing hospitalization, long-term care, intensive treatments, and critical care, such as oxygen therapy and mechanical ventilators. Additionally, federal civil rights laws apply to state Crisis Standard of Care plans, procedures, and related standards for triaging scarce resources that hospitals are required to follow. The FAQs remind health care providers of their obligations under law and provide examples of applicability.

“During a public health emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, biases and stereotypes may impact decision-making when hospitals and other providers are faced with scarce resources,” said OCR Director Lisa J. Pino. “OCR will continue our robust enforcement of federal civil rights laws that protect people with disabilities from discrimination, including when Crisis Standards of Care are in effect.”

This guidance is one of many comprehensive action steps taken by HHS to support President Biden’s National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness to protect those most at risk, advance equity, and address disparities in rates of infection, illness, and death.

Learn more about how OCR is protecting civil rights during the COVID-19 pandemic.

– Thanks to ACL.gov.