On October 30th, a California Court of Appeal ruled individuals taking the
Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) may not rely on California's Unruh
Act, an antidiscrimination statute, to receive extra time while taking the
MCAT. The lawsuit began in 2004, when four plaintiffs requested the Association
of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) allow them extra time under the Unruh Act
as an accommodation for their reading-related learning disabilities or ADHD,
and the AAMC denied this accommodation. The court found the MCAT timing
standards were neutral standards "applicable alike" to all applicants, "regardless
of their disability or medical condition" and therefore, the case fell
outside the scope of the Unruh Act's protection.

An attorney for the AAMC expressed concerns that the California law lacks
clear guidelines for determining whether an individual is entitled to extra
time. However, the attorney further noted that the ADA's guidelines
were clearer, and test takers have received extra time via the ADA.

Full story:

Scott Jaschik, Appeals Court Rejects Use of State Law to Demand Time Extensions
on MCAT, Inside Higher Ed, November 3, 2008, available at

http://insidehighered.com/news/2008/11/03/mcat

Emily Green, a student at Augusta State University, has reached a settlement
with the University regarding a discrimination complaint. Ms. Green filed
her discrimination suit against the University for refusing her requested
accommodation of completing course requirements from home when she is sick
due to her digestive condition called cyclical vomiting syndrome. Ms. Green
filed her suit with the U.S. Department of Education. The Department's Civil
Rights Office mediated the resolution, whereby the University will allow
Ms. Green to resume where she left off before professors dismissed her for
excessive absences. Ms. Green views the decision as a victory in particular
for people with "invisible" disabilities
who may face increased obstacles to obtaining accommodations for their disabilities.

Full story:

Johnny Edwards, Student, University Settle Disability Dispute, Augusta Chronicle,
October 28, 2008, available at

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/102808/met_481136.shtml

Wanting to provide Americans with disabilities the educational opportunities
they deserve, President-elect Barack Obama and his Vice President-elect,
Joe Biden, intend to invest $10 billion per year in early intervention education
and developmental programs for children up to the age of five. These
investments will expand early childhood education programs including Head
Start and Early Learning Challenge Grants. Obama and Biden also believe more
funding is necessary for Vocational Rehabilitation programs, to ease the
transition from school to adulthood for people with disabilities. Obama has
pledged to initiate a study on access to higher education and transition
into the workforce for people with disabilities and to implement the necessary
legislation.

Full story:

Obama Biden, Barack Obama and Joe Biden's Plan to Empower Americans
with Disabilities, barackobama.com,
2008, available at

http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/DisabilityPlanFactSheet.pdf

According to Cheryl Theis, an education advocate with the Disability Rights
Education and Defense Fund, the organization has received calls from parents
across the country complaining about the use of time-out rooms by school
staff to discipline their children. Many of these reports include cases where
children have been restrained and left in isolated closets or rooms for hours
at a time, often without restroom breaks. According to some educators, "time-out
rooms are being used with increased frequency to discipline children with
behavioral disorders." Ken Merrell, head of the Department for Special Education
and Clinical Sciences at the University of Oregon, argues the use of time-out
rooms is a form of abuse and does not effectively modify children's behavior
because time out rooms are used as isolation booths and are sometimes unsafe.
Merrell says, however, there are ways to use time out rooms appropriately
by combining timeouts with social skills training.

Full story:

Michael Crumb, Some Experts Call School Time-out Rooms 'Abuse,' USA
Today, October 21, 2008, available at

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2008-10-20-time-out-discipline_N.htm

The Community School, or T.C.S., is a small private school educating teenage
boys with autism or related disorders. T.C.S. is one of about two dozen
schools in the country using a new teaching method called D.I.R./Floortime. This
method creates an environment where students can develop their strengths and
interests through working with other members of their school community. T.C.S.
believes the D.I.R./Floortime approach allows for more student-centered learning
because the model promotes curiosity, intelligence, playfulness and energy
through interactions with staff and students to solve problems and express
ideas. Researchers suggest students will gain necessary communication
and behavioral skills by allowing the students to be active participants in
their own education. Dave Nelson, founder of T.C.S., acknowledges the
many methods for teaching children with autism and realizes no one method
meets the needs of every student.

Full story:

Melissa Fay Greene, Reaching an Autistic Teenager, New York Times, October19,
2008, available at

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/magazine/19Autism-t.html?_r=1&em&oref=slogin

The AutoMARK, designed to provide individuals who physically cannot mark
a ballot to vote at polling places, made a debut in voting precincts across
the country in this year's national election. Specifically, polling
places in Erie County, New York, used the AutoMARK for the first time this
year. AutoMARKS have features to aid people with a range of disabilities,
including audio functions for individuals with visual impairments as well
as non-tactile functions for those who are unable to use the touchscreen.
The implementation of the AutoMARK is one example of how states are following
the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) passed in 2002, requiring every polling
place to have accessible voting machines for all individuals, including those
with disabilities. For more information about the AutoMARK, visit http://www.essvote.com/HTML/products/automark.html.

Full story:

Jay Rey and Jay Tokasz, Voter Turnout in Erie County Estimated at About 80%,
Buffalo News: City and Region, November 5, 2006, available at

http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/484622.html

For more information:

Mike Gaffney, Voting Booths for the Disabled, Wicked Local, GateHouse Media
New England, October 9, 2008, available at

http://www.wickedlocal.com/saugus/news/x1452588602/Voting-booths-for-the-disabled

The Act:

Help America Vote Act, United States Election Assistance Commission,

http://www.eac.gov/about/help-america-vote-act

The Impulse, a new Bluetooth Technology Access product, enables individuals
with degenerative and physical disabilities to control their computers using
any muscle surface, including face, jaw, neck, leg and arm muscles. AbleNet
created the access device in order for users to be wirelessly connected to
their computers at any time. The system uses an electrode to measure
and pick up minute muscle contractions allowing users to control tasks such
as typing and mouse movement. AbleNet sells their products for use in
more than 50 countries across the globe. For more information, visit www.ablenetinc.com.

Full story:

Marketwatch.com, AbleNet Announces New Communications Innovation with Impulse
Bluetooth Technology Access for Computers, Business Wire, October 15, 2008,
available at

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/ab...6B%7D&dist=hppr

The European Union-funded ENABLED project is developing seventeen new software
platforms and prototype devices to aid individuals with visual impairments.
One of the most recent innovative systems, VITAL, enables users to access
a map that is perceptible to their touch. VITAL users move a mouse-like cursor
over the map and small pins generate shapes under their palms, which indicate
the location of certain objects in a given area. For example, a square
block would represent a building and an "H" would symbolize a
hospital.

To complement VITAL, researchers have developed the Trekker, similar to
GPS devices used in cars, which enables individuals to navigate throughout
a given area. While Trekker only gives voice commands, the ENABLED
team has developed prototypes to disseminate directional information via
tactile feedback.

Full story:
Sciencedaily.com, Enabling the Blind to Find Their Way, October
27, 2008, available at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081024084738.htm

To empower Americans with disabilities "to take full advantage
of their talents and become independent, integrated members of society," Obama
promises to make significant changes to the current U.S. health care plan.
He pledged to sign a universal health care bill by the end of his first term
as president guaranteeing Americans with disabilities quality, affordable
and portable health care coverage they can keep regardless of employment.
Obama plans to provide people with disabilities who gain employment, who
lose their Medicare or Medicaid eligibility and who cannot afford health
care coverage a subsidy to purchase health care coverage. Obama's health
care plan further requires insurance providers to cover pre-existing conditions
and has vowed to require the coverage of serious mental illnesses at the
same level as other illnesses.

Full story:

Obama Biden, Barack Obama and Joe Biden's Plan to Empower Americans
with Disabilities, barackobama.com,
2008, available at

http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/DisabilityPlanFactSheet.pdf

The U.S. Social Security and Disability programs were not central to the
2008 presidential election; however, President-elect Obama's policies in
regards to these programs will greatly affect American citizens. An individual's
ability to claim Social Security Disability is dependent upon the future
of America's Social Security Program, and according to the Social Security
Administration (SSA), declining tax revenues and increasing numbers of retirees,
may exhaust the current Social Security system by 2041.

To resolve this issue, President-elect, Obama proposes to establish a National
Commission on People with Disabilities, Employment and Social Security to
study ways to improve the current SSI and SSDI programs. To streamline
the approval process, Obama suggests increased funding to SSA to hire more
judges, the key decision-makers on Social Security claims and disputes.

Full story:

Prweb.com, What Will a McCain or Obama Presidency Mean for Social Security
Disability?, November 4, 2008, available at

http://www.prweb.com/releases/McCain-Obama-Disability/Social-Security/prweb1565784.htm

A recent study conducted by British researchers found that Bayer AG and
Genzyme Corp's leukemia drug, Campath, regenerates brain cells and reverses the
effects of relapsing-remitting Multiple Sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune condition
where the immune system attacks the central nervous system. The study
also showed patients using Campath had a 74 percent reduction in the symptoms
of early stages of MS. Three years after the study, people on Campath
had better coordination, walked more quickly and had less brain tissue damage
than those who were not on the experimental drug. Patients on Campath
further showed an increase in brain volume, indicating brain repair. Researchers
believe Campath is more effective and safer than Tysabri, the leading MS drug
currently on the market. Campath will soon go into the final phase
of clinical trials, expecting market availability in four years.

Full story:

Redorbit.com, Leukemia Drug May Also Fight Multiple Sclerosis, October 23,
2008, available at

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1592367/leukemia_drug_may_also_fight_multiple_sclerosis/

In an expose series, the New York Times has reported the Long Island Rail
Road (L.I.R.R.) as having the nation's highest rate of early retirement
and disability claims despite its award-winning employee safety record. Furthermore,
L.I.R.R. has a suspiciously high rate of disability claims due in part to a
small group of disability consultants and physicians who approved the claims. Federal
investigators are now examining why L.I.R.R. retirees often use the same
physicians, and whether it relates to unprecedented amounts of disability
filings by the L.I.R.R.

Investigating agencies have not accused the consultants or doctors of wrongdoing,
noting the L.I.R.R.'s unique labor contract and permissive federal retirement
board are also factors in the high rates of disability claims. In 2004,
97 percent of L.I.R.R. career employees applied for and received disability
benefits, three times more than the average railroad. Further, reports
show that retired L.I.R.R. workers have received a quarter of a billion dollars
in federal disability payments since 2000.

Full story:

Walt Bogdanich, Doctors Eased Path for L.I.R.R. Disability Claims, New York
Times, October 26, 2008, available at

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/27/nyregi...ms&st=cse&scp=1

From December 10th to the 12th, 2008, the 27th annual Perspectives on Employment
of Persons with Disabilities Conference will take place at the Hyatt Regency
in Bethesda, Maryland. The conference, designed for federal human resources
and equal employment opportunity specialists, hiring managers, and other
people who manage employment matters dealing with persons with disabilities,
will provide the latest information on personnel policies and practices,
technological development, and legal updates and resources to help agencies
achieve their goals. Attendees will learn more about recruiting, hiring and
retaining federal employees with disabilities, and will hear from key officials
and experts knowledgeable in federal disability employment issues.

Conference information:

Graduate School, USDA, Perspectives on Employment of Persons with Disabilities
Conference, September 11, 2008, available at

http://www.grad.usda.gov

The Sierra Group Foundation (SGF) is sponsoring a ten-week tour covering
ten cities that began in Columbus, Ohio, on September 25 and will end on
November 21 in Jacksonville, Florida. The tour's focal point is the SGF's
One More Way national employment collaborative launched earlier this year
in Washington, D.C., and focuses on promoting a revolutionary “open
source” philosophy that "employment will increase if there is an
easier way for persons with disabilities, agencies and employers large and
small to connect with each other." Joining One More Way will
enable members to become part of a larger entity, with access to more employment
opportunities, resumes and support.

Full story:

Sierra Group Foundation, Red Letter Day for Americans with Disabilities: ADA
Amendments Act Signing and Start of One More Way National Tour, September
24, 2008, available at

http://www.onemoreway.org

Barack Obama's plan to empower Americans with disabilities includes supporting
legislation that will provide them with independent and community-based living
options. Examples of such legislation include

• Plans to provide additional grants to fund high-quality community-based
  settings for people with disabilities in support of Olmstead v. L.C., requiring
  states place individuals with mental disabilities in community settings (rather
  than institutions) when medical professionals deem such action appropriate,
  and


• The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act (CLASS), an
  act that would create a "voluntary, budget-neutral national insurance
  program" and provide adults with functional disabilities with
  benefits to be used for housing modifications, assistive technologies,
  or other supports enabling them to keep their jobs and remain in their
  homes and communities.

Full story:

Obama Biden, Barack Obama and Joe Biden's Plan to Empower Americans
with Disabilities, barackobama.com,
2008, available at

http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/DisabilityPlanFactSheet.pdf

Easter Seals Project ACTION is offering a seminar entitled "People on
the Move: Using all Transportation Options" as a free audio conference
and webinar. Intended to reach a much wider audience through the new
distance learning format, a lecture about traveling with service animals
will discuss the purpose of service animals, how to instruct others on appropriate
reactions to service animals, and facts about the ADA regarding service animals.
Project ACTION further provides text copies of informational packets, including
pocket guides to taxicabs and transit travel, FAQs, in-depth information
about service animals, and information about assisting passengers with service
animals on the project website.

For more information:

Easter Seals Project ACTION, Easter Seals Project ACTION Hosts Free Audio Conference,
2008, available at

http://projectaction.easterseals.com/sit...&autologin=true

Project website:

http://projectaction.easterseals.com

A man with mental disabilities died earlier this year in Washington, D.C.,
and University Legal Services, an advocacy group, stated the man frequently
sought the city's help, yet the city was unresponsive to his needs. According
to University Legal Services, the 65-year-old man was found in his apartment
alone and unconscious in human waste days before his death. In 2001,
D.C.'s Department on Disability Services knew the man needed help, but did
not approve his requests for housing or other services until 2007. Even
after approving the requests, city officials failed to follow through with
the approved help before he died. The city explained the difficulty with
approving the man's requests stemmed from the man's inability to
prove his diagnosis as an individual with mental disabilities occurred before
he turned 18, a national standard for mental retardation status. The
mayor of D.C., Adrian M. Fenty, expressed disappointment with the Department
and claimed the city would launch an investigation into the matter.

Full story:

Nafeesa Syeed, Report: DC Fails to Help Mentally Retarded Man, Examiner, October
21, 2008, available at

http://www.examiner.com/a-1649300%7EReport__DC_fails_to_help_mentally_retarded_man.html

REACH (Realizing Educational and Career Hopes) is a two-year certificate
program at the University of Iowa for young adults (18-25) with learning
and cognitive disabilities. Students live in the residence halls and participate
in university and community life. Core features of REACH include academic
enhancement, career development skills and internships, community integration,
interpersonal and social skills, university residential life, advising and
life skills support, computer training and e-portfolios®, and post-program employment support. Contact reach@uiowa.edu or
call 319-384-2127.

Full story:

Brian Morelli, Making College Life a Reality, Press-Citizen, October 15, 2008,
available at

http://www.press-citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081015/NEWS01/810150304/1079

For more information:

http://www.education.uiowa.edu/reach

Students at the League School of Greater Boston, a school for children with
autism, created a book that can help emergency preparedness and response
officials assist individuals with non-verbal or non-English communication
methods. The
book contains numbers, pictures and symbols that can help officials assist
individuals with such communication disabilities in times of need. For
example, one page contains a picture of the human body allowing individuals
to point to which part of their body is injured.

Full story:

Jeb Bobseine, Students Write the Book on Autism, Daily News Transcript, October
20, 2008, available at

http://www.dailynewstranscript.com/news/x999989338/Students-write-the-book-on-autism

On December 9th and 10th, in San Diego California, Government Horizons and
the National Council on Disability will be hosting a conference entitled, "Disability
and Special Needs Technical Assistance Conference Understanding the Four
Phases of Emergency Management." The goal of the conference is to focus
on the four phases--preparation, mitigation, response, and recovery--and
how people with "special needs" are affected at each of these phases. The
recent California wildfires and Midwest flooding emergencies will be discussed
along with hurricane response sessions and a design framework for targeting
individuals with "special needs" for outreach.

Conference information:

Government Horizons, Disability and Special Needs Technical Assistance Conference
Understanding the Four Phases of Emergency Management, 2008, available at

http://www.governmenthorizons.org/Disability-Special-Needs-Technical-Assistance.html

A delegation of Mexicans visited polling booths in Santa Cruz County, California,
on Election Day to monitor how the county is increasing voting access to
individuals with disabilities. In 2005, 75% of polling sites in the county
were found to be unaccommodating and/or inaccessible to people with disabilities.
Members of the delegation included representatives of Observatorio Cuidadano,
an organization working to increase voting access for individuals with disabilities
internationally. Many of the polling booths in the United States, including
in Santa Cruz County, have been working to make appropriate changes and improvements
since the last elections.

In Mexico, political and democracy groups, and representatives and advocates
for people with disabilities are working to ensure that Article 29 of the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is being
carried out. Article 29 states, "nations shall guarantee persons
with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to enjoy them on an
equal basis with others."

Full story

Jennifer Pittman, Mexican Delegation Visits Santa Cruz to Study Election Poll
Access, Mercury News, November 4, 2008, available at

http://www.mercurynews.com/centralcoast/ci_10897848

On October 31 and November 3, the first Conference of States Parties on
the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) took place
at the UN headquarters in New York City. The CRPD was established on December
13, 2006, "to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment
of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities,
and to promote respect for their inherent dignity." Countries
joining the Convention vow to be active in the development and implementation
of laws, policies and regulations that abolish discriminatory acts against
individuals with disabilities. The Conference of State Parties took
place this year selecting twelve individuals to serve as members of the Committee
on the Rights of People with Disabilities. These members are responsible
for the international monitoring of the CRPD and will hold two or three sessions
in Geneva each year.

For more information about the election, visit

http://www.internationaldisabilityalliance.org/forum.html.

Full story:

European Disability Forum, First Committee of Experts on Disability Rights
Convention Elected, 2008, available at

http://www.edf-feph.org/Page_Generale.asp?DocID=13854&thebloc=19445

For more information:

United Nations, Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, United
Nations Enable: Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, available
at

http://www.un.org/disabilities/

A new poll released in Canada on October 16, 2008, by the Job Opportunity
Information Network (JOIN) found that Canadians believe businesses are paying
more attention to environmental issues than to accommodating employees and
customers with disabilities. According to Susan Howatt, Chairperson of the
JOIN Toronto Region Board of Governors, the results of the study show Canadian
corporations need to find a "better balance between environmental stewardship
and improved accessibility and employment opportunities for people with disabilities." In
fact, results from a 2001 Statistics Canada Report suggest the unemployment
rate for individuals with disabilities was more than five times higher than
that of individuals without disabilities. The results from this study
can encourage Canadian corporations to take advantage of this untapped skilled
labor pool and offer employment options for the 24 percent of Canadians with
disabilities.

Full story:

TMCnet.com, Corporate Canada Needs to Make Disability Issues Equal Priority
with the Environment, Canada Newswire, October 16, 2008, available at

http://www.tmcnet.com/news/2008/10/16/3708847.htm

Australian officials have rejected the application for permanent residency
of a German national, saying the man's thirteen year-old son with Down
Syndrome would present a burden on taxpayers. In 2006, Dr. Bernard Moeller
and his family moved to Australia to fill a shortage of physicians in rural
areas. Dr. Moeller's son, Lukas, attends elementary school, where
he has an aide and receives speech therapy. Officials claim they based
their decision on the cost implications to the community and not on Lukas's
disability; thus, the officials say the decision as non-discriminatory in nature. Dr.
Moeller said officials failed to take into account Lukas's specific needs,
the family's ability to provide for his care, or Lukas's contribution
to the community. The decision has sparked tension among residents in
the Moellers's community.

Full story:

New York Times, Australia: No Residency for Boy with Down Syndrome, Associated
Press, November 1, 2008, available at

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-AS-Australia-Residency-Denied.html

Post Extras