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The Washington Connection 3-10-25

Welcome to the Washington Connection, the legislative and information service of the American Council of the Blind. The Washington Connection is brought to you by the ACB national office. If you have any questions or comments on the information provided, don’t hesitate to contact us and ask to speak with Claire Stanley.

The Washington Connection is updated any time we have new information to share with you. The following articles are available as of March 10, 2025. Messages 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are new.

Thank you for calling the Washington Connection.

How to Support the D.C. Leadership Conference

 

Registration for the D.C. Leadership Conference is now closed. If you are unable to attend the conference either virtually or in-person but would like to help cover costs for the event such as streaming the event, visit https://bit.ly/3WhWmV9.

 

What Are This Year’s Legislative Imperatives?

 

Advocacy can be a slow process. It often feels as if we are working on the same projects year after year. But we should never use that as an excuse to stop advocating. The authors of the U.S. Constitution made the process to create law and govern the nation to be a slow process with a multitude of checks and balances. Things are not supposed to happen quickly. They intended to make the process slow to make sure that power is never abused or used inappropriately.

So, this month, as we look toward the March D.C. Leadership Conference, let’s not be discouraged that many of the imperatives are familiar to us. Just because they have not been passed into law yet, each time they are reintroduced, we push the ball just a little further down the field. The process is slow, but it’s important.

The Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act

The majority of home use medical devices and outpatient equipment utilizes digital display interfaces that are inaccessible to blind, low vision, and deaf-blind users. Class 2 and Class 3 medical devices such as glucose monitors, blood pressure readers, and at-home chemotherapy treatments do not have any non-visual accessibility features like text to speech output, tactile markings, or audible tones built in. As a result, people who are blind, low vision, and deaf-blind cannot independently manage their health from the privacy of their own homes. We are hopeful the bill will be reintroduced in the 119th Congress.

The Websites and Software Applications Accessibility Act

Access to websites, applications and online services impacts most aspects of everyday life, and the COVID-19 pandemic has made digital inclusion more important than ever. There is a need for enforcement standards that clearly state websites, applications, and online services must be accessible to people with disabilities. People who are blind, low vision, and deaf-blind face countless barriers when accessing workplace portals, educational platforms, healthcare and public health information, transportation services, shopping, and entertainment over the Internet. We are hopeful this will be quickly reintroduced in the new session of Congress.

The Communications, Video, and Technology Accessibility Act

The 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) guaranteed access for people with disabilities to advanced communications services, telecommunications hardware and software, accessible video displays and user interfaces and digital apparatuses, and required the delivery of audio-described content. For more than ten years, ACB and its members have worked to implement and enforce the CVAA, and in several key aspects, we have reached the limits of what the CVAA is able to enforce. Once passed, this legislation will update existing requirements for accessible media, video user interfaces, and video conferencing services. ACB urges Congress to support and pass the CVTA in the 119th Congress.

 

Notice in Federal Register Regarding Accessible Currency

 

On Friday, February 28, a notice was published in the Federal Register brought by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP). According to the notice, BEP desires to use a variety of new information collection activities as it explores ways to make paper currency accessible for blind and low-vision individuals. The mandate to make paper currency accessible is the result of a lawsuit brought by ACB numerous years ago and decided in 2008. According to policy, the BEP cannot employ new information collection practices without the approval of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). As a result, this notice is an information collection request from BEP to OMB in order to begin three new years of information collection. If OMB says no, the information collection cannot move forward. ACB is unclear what will happen if OMB says no, but has no reason at this time to believe that they will do so. To our knowledge, such a request is routine and should not cause any concern. At this time, ACB knows that the first accessible bill is on track to be released in 2026. The link to the notice is https://tinyurl.com/yjevsnt9.

 

Department of Commerce Expunges Three Committees Involved in the Census Process

 

Recently, the U.S. Department of Commerce has expunged three committees involved in the U.S. census process. The National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations (NAC), the 2030 Census Advisory Committee (CAC), and the Census Scientific Committee have been dismissed. Many advocates worry that such s are still greatly needed with the next census being five years away.

In the past year, the disability community, including a task force from the Consortium for Constituents with Disabilities (CCD), has advocated vigorously to determine what the definition of disability will look like in the American Community Survey (ACS). ACB is a member of CCD. Advocates believe that newly suggested definitions could negatively impact the disability community by decreasing the survey number of people with disabilities, which will impact resources allocated to that population.

At this time, we do not know if the elimination of the three committees will impact the important discussions that have been going on. However, the changes going on make us apprehensive. The former leader of the U.S. Census, Director Robert Santos, has resigned. He had played a role in the discussions with the disability community. ACB will follow the eradication of these committees closely to determine if it will impact the positive discussions that previously took place.

 

Federal Appeals Court Affirms ACB’s Victory in Nationwide Disability Rights Class Action Against Quest Diagnostics for Use of Inaccessible Touch Screen Kiosks

 

March 4, 2025 — Last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in California affirmed ACB’s trial victory against Quest Diagnostics. In 2023, following a week-long bench trial in Los Angeles, a federal court in California had found Quest Diagnostics in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and enjoined Quest from continuing to violate the ADA. Quest appealed that decision.

Beginning in 2016, Quest Diagnostics began to install self-service kiosks at its Patient Service Centers, which allow patients to, among other things, check in for phlebotomy appointments in a private and independent manner.  Following complaints from ACB’s members that these kiosks as designed prevent people who are blind from accessing their services, ACB joined a civil rights complaint in federal court alleging that Quest’s kiosks deprived members of the blind community full and equal enjoyment of Quest’s services and failed to provide effective communication.

In 2023, the Court ruled in favor of ACB and a nationwide class of blind and low vision Quest patients. The court found that Quest violated Title III of the ADA in that Quest failed to effectively communicate with its blind patients regarding Quest’s services and facilities. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has now affirmed that judgment.

“Self-service kiosks are increasingly used in many aspects of daily public life,” said Scott Thornhill, Executive Director for the American Council of the Blind. “This appellate victory, upholding the Court’s decision that Quest violated the ADA and that the check-in services of these kiosks must be accessible to people who are blind, is another significant step towards ensuring that the rights to full and equal enjoyment and effective communication are protected.”

Deb Cook Lewis, President of the American Council of the Blind added, “Although the ADA is more than 30 years old, people who are blind are still forced to fight for full and equal access to healthcare. This judgment and appellate result sends a clear message that effective communication is required by law, and health care providers must ensure access for people with disabilities.”

 

Clock Ticking in the Congressional Budget Battle

 

Congress has until midnight on Friday, March 14 to pass a budget or another continuing resolution (CR) to keep the federal government open. If a budget or CR is not passed, all non-essential federal agency services will cease until a budget is passed. Congress has been funding the federal government via a CR for numerous months now; the fiscal year budget 2025 was supposed to have been passed back in the fall of 2024. This practice is not unusual. Continuing resolutions are often used to fund the federal government.

If non-essential services are halted, many activities carried out by federal agencies will stop until a budget is passed. Fortunately, essential services will continue. For instance, the dissemination of Social Security and Medicare benefits are considered essential services. However, things such as processing first-time applications for Social Security benefits can be stalled as the federal agency cannot perform such tasks.

Members of Congress are now working to strike a deal to pass the budget before the clock runs out on March 14.

 

ACB Staffers Attend NCD Meeting, Discuss Emergency Preparedness

 

On March 6, ACB staff attended the National Council on Disability (NCD) quarterly meeting, held at the U.S. Access Board in Washington, D.C. By statute, the Council is mandated to meet four times a year. The next quarterly meeting will be held in New York. They are always open to the public, both in person and virtually.

This quarter’s meeting focused primarily on tax rights and emergency preparedness services for people with disabilities. A person’s work status can impact how they pay into Social Security and retirement benefits. This can have long-term implications for the person. NCD is advocating for equal access to such essential benefits for employees with disabilities. A report on this issue was just put out by NCD. The Council is also advocating for improved procedures to assist people with disabilities during emergencies. Two of the panelists who spoke on this issue were impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires and could speak to the impact on major disasters and preparedness for persons with disabilities.

NCD continues to play a leading role in addressing the concerns of people with disabilities through public policy. ACB greatly appreciates the opportunity to provide NCD with input on a range of policy areas, including technology, health care, transportation, employment, and more. The meetings are always open to the public, and an open period is included where any attendee can speak for three minutes.

 

NCD Report on Tax Classifications and Their Impact on Employees

 

On March 6 at the quarterly meeting for the National Council on Disability, NCD put out a new report on tax classifications and their impact on the employee. Employees pay into a benefit system. However, depending on a worker’s status — for instance if they are classified as a rehabilitation client and not a full-time employee — they may not be eligible for all of the same employment benefits. NCD is examining whether decades-old laws need to be changed to more appropriately benefit disabled workers. Please check out the NCD report at https://www.ncd.gov/report/tax-misclassification-lost-employment-benefits-for-disabled-workers/.