CES 2018

On January 30, 2018 By World Institute on DisabilityIn NewsLeave a comment

WID staff member, Kat Zigmont, attended the 2018 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The following is her report on the event.

Accessibility Services

At the CES 2018 convention, we had excellent service from the Accessibility Services team. We were informed that there were eight sighted guides working at any given time. The service was friendly, flexible, and accommodating to the needs of the convention participants.

Feedback

As a first time participant at CES, I was unprepared for the size and number of venues, as well as the amount of people and vendors. I found the accessibility group that was there with me to review products very helpful and communicative with regards to their strategy on making their way through the event and giving tips on interesting things to see.

Trends

In the vision loss area, there were many versions of glasses and/or glasses attachments that assisted in seeing text and navigation. I found that there were various grades of the same type of products; some had much more advanced technology than others, such as a product that was wireless and small versus a similar product that was wired and a bit clunky.

Highlights

I have put an asterisk (*) near my favorite products listed below.

Visited Booths

Vision Loss

*American Printing House (APH) – Graphiti

www.aph.org

APH had a new product, Graphiti, which was touch interfacing using variable-height pins. With this device, the user can view graphics imputed via a USB, HDMI or SD port, as well as Bluetooth. The graphic display would present accessible forms of graphics, such as charts, maps, photographs and other dynamic graphical content. This device also allows the user to draw on the surface; as your finger touches the screen, the pins rise and follow your touch, offering haptic feedback. The price of Graphiti has not been set yet.

Beltmap – The electronic guide dog

www.beltmap.com

Beltmap was an interesting concept where an individual would wear a belt that offered navigational directions through vibrations. The Beltmap would connect via Bluetooth to the user’s Smartphone and would use Google maps (specifically) to get directions. As a user walks and turns, Beltmap can tell her direction and give her vibrations on the side where she needs to turn. Once she turns, the vibrations stop, indicating that she is supposed to walk forward until otherwise alerted. The unique aspect to this device is that it is not auditory. The fallback is that it is not yet able to work indoors/on Wifi and thus, could not work in airports or conferences, examples of loud areas where this device could be useful.

Dot Watch – Braille watch

www.dotincorp.com/store

Dot Watch is an attractive, Braille watch that allows you to sync with your Smartphone to check notifications, get alarms and see who is calling. The Dot Watch costs $359.00.

FACIL’iti – Websites’ accessibility

www.facil-iti.com

FACIL’iti offers a product that can make an existing website more accessible to individuals with vision loss and certain cognitive and mobility disabilities. This system inserts a profile module into an already existing site where an individual will specify his needs. Once the profile is complete, the software will adjust the site in a variety of ways to help make the site more accessible. For example, as a dyslexic user you can specify having an issue with b’s and d’s, and the software code will then identify those letters to you. Other examples of access aides are zooming capabilities, as well as making larger targets for those who have shaky hands. This product is approximately $400.00 to have it added to your website.

ICI Vision – Expanding the limits of vision

www.ici.vision

ICI Vision is a medical device company that has made a pair of glasses that claims to recover central vision due to retinal damage. As it was explained to me, the glasses record video of surrounding areas, and then they project light into the wearer’s eyes that restore images where once the user had blind spots. This device was not able to be tried on at the CES event as it was still in medical trials. The target audience seems to be especially small, and there was no research that could be referenced at their booth.

*ORCAM MyEye 2.0

www.orcam.com

ORCAM MyEye 2.0 is a lightweight device that snaps onto any eyeglass frame magnetically. It reads printed or digital text, recognizes faces and identifies products and common items, such as currency. While wearing this device, you can point your finger ahead of you toward the item you want read, and the sound comes out of the back of the device near your ear. This device worked reasonably well and was nicely designed so that it is appealing and pretty discrete.

Project Ray

http://project-ray.com

Project Ray provides technology designed to facilitate the operation of common Smartphones by people who have vision loss by allowing them to use any off-the-shelf Smartphones with their tactile stickers that have chips that facilitates phone functions. These stickers are a tactile add-on that have quick function and navigation purposes. The product’s main feature is a simple, unified user interface that is automatically imposed across all system functions, applications and services, using only two types of interactive functions working as an overlay on top of existing mobile applications. This booth was also the only one that had a disabled exhibitor, which was refreshing.

Vditory – Enabling visually impaired to do more

www.vditory.com

Vditory is a pair of glasses that describes the user’s surroundings, including telling him if he is indoors or outdoors and describing the objects around him. Also, if a face were detected, Vditory would tell the user the face’s age, gender, and emotions. The device has face recognition for common faces, as well as color and currency recognition. There is also a GPS tracker and navigational modes.

VFO

www.vfogroup.com

The VFO booth had a very sophisticated, new, multifunctional magnifier. The interface was large, color touch screens that allowed you to pinch-zoom selected areas. The device was also an OCR scanner where you could export data to a USB. Additionally, there was voice output to read selected text. The multifunction of this magnifier was very appealing. The cost of this item was approximately $4,600.00.

Physical Disability/Chronic Pain

Infinity Massage Chairs – Wellness for life

http://infinitymassagechairs.com/

The Riage X3 chairs by Infinity Massage Chairs come with automated massage programs, but they are also customizable for when you want to target specific muscle groups or areas. One massage ability of the Riage X3 chairs is their L-Track, which covers your upper body vertically down the natural S curvature of the spine then across the lower body horizontally for complete alleviation of spinal tension; this provided long lasting comfort. Another massage ability of the Riage X3 chairs is their reflexology foot rollers to cure fatigue in your feet. Its shifting motion also helps blood circulation. The price point for this item was approximately $7,700.00.

Kleiber Bionics – Bionic Prosthetic Hand

www.kleiberbionics.org

Kleiber Bionics was displaying a Bionic Prosthetic Hand for people with various degrees of amputation. It had tactile sensors and varying grasp patterns. The prosthetic was attractive and looked durable and flexible. Unfortunally, it was difficult to get more detailed information from the individuals at the booth.

*Oscar Senior – The easiest way for seniors to connect to the world

www.oscarsenior.com

Oscar Senior is a telecom device that integrates Smartphone technology into a large and easy to understand display. It facilitates communication between the user and their families and caregivers with shortcut buttons that use icons and images to help easily identify functions. Functions include video calling, applications and quick web navigation. It’s an attractive design with useful applications. While it is marketed to seniors only, I can see this functionality being useful for cognitive and mobility disabilities, as well.

*Oska Pulse – When pain stops, life begins.

www.oskawellness.com

Oska Pulse is a device that uses optimized PEMF to restore the electrical potential cells need to receive nutrients and oxygen, which stimulates cellular regeneration. This relieves pain and activates the body’s natural recovery process. Oska Pulse promotes capillary dilation, muscle ease and pain reduction. It can help dilate blood vessels, which may reduce inflammation, increase blood flow and release the body’s natural endorphins. Additionally, it helps break the cycle of inflammation and pain by activating a cell-specific negative feedback loop that promotes joint and muscle recovery. The device is attractive and able to be worn discreetly. The price of this device is approximately $400. I actually bought this device for my chronic pain, as it is an interesting, non-invasive alternative to similar products.

VIVY Heats – Canned heat the reaches deep

www.vivyheats.com

VIVY is a consumer pain management product that offers the deep heating properties of diathermy in a safe, simple-to-use device that’s small enough to carry anywhere. VIVY relieves pain, eases muscle tension and improves joint mobility around chronic pain or joint injuries. It is an attractive, portable device that has a Smartphone app accompaniment. However, VIVY is currently an investigational device only and is not yet available for sale in America.

WHILL – Electronic wheelchair

www.whill.us

WHILL electronic wheelchairs are compact, attractive, all-terrain personal mobility devices. They have a modern design that is comfortable and ergonomic. They have sensitive joystick controls and all-wheel drive functionality.

Hearing Loss

SignAll – We translate sign language. Automatically.

www.signall.us

SignAll is an automated sign language translating system. The SignAll team worked with Gallaudet to record a database of commonly used signs and then created software that could recognize ASL and convert it to text or vice versa. SignAll is still piloting this product and hopes to develop a mobile application version as well as have more language databases. This is an innovative idea for ASL translation with the potential for many future applications.

*SmartEar – …Sound you can see

www.smartear.fr

SmartEar is a lighting system for your home that offers alerts. Each light is portable and customizable. With the app accompaniment, you can set alarms with different colors, pulsing of different speeds and duration. The SmartEar devices can hear the auditory cue such as the doorbell, fire alarm or telephone and will display your customized lighted visual alert. Alerts can be queued to all SmartEar devices in the house or just one. This design is practical for use in homes and offices.

Olive Union: Next-Gen Hearing Aid – Consumer grade hearing aid

www.oliveunion.com

The Olive Union: Next-Gen Hearing Aid is a consumer-grade hearing aid. The Olive was very nice looking but seemed a bit big. The app accompaniment offers hearing self-test, customized hearing profile and an active hearing status management. The cost of one Olive device is approximately $100.

*Noveto’s Sowlo – Sound delivered directly to your ears, and your ears only.

http://www.noveto.biz/technology/

Sowlo technology focuses the audio content directly and solely into the user’s ears, all without any intermediate hardware such as earphones. The system constantly tracks the user’s position and dynamically focuses the audio beams to follow the user’s ears, creating unique abilities to consume sound at a higher volume in a personal manner without affecting others’ experiences.

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WID Welcomes New Board Members: 2018

On January 22, 2018January 23, 2018 By World Institute on DisabilityIn NewsLeave a comment

For Immediate Release

Berkeley, CA, USA–The World Institute on Disability welcomes four new members to the Board of Directors. These representatives from law and policy, technology and banking include:

Tali Bray, San Francisco, Chief Information Officer for IT for IT, Wells Fargo
Darlene Hemerka, Equal Justice Works Fellow, the Public Interest Law Center
Neil Milliken, Head of Accessibility & Digital Inclusion, Atos
Brian Scarpelli, Senior Policy Counsel, ACT | The App Association

“These four outstanding individuals bring to WID enhanced ability to view our work through a broader geographic lens and to strengthen the impact of our work by building on expertise from technology, industry, law and disability rights as we confront critical issues facing people with disabilities both domestically and internationally,” said WID CEO, Anita Aaron.

Bray, Hemerka, Milliken, and Scarpelli join WID’s current board members:

Carol J. Bradley, J.D., Chair, Disability Compliance Officer, Sutter Health
Heather Dowdy, Vice Chair, Accessibility Program Lead, Microsoft
Claire Forrest, Public Relations Coordinator, MacPhail Center for Music
Kevin Foster, Director of HR Operations, Motorola Solutions, Inc.
Sheridan Gates, MED, PCC, Treasurer Executive Coach, Purpose At Work
Eli Gelardin, Secretary, Executive Director, Marin Center for Independent Living (MCIL)
Malcom Glenn, Public Policy Manager, Uber
Nanci Linke-Ellis, Partner, General Manager, Captionfish
Julie McCarthy, former Director of Human Resources, Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, San Francisco
Ari Ne’eman, Chief Executive Officer, MySupport.com
Michael Palmer, Senior Manager, Accessibility and Regulatory, T-Mobile
Debra Ruh, CEO, Ruh Global Communications
Frances W. West, IT Executive
Rachel S. Wolkowitz, J.D., Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP

For more information about WID’s Board, go to the Meet Our Board page.

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AHCA Will Hurt People on Medicaid

On May 22, 2017May 23, 2017 By World Institute on DisabilityIn Health, NewsLeave a comment

WID News Analysis
May 22, 2017

AHCA Will Be Detrimental to People with Disabilities

Members of Congress recently passed the proposed American Health Care Act (AHCA) with the goal of repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act (ACA or “Obamacare”). The proposed legislation, if enacted, would drastically harm Medicaid by reducing eligibility, creating work requirements, and moving from federal matching funds to “block grants” for funding. These changes will jeopardize the health care of people with disabilities across the country and reduce the quality of care for people who remain on Medicaid. The AHCA with all its Medicaid rules need to be stopped in its tracks – and the disability community should fight it nationwide.

Rolling Back the ACA’s Medicaid Expansion

Medicaid is a health care program for poor, elderly and disabled residents that is run at the state level and uses a mix of state and federal funds to operate. It also is run using a mix of state and federal rules around eligibility, coverage and other means. Current rules allow Americans on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) due to disability and low income to receive full Medicaid coverage, and the ACA included a “Medicaid expansion” that has opened eligibility to people earning up to 133% of poverty, or around $16,080/year, in some states. People with disabilities have lower incomes and a higher rate of poverty than people without disabilities, and many may not receive SSI if they are doing some work or have a more limited disability, so a Medicaid expansion allows many in our community to have affordable health care and live safe lives.

Unfortunately, the AHCA would roll back this Medicaid expansion over the next several years and kick many people with low-to-moderate income off the program. Some research has found that people with lower income tend to work limited hours and are not eligible for employer health care, work with smaller companies that are not required to offer employer-covered health care, or otherwise work in industries that do not offer health care. This group also includes many people with disabilities, as they may have difficulty working full time or may have limited job opportunities. Medicaid provides vital health care for low-income people with disabilities in these situations – so reducing eligibility and kicking them off may eliminate their health care entirely. (This is especially true because under the AHCA, private insurers can charge much more for people with pre-existing conditions, so people who lose Medicaid likely won’t be able to afford private coverage at all.)

Work Requirements Target the Most Vulnerable

“Work requirements” will also create problems under the AHCA. The Affordable Care Act prohibited states from putting forward these requirements, which force Medicaid recipients who are deemed “able to work” to work a certain number of hours to keep their benefit. However, the AHCA will allow states to forego these requirements without any barriers. Research has shown that as of 2015, a full 59 % of Medicaid recipients who are able to work do, and 78% live in the household of somebody who does work. The rest may do informal and unpaid work, such as taking care of family members with disabilities or they may themselves have a disability that is not diagnosed or officially recorded and does prevent them from holding a regular job. People with disabilities likely make up a large share of Medicaid recipients who do not hold a job, so work requirements endanger this vital benefit.

A Bad Switch to Block Grants

The AHCA also changes how the federal government pays states from its current “matching funds” system over to block grants. Under the current rules, the federal government shares the costs with states: so for every $1 that states spend, the federal government reimburses them $0.50. Under block grants, though, the federal government gives states a fixed amount of money for their Medicaid program, and each state gets to decide how much extra it wants to spend, even if that is next-to-nothing. This is funded through a per capita system where funds are based or the number of Medicaid enrollees in each state. There are also block grants for certain populations or services which can vary state-by-state and be used to eliminate Medicaid coverage at many levels. These will combine to scale back the eligibility for Medicaid, as well as the services provided through Medicaid, as required and quality-of-care provisions will be taken away. This will affect all existing or potential Medicaid recipients in many states – and because people with disabilities have higher health-related costs, states may find ways to not cover vital health care services or just keep people with disabilities off the program entirely.

Speak Out Against the AHCA

The AHCA is extremely dangerous for people with disabilities. It jeopardizes the quality of coverage for our community and, for many of us, the ability to have health care at all. These three rules around Medicaid – rolling back the ACA’s Medicaid expansion, work requirements and block grants – will especially affect us, but there are plenty of others as well, such as the ability for insurance companies to charge more for pre-existing conditions, expanding the list of those conditions, and rolling back women’s health programs. However, AHCA has still not passed the Senate, and there are many opportunities to push back against its many problems. You can call your legislator, work with disability organizations, or even use social media to spread the word. So let’s fight for health care together and support our community’s right to health!

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Pre-existing Conditions Under the AHCA

On May 22, 2017May 22, 2017 By In Health, NewsLeave a comment

WID News Analysis
May 22, 2017

The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, sought to do something revolutionary in the United States, which was to not only make health care available to everyone, but to simultaneously eliminate the negative impact that its predecessors had on people with pre-existing conditions, which disproportionately affected people with disabilities, those with low incomes, and women. Old forms of health care lumped people with pre-existing conditions together under a pre-existing conditions category, which ultimately led to high-risk pool placement and an array of associated high costs.

High-risk Pools

Historically, people placed in high-risk pools have had pre-existing conditions that were deemed too expensive by insurers. Pools offered exorbitantly-priced premiums, with insurers able to charge up to 200% above private individual market rates; annual and lifetime caps were placed on recipients’ medical expenses, and before people could receive care, most had to pay $1,000 or higher for their deductibles, and in some states, $5,000 or higher. People placed in high-risk pools are also often subject to annual and lifetime limits on their health care expenses, ultimately leaving them without the means to pay for their necessary health care expenses once they cap out.

Below is an image of a list of pre-existing conditions, such as cerebral palsy, paralysis, and muscular dystrophy; for a more comprehensive list, visit Kaiser Family Foundation’s website.

Fielding costs like these is a burden, particularly for people with low incomes, which overlaps with the portion of the population with disabilities. In 2015, 27% of people with disabilities lived below the poverty line in the United States; in Mississippi and New Mexico, it is higher than 33%.

Obamacare requires that everyone have health insurance or opt out and pay a fee; because of this model, people with low incomes who also have expensive pre-existing conditions can more comfortably afford care. The American Health Care Act (AHCA), also known as Trumpcare, proposes that the country regress to old forms of health care that separate people with pre-existing conditions from the rest of the market and drive up their costs so that people with fewer health care needs can save.

Backers of the AHCA claim that people with pre-existing conditions will be taken care of because states will be allotted two buckets of funds, one of which is specifically for people placed in high-risk pools, the second of which states can use as they see fit. However, the funds from the second bucket could potentially be transferred to the first bucket if needed; realistically, this money could run out or insurers could choose to charge high premiums and deductibles in order to avoid pulling from both buckets.

ACA Subsidies vs. AHCA Tax Credit

Currently, insurance subsidies or grants are available to people if they meet certain qualifications, one of the main ones being that the individual would have to be deemed ineligible for coverage through an employer or a government health care program for at least one month in the year. Another primary qualifier is recipients’ incomes must be at or below 100-400% of the federal poverty level. Under the AHCA (Trumpcare), people meeting these qualifications would receive a tax credit instead, which would not exceed $4,000 regardless of health status. Thus, a 60-year-old in the low-income bracket (around $20,000/year) with a pre-existing condition, who has significant health care needs, could see his or her aid drop by thousands of dollars.

Get Involved

The most vulnerable members of our society are in danger of losing essential health care, and it boils down to the new administration and its constituents wanting to save some money, rather than take care of all members of society. Whether it’s you or someone you know that may be affected by these changes to our health care system, the time to speak out is now.

Ways You Can Contribute

Hop on social media, share your story, and tag it with #IAmAPreexistingCondition. People with pre-existing conditions are sharing their stories all over the Internet with this hashtag, bringing to light how their needs are in danger of being set on the back burner.

Contact your state’s representatives. It is their job to represent you and your interests. You can find your representatives on the USA.gov’s elected officials page.

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WID’s Dr. Saxton Delivers Keynote at Sexual Violence Conference

On May 15, 2017May 15, 2017 By World Institute on DisabilityIn NewsLeave a comment

For Immediate Release

Berkeley, CA, USA–On Saturday, April 8, WID’s Director of Research and Training, Dr. Marsha Saxton, was the keynote speaker for UC Berkeley’s second annual Sexual Violence Conference. Its theme was “Strength through Healing” and its goal was to break the silence and bring the voices of marginalized communities to the forefront of the conversation around sexual violence.

One of the senators from the ASUC, UC Berkeley’s student government, Rosa Kwak, hosted the event in Dwinelle Hall on the UC Berkeley campus. This conference, “by students and for students,” was filled with dialogue, learning, and deconstruction of sexual violence and discussion of intersectionalities. There were numerous workshops, and Senator Kwak and her team encouraged healing through coloring, poetry, writing, and reflection. There were several certified counselors from BAWAR (Bay Area Women Against Rape) available all day.

Dr. Saxton opened up the morning with a keynote about the intersectionality between disability and sexual violence. She spoke about her experience at the World Institute on Disability, especially in writing both Sticks and Stones: Disabled People’s Stories of Abuse, Defiance and Resilience and Curriculum on Abuse Prevention and Empowerment (CAPE).

A woman stands on stage with a wheel of power and control projected behind her — Marsha talks about the CAPE wheel of power and control | Photo by WID

She first generally described vulnerable populations, saying, “Women are taught to be passive, even in the face of assault.” She explained her experiences with a self-defense class in her younger years in Boston where she first learned how to scream “no” at attackers until it became second nature to her. She eased into disability-specific challenges, such as the fact that women with disabilities are assaulted at a rate of three times or more than women without disabilities.

Dr. Saxton also described the need for better sexual education for all people. From her work around Sticks and Stones, she has come to believe that people with disabilities may have heightened risks of abuse due to potentially confusing boundaries in interactions with caretakers and personal attendants. For this reason, she explained that children with disabilities would benefit from sexual education and might even need more sexual education than children without disabilities.

She also spoke about her experience as a professor at UC Berkeley in the Disability Studies Department and how much she learned about the issue on campus from her students and from online resources, such as http://survivorsupport.berkeley.edu/.

She ended her keynote by lifting up the marginalized, the victimized, the silenced constituencies and promising that each person could do his or her part in ending sexual violence. “We need to talk more with the men in our lives, peers, professors, coaches, faculty. We need allies!” she said to a round of applause.

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Congress Agrees to a Spending Bill That Cuts AFI

On May 5, 2017May 22, 2017 By World Institute on DisabilityIn NewsLeave a comment

WID News Analysis
May 5, 2017

On April 30, Congress put forward an omnibus spending bill that will keep the government funded through September 30, 2017 – and it has major implications for people with disabilities. Certain disability-related programs will remain funded, but others will see steep cuts or be eliminated entirely. It is important to understand these cuts and advocate for programs that support people with disabilities. This is vital for independence, well-being and financial success for our community.

A major initiative that was eliminated is the Assets for Independence (AFI) program. AFI has existed for almost 20 years and last year, provided $18.95 million toward Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), which support people with disabilities around independence and career goals. These federally funded IDAs provide an asset limit disregard, one of the few ways people on SSI can safely save more than $2,000 for their future. IDAs also provide matching funds. Thus, as account-holders invest in their own future (for every dollar that a person saves toward a goal for independence, such as purchasing a home or developing their careers), a government-supported organization will provide $1 or more to help in that process. These accounts are vital for many people with disabilities to build successful lives and independence – IDAs encourage account-holders to invest in their own futures and provide the resources to help them achieve their goals.

Unfortunately, eliminating the AFI program jeopardizes IDAs now and into the future. It will get rid of the opportunity for people with disabilities to open new IDAs, which will limit their personal investments. It also threatens existing IDAs. Accounts are run through organizations that receive government grants, and they may not be able to keep programs running going forward or provide future matching funds. The AFI program has already made a difference in the lives of thousands of Americans – getting rid of AFI and IDAs will eliminate the opportunity for more Americans to invest in their futures and jeopardizes those who have already started on that journey.

Disability advocates have been fighting to keep the AFI program alive for the past several years, and lawmakers have been talking about eliminating it for some time now. The disability efforts were largely successful. When lawmakers learned more about AFI and IDAs and realized their importance, they were more likely to support the programs. This cut, however, comes as a part of a larger $900 million cut to the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Education that is included in the omnibus spending bill through September. Many advocates are beginning to organize and push to restore funding for AFI, as well as build upon it even more. We look forward to seeing this progress moving forward.

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A collage of photos of members at an ESCAT Senior Citizen Club meeting.

Roshan’s Final Project

On March 22, 2017March 28, 2017 By In International, News2 Comments

Roshan Samarawickrama, one of WID’s 2016 fellows, recently developed and launched the ESCAT Senior Citizen Club! The idea for the club was developed while Roshan completed his fellowship with WID through the community Solutions program. The goal was for Roshan to flesh out his idea and implement it back home, which he has successfully done.

The recently launched ESCAT Senior Citizen Club is a member-guided program based in Roshan’s home country of Sri Lanka, in which members exchange ideas and skills with one another, ultimately deciding as a community how they would like their club to function. Previous meetings have included cooking lessons, crafts, and educational presentations; their meeting in late February 2017 included a mobility aid donation drive, in which members with mobility disabilities were given wheelchairs and arm crutches with the help of Disability Organisations Joint Front, a local conglomerate that serves people with disabilities.

We are so proud of Roshan for his hard work and for being a change-maker in the lives of seniors with disabilities in Sri Lanka, and we know he will continue to make us proud. Keep up the good work, Roshan!

A photo of Roshan, a 2016 WID fellow. — Roshan smiling | Photo by WID

ESCAT Senior Citizen Club Newsletters

01/16/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 1 (PDF)
01/16/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 1 (text)
02/01/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 2 (PDF)
02/01/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 2 (text)
02/22/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 3 (PDF)
02/22/2017: ESCAT Senior Citizens Club meeting 3 (text)

Ed Roberts featured on Google for 2017 Ed Roberts Day

WID’s Current Initiatives: 2017

On February 6, 2017 By World Institute on DisabilityIn News2 Comments

For Immediate Release

Berkeley, CA, USA–WID focuses on cutting-edge issues facing people with disabilities. Though our work changes over time, it always remains directly connected to our mission of eliminating barriers to full social integration by increasing employment, economic security, and health care for persons with disabilities.

Proposed initiatives for 2017 include:

EQUITY

EQUITY: Asset Building Strategies for People with Disabilities, A Guide to Financial Empowerment is the first and only wealth-building book specifically targeted toward people with disabilities. With chapters ranging from credit and debt to home-ownership, small business development, and retirement savings, EQUITY provides an asset building overview with specific strategies and opportunities for people with disabilities to build a better financial future.

Employment and Disability Benefits Initiative (EDBI)

Disability Benefits (DB101) helps people with disabilities and service providers understand the connections between work and benefits. DB101 will soon expand to serve residents with disabilities in nine states as Kentucky is developed. EDBI’s training and information services build relationships with state partners that bring insight and rich background to WID’s policy initiatives.

CareerACCESS

The CareerACCESS policy initiative will reform the current Supplemental Security Income Program (SSI) in order to significantly increase the employment rate of people with disabilities aged eighteen to thirty. CareerACCESS continues to work toward establishing pilot programs in up to five states. Because these programs will pivot on the idea that disability benefits are offsets to the high costs of disability rather than subsidies for the inability to work, they will provide required support and services for young adults to shape their careers while building assets and retaining disability benefits.

ABLE101

An outgrowth of WID’s work toward passage and now, implementation of the Achieving Better Life Experience Act (ABLE), ABLE101 will join WID’s cast of information tools and critical issue forums. First introduced in 2006 and signed into law in December 2014, the ABLE Act will allow people with disabilities (with an onset of disability before age twenty-six) and their families the opportunity to create a tax-exempt savings account that can be used for maintaining health, independence, and quality of life without endangering government benefits.

Disaster Preparation

As a direct result of WID’s work with the American Red Cross (ARC) and their diversity initiative, the ARC will include a disability education component in all California Disaster Institute training sessions in 2017. WID continues to be involved in training with the Functional Assessment Service Team (FAST), which focuses on serving people with disabilities during California-specific disasters.

New Earth Disability (NED)

As climate change moves forward, people with disabilities are arguably the single most vulnerable group worldwide; New Earth Disability (NED) addresses that threat. Started in late 2014, NED investigates how people with disabilities will experience all aspects of climate change, such as extreme weather events, food insecurity, and climate-related migration. It also includes several recommendations for collective actions that will protect the disability community.

New Leaders Fellowship Initiative

This initiative is built on WID’s role as a host organization for fellows from the Mandela Washington Fellowship, the flagship program of the Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) and the Community Solutions Program (CSP). WID facilitates opportunities to share best practices, to start dialogues about common issues around disability, and to view the bigger picture of disability worldwide.

Accessibility Consulting

WID works to partner with the financial, investment, technology, educational Software, and consulting companies and organizations to expand their ability to provide accessible services to their clients and employees.

Conference Accessibility Initiative (CAI)

In 2017, we will assist nine national conferences with a total attendance of more than 10,000 people. Our goal is to make these conferences accessible and relevant for people with disabilities while also educating the conference organizers about disability barriers and accommodations.

Technology Usability Project (TUP)

In 2017, we will continue to focus on website accessibility, mobile phone and tablet usability, and signage review and evaluation in order to provide information to developers, distributors, and users and in order to further inform WID’s research on accessibility and usability of products.

International Outreach Project

The International Outreach Project will work with NGOs to provide essential services in developing and conflict-ridden countries to build into NGO services policies and practices that include individuals with disabilities. WID focuses particularly on services related to leadership and management of Disabled Persons’ Organizations (DPOs), climate change, peace-building, and employment.

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Post-Election Results: What the Next Administration Can Do to Support Americans with Disabilities

On December 2, 2016December 7, 2016 By World Institute on DisabilityIn News1 Comment

As with many Americans, we at the World Institute on Disability (WID) are concerned with how the 2016 election results will impact the disability community and all diverse communities. Over the past several decades, the progress around the rights of people with disabilities—including increased accessibility of services, improved public accommodations, and recent legislation, such as the ABLE Act, which helps young people with disabilities gain true financial independence and saves taxpayer dollars—has boasted significant milestones for our community nationwide.

We are committed to continuing this progress, and we recognize that there is still much more to be done. However, we also see that there is constant pressure to roll back many of these advances in disability rights under the assumption that to do so would save money.

Reduction of services, resulting in exclusion of people with disabilities, is extremely costly in financial and human terms. Certain healthcare and benefits proposals can endanger the health, independence, and financial security of people with disabilities. Some broader issues, such as climate change, will have a drastic impact on our community unless people with disabilities are included in the planning and preparation.

We are committed to working with the next administration to support disability rights in all its forms and to prevent any changes that would negatively affect people with disabilities across the U.S. and around the world.

High priority areas for attention include:

Benefits reform that enables people with disabilities to work while still maintaining benefits to offset the high cost of disability;

Expanded employment opportunities with special attention to ensuring that employees with disabilities are appropriately accommodated and welcomed in the workplace;

Healthcare and personal assistant services that fully support people with disabilities’ health needs, including access to quality affordable medical care; medication and durable medical equipment; and fitness and nutrition resources, all equal to that of other Americans;

Disability discrimination, which must be combated in all its forms, including employment, education, and housing;

Climate change policies that include people with disabilities in planning and preparation; and

Representation by people with disabilities in all aspects of government.

Now more than ever, we hope you will consider supporting our efforts — you can donate via Network for Good as a one-time donation or schedule monthly/quarterly donations.

Also, consider adding WID as your AmazonSmile Charity. Amazon will donate 0.5% to WID on your behalf as you do your holiday shopping this season and all year round. Every gift counts!

Wishing you a a joyful, healthy holiday season and a happy New Year from the WID family!

Nine people with various disabilities stand in front of a disability painting

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Anita Aaron speaks at the 13th Annual Ever Widening Circle event

Save the Date: Critical Issues Forum & Ever Widening Circle Reception 2016

On September 19, 2016August 23, 2017 By World Institute on DisabilityIn NewsLeave a comment

WID is excited to welcome one and all to our annual event, the Critical Issues Forum, at the Ed Roberts Campus October 28, 2016! The topic of the day: ABLE Accounts.

The ABLE Act is the new tax-advantaged savings opportunity that allows eligible persons with disabilities to save up to $100,000 without risking federal disability benefits. Read more about WID’s work with the ABLE Act here.

After the Critical Issues Forum, we will have the Ever Widening Circle Reception, during which we will network and enjoy light refreshments.

If you’d like to join us, RSVP!

Critical Issues Forum

ABLE Accounts Informative Session: Learn the nuts and bolts of the 3 currently available national ABLE programs, as well as hear from the director of California’s ABLE and provide your input to help shape the program.
ABLE Accounts Interactive Session: With guidance from WID staff members, go through the process of opening an ABLE account in real time and learn about how you can help advocate to improve the ABLE Act through important pending legislation.

Ever Widening Circle Reception

The Ever Widening Circle Reception will allow WID to connect with our supporters and disability community leaders and will create a space for continuing the discussions begun during the forum presentations in a more casual environment.

Be sure to RSVP to WID’s annual event today!

Schedule at a Glance

9:00am-9:30am: registration/check-in (Osher Rooms)
9:30am-11:30am: ABLE Accounts Informative Session
11:30am-1:00pm: Lunch (catered for those who RSVP)
1:00pm-3:30pm: ABLE Accounts Interactive Session
3:30pm-5:00pm: Reception (Ramp Circle)

Recap

What: Policy Summit and Ever Widening Circle reception
When: Friday, October 28, 2016; 9:00am-5:00pm
Where: Osher Boardrooms in the Ed Roberts Campus (3075 Adeline Street, Berkeley, CA 94703; above Ashby BART station)

Don’t forget to RSVP!

Thank you to our generous sponsors for their support of this event: AT&T, Chevron, IBM, JPMorgan Chase & Co., PG&E, and Stanley Yarnell & Victor Rowley (listed in alphabetical order).

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