The U.S. Senate unanimously approved the Autism Collaboration, Accountability, Research, Education and Support (CARES) Act. The bill includes more than $1.8 billion for research, data collection (“surveillance”) and training programs such as the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities program. The bill now awaits action by President Trump.
Climate change disproportionately threatens the health of people with disabilities, among other groups such as the elderly. There are many disability-specific concerns, such as extreme heat endangering people who cannot sweat. Other challenges affect people with disabilities’ chances of surviving natural disasters, as in cases of noncompliance with accessibility standards.
A Chilean start-up is offering tourism services aimed at making iconic tourist attractions more accessible for people with disabilities. To date the company has arranged trips for more than 900 clients to 16 sites including Machu Picchu, Easter Island and Costa Rica.
A feature story on 17-year-old Phillip Hartman details the persistence he exhibited while rehabbing from paralysis resulting from complications during a surgery for scoliosis. It examines Phillip’s return to his school and community and also his family’s experience supporting him.
A federal appeals court has ruled that the Americans with Disabilities Act does not protect an individual who is the victim of discrimination due to a potential future disability. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of a massage therapist who was fired due to concerns she might contract the Ebola virus in a planned visit to Ghana.
