DBTAC: Great Lakes ADA Center

Welcome to the DBTAC:
Great Lakes ADA Center's monthly Newsletter

Due to holiday schedules following the posting of the December 2006 edition of the Great Lakes Chronicle The next edition will be available on the Great Lakes web site on February 1, 2007. If you have any questions regarding the Great Lakes Chronicle please contact Peter Berg at 312-413-1407 or via the on-line contact form.

Trainings & Events

The Great Lakes Center offers technical assistance on a variety of issues under the ADA and Accessible Information Technology

Federal Agencies

The Great Lakes Center offers customized trainings on a variety of issues under the ADA and Accessible Information Technology.

Great Lakes Affiliates

The Great Lakes offers resource materials on a variety of issues under the ADA and Accessible Information Technology.

Resources from the Technical Assistance Desk

In the Headlines

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced a 2.2 million dollar settlement agreement with JPMorgan Chase & Co. The original charge involved Bank One regarding its policy of not returning individuals to their previous positions after being out of work for more than 6 months. The company had a policy that returned employees to their positions if out on leave for less than 6 months. In the view of the EEOC this violated the requirement to conduct an individualized assessment of requests for extended leave as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA. Read more about the Settlement at http://www.eeoc.gov/press/11-22-06.html.

The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) with in the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced the formation of a partnership with the Society of Human Resource Managers (SHRM). The goal of the alliance is to promote the employment of workers with disabilities by providing information, guidance and access to resources. The collaboration is the first between ODEP and a major organization. Read more about the Alliance at http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/odep/odep20061963.htm.

The U.S. Department of Justice has posted a new fact sheet to the ADA Business Connections portion of its web site. The document titled, "Expanding Your Market: Accessibility Benefits Older Adult Customers," outlines how compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) makes good business sense. The new fact sheet highlights the benefits of increasing accessibility in order to meet the needs of individuals who are aging. Read more about the New Document at http://www.ada.gov/business.htm#Anchor-49575.

The Courthouse Access Committee presented its report to the U.S. Access Board during the Board's November 15 meeting. The Committee's report provides design guidance and best practice recommendations for access to courthouses for persons with disabilities. The report guidelines address new construction but can also be adapted for use in existing courthouse facilities. Read more about the Report at http://www.access-board.gov/news/caac-report.htm.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has posted the latest edition of the Disability Rights Online News to its web site. This publication is a bi-monthly update on the Civil Rights Division's activities in the area of disability rights. The new issue was posted on October 30^th. Read more about the Disability Rights Online News at http://www.ada.gov/disabilitynews.htm.

• Ilene Morris-Sambur, Marshall, VA
• Disabilityworks, Chicago, IL
• National Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester, NY
• PRIDE Industries, Roseville, CA
• The Rave Program, University of Alabama at Birmingham, AL
• Highmark Inc., Pittsburgh, PA
• Aetna Inc., Hartford, CT
• Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, AZ
• CVS/pharmacy Inc., Woonsocket, RI

The U.S. Department of Justice announced a settlement agreement with the City of Philadelphia, PA. The agreement settles a lawsuit that alleged that City paramedics refused to provide emergency care to an individual that had AIDS. The settlement requires that the City provide on-going training for its paramedics and pay the individual $50,000 in damages. Read more about the settlement at http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2006/November/06_crt_758%20%20%20.html.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) issued a final rule Adopting new accessibility standards under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.) The regulations were published on October 30, 2006 in the Federal Register. The move amends DOT's ADA regulations and adopts as its regulatory standards the revised standards published in 2004 by the Access Board. The rule took effect on November 29, 2006. Read more about the New Regulations at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/E6-16680.htm.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has posted the latest settlement agreements reached under Title II and Title III of the ADA to its website.

Title II (State and Local Governments):

• Shreveport, Louisiana
• City of Claremont , New Hampshire

Title III (Places of Public Accommodation):

• Jo-Ann Stores, Inc.
• Bethesda Memorial Hospital
• Victorian Palace Hotel, Branson, Missouri
• Winston Motor Sports
• South Florida Baptist Hospital

Read more about the Settlement Agreements at http://www.ada.gov/new.htm.

Great Lakes In Focus

Health Care Providers and the ADA

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a comprehensive Federal civil rights law that requires equal opportunities and access for individuals with disabilities to all goods and services offered by health care providers and medical care facilities. Health care providers and medical care facilities, such as hospitals, are covered as places of public accommodations under the ADA. Knowledge and understanding of the requirements of the ADA are essential to compliance.

While the ADA has been in effect for 16 years, many health care providers and medical care facilities continue to struggle with understanding their obligations. Effective communication is particularly critical in health care settings where miscommunication may lead to misdiagnosis and improper or delayed medical treatment. Under the ADA, health care providers and medical care facilities must provide effective means of communication for patients, family members, and visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing. Do to the complexity of the information that is being exchanged during many interactions with medical personnel a qualified interpreter is needed to achieve effective communication.

Additionally, many health care providers and medical care facilities do not realize that they are required to do what is readily achievable in order to remove existing architectural and communication barriers. Readily achievable barrier removal is defined as barriers which can be removed without much difficulty or expense. There is a misperception that if no alterations have been undertaken then there is no requirement to address accessibility. The ADA does not contain a grandfather clause.

Complying with the ADA and training employees on its requirements can seem overwhelming for health care providers and medical care facilities. However, it is critical that health care providers understand issues such as the requirements for providing effective communication and this information needs to be known by staff answering phones and making appointments. Knowledge on the ADA requirements helps to insure compliance and the provision of services in the most non-discriminatory manner.

For additional information and materials on the ADA contact the DBTAC Great Lakes ADA Center by calling 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) or by visiting the on-line contact form (http://www.adagreatlakes.org/WebForms/ContactUs/).

Accessible Technology

The DBTAC Great Lakes Accessible Technology Initiative provides individuals, businesses, governmental entities, and organizations, with technical assistance, training, referrals, materials, and resources on information technology and its accessibility. The Center's trainings are customized to fit the specific needs of the organizations requesting the presentations.

Visit the Accessible Technology section (htpp://www.adagreatlakes.org/AIT/) of the Great Lakes website for more information on the services provided by the Center.

To get additional information about accessible technology visit the Accessible Technology Bulletin (htpp://www.adagreatlakes.org/Publications/ATBulletin/).

For technical assistance questions contact the Great Lakes Center by calling 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) or by visiting our on-line contact form at htpp://www.adagreatlakes.org/WebForms/ContactUs/.

To get additional information about AIT in K-12 settings visit the K-12 Bulletin Archives (htpp://www.adagreatlakes.org/Publications/K-12Bulletin/Archives/). You may reach the Great Lakes Center by calling 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) or through our on-line Contact Form at htpp://www.adagreatlakes.org/WebForms/ContactUs/?attention=ait.

The Docket

EEOC V. Watkins Motor Lines, Inc., 463 F.3d 436 (September, 2006)

The 6^th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court's ruling granting summary judgment to an employer in an ADA employment case. The Court of Appeals stated that the plaintiff had not demonstrated that the employee's weight condition has a physiological cause and therefore was not considered a disability under the ADA.

The case involved a driver/dock worker that was injured on the job after falling from a ladder. Following a 6 month leave the trucking firm declared that he was not fit to do his job based on an examination by the company's doctor and would not allow the worker to return and terminated him.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued Watkins in a federal district court in October 2002. A judge there ruled for Watkins, finding that morbid obesity that does not have a physiological cause is not a disability under the ADA, nor was the employee substantially limited in any major life activity. Read more about EEOC vs. Watkins Motor Lines at http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/6th/053218p.pdf.

Technical Assistance Desk

Question: What type of tax breaks are there for businesses trying to comply with the requirements of the ADA?

Answer: In order to assist businesses with complying with the ADA, Section 44 of the IRS Code allows a tax credit for small businesses and Section 190 of the IRS Code allows a tax deduction for all businesses.

The tax credit is available to businesses that have total revenues of $1,000,000 or less in the previous tax year or 30 or fewer full-time employees. This credit can cover 50% of the eligible access expenditures in a year up to $10,250 (maximum credit of $5000). The tax credit can be used to offset the cost of undertaking barrier removal and alterations to improve accessibility; providing accessible formats such as Braille, large print and audio tape; making available a sign language interpreter or a reader for customers or employees, and for purchasing certain adaptive equipment.

The tax deduction is available to all businesses with a maximum deduction of $15,000 per year. The tax deduction can be claimed for expenses incurred in barrier removal and alterations. It is not available for new construction.

For additional information and materials on the ADA contact the DBTAC Great Lakes ADA Center by calling 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) or by visiting the on-line contact form (http://www.adagreatlakes.org/WebForms/ContactUs/).