After meeting a woman
living with a disability in Tucson, Beto
crafted a policy to address the cost of
medical diagnostic equipment and ease air
travel for people with disabilities
EL PASO, Texas－Beto was inspired by Amanda
Parkman, a woman he met in Tucson, Arizona, to
develop a plan to address the barriers many
individuals with disabilities face, including
access to health care and air travel. The full
plan can be found here.
Amanda shared with Beto that she had been told by
insurance companies over and over again that they
would not help her pay to fix her power
wheelchair. Her story shows that insurance alone
is often not enough to cover all of the needs of
individuals with disabilities. That’s why Beto has
put forth a plan to expand access to medical
diagnostic equipment (MDE), with steps that
include:
Directing
federal agencies to include evaluations of
compliance with accessible MDE standards and
ADA guidance so that health care providers’
services and facilities are accessible for
people with disabilities and those with
limited mobility;
Tying
Medicare reimbursement to the requirement that
providers offer high-quality accessible MDE
for their patients and train their staff
accordingly;
Encouraging
partnerships with providers and affiliated
organizations, such as the American Medical
Association, to share best practices around
accessible MDE procurement and training;
Directing
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to
provide research and development funding for
universal design. Unlike building entrances
with stairs, everyone can utilize ramps — we
should apply that same philosophy in universal
design to health care services and facilities;
and
Increasing
provider reimbursement rates for medical
practices serving low-income communities by
moving Medicaid into Medicare for America,
ensuring cost is not an obstacle to the
procurement of accessible MDE.
Beto also believes we must do more to address the
barriers that people with disabilities, like
Amanda, may face when they travel. That’s why Beto
has put forth a plan to address barriers to air
travel for people with disabilities, that
includes:
Directing
the Department of Transportation (DOT) to
diligently enforce the Air Carrier Access Act
(ACAA), investigating reports of violations;
Directing
the DOT to ensure that airlines are providing
accurate training for airline personnel, and
directing them to create standards and
procedures for employees to comply with the
ACCA in an effort to end discrimination and
ensure safe storage and transport of
wheelchairs and mobility aids;
Advocating
for an amendment to the ACCA to include a
private right of action, so passengers with
disabilities have recourse when they believe
their rights have been violated by airlines;
and
Holding
to account the airline industry, as well as
providing incentives, so that that air travel
meets or exceeds ADA standards.
