On this, the 50th anniversary of the Rehabilitation Act, and on the heels of the HHS’ announcement two weeks ago to update and significantly strengthen its nondiscrimination regulations in Section 504 in health and human service programs and activities, the National Institutes of Health officially designated people with disabilities as a “health disparity population.”
This designation is an important acknowledgment and means that people with disabilities will be intentionally included in NIH funding and programs intended to address health disparities. People with disabilities’ experience of healthcare has too often been one that is inaccessible, ill-equipped, and one that has devalued their lives, which has led to egregious health disparities, under-resourced supports and services, and lives cut short, including those states in which ableist assisted suicide laws have infiltrated.
The Patients’ Rights Action Fund celebrates the Rehabilitation Act’s importance and applauds these recent significant developments in support and defense of the equitable treatment and healthcare experiences and outcomes of our allies with disabilities.
Statement on Alzheimer’s Awareness Month Dolly’s World is overseen by a Wisconsin matriarch with dementia who surrounds herself with dolls and lovingly cares for them. Just as her dolls need her, she also needs 24/7 care which her family provides by taking turns to stay with her and keeping the public aware of what goes
Psychiatrists Warn of Assisted Suicide for Mental Illness A recent article in the National Post discussed the differences that several Canadian psychiatrists have when discussing assisted suicide for those with mental illness. Several psychiatrists oppose extending Canada’s assisted suicide laws and the fact that they put vulnerable people at risk of deadly harm. Below is
Summary of Massachusetts Hearing Last Friday on October 20th, 2023 between 9:00 a.m. and 12:45 p.m., Massachusetts civil rights champions assembled and outnumbered assisted suicide proponents at the Massachusetts State House to ask Massachusetts legislators to once again vote “NO” to the dangerous and discriminatory public policy of assisted suicide. Notable testimony was provided by
