Building Accessibility into Technology Vendor Contracts

Want to make sure that accessibility becomes — and stays — part of your organization’s way of doing business? Want to stay ahead of the legal curve and make sure the technology you purchase works for everyone, including your disabled students, customers, patients, employees and members of the public? A key component is having technology vendor contracts that include accessibility. The article posted here offers smart practices for this important aspect of technology procurement. Read more… Building Accessibility into Technology Vendor Contracts

Sue Ammeter, Blind Disability Rights Champion, Dies at 69

The list of Sue Ammeter’s advocacy roles could fill this post.  Board member (and often officer) of the American Council of the Blind, the Washington State Council of the Blind, and the National Braille Press are just some of the organizations Sue Ammeter volunteered with on top of her paid work. Organizations that will miss the talent, commitment, and unstoppable advocacy of the Washington state resident who died on April 7, 2018. Read more… Sue Ammeter, Blind Disability Rights Champion, Dies at 69

Digital Accessibility Legal Update (and more) at CSUN 2018

Want to know what’s happening in the digital accessibility legal space? I’m happy to let attendees of the 33rd annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference know that I will be offering the Digital Accessibility Legal update three times this year. (This will be one presentation repeated three times so everyone who wants to attend can!) Lainey will also be co-presenting a fourth session (not the legal update) with Sue Boyd, an Assistant General Counsel in Microsoft’s Regulatory Affairs group who leads a legal and policy team focused on accessibility. Sue and I will be talking about best practices for staying ahead of the curve when it comes to accessibility. Read more… Digital Accessibility Legal Update (and more) at CSUN 2018

Weight Watchers Print and Digital Accessibility Settlement Agreement

Posted here is the settlement agreement between Weight Watchers, the American Council of the Blind, and blind Weight Watchers members Alice Ritchhart and Lillian Scaife. The agreement demonstrates Weight Watchers’ strong commitment to digital accessibility for its members and subscribers who are blind and visually impaired. Weight Watchers will be using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA as the standard for its online and mobile application content, and will be providing print material in accessible formats for persons with visual impairments who cannot read standard print. The agreement, reached using Structured Negotiations, also includes training, monitoring and implementation provisions. Linda Dardarian of the Oakland civil rights firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho was co-counsel with the Law Office of Lainey Feingold in representing the blind community. Read more… Weight Watchers Print and Digital Accessibility Settlement Agreement

Cinemark Audio Description Settlement Agreement

The settlement agreement posted here is a result of Structured Negotiations between the California Council of the Blind, Cinemark patrons with visual impairments, and Cinemark, a leading domestic and international motion picture exhibitor. Linda Dardarian, of the Oakland, California civil rights firm Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen and Dardarian, and the Law Office of Lainey Feingold worked with the blind community on this initiative. Audio Description provides vocal description of key visual aspects of a movie, such as descriptions of scenery, facial expressions, costumes, action settings, and scene changes, described audibly during natural pauses in dialogue or critical sound elements. Narration of these elements is then woven into the soundtrack of the program or film, so that the finished version is a mix of program audio and descriptive narration. The description, which is provided by movie studios, is available only to members of the audience who choose to receive it via personal headsets and a receiver provided at the theater. Read more… Cinemark Audio Description Settlement Agreement

Bank of America Credit Card Rewards Website Agreement

Bank of America has long been a leader in its commitment to accessible digital content. The agreement posted here concerns accessibility enhancements to the bank’s travel rewards redemption site. This agreement was reached through Structured Negotiations, a collaborative dispute resolution process. Structured Negotiations has been used for twenty years to successfully resolve accessibility claims without lawsuits. Read more… Bank of America Credit Card Rewards Website Agreement

CVS Talking Prescription Container Settlement Agreement

This post contains the settlement agreement between CVS/pharmacy and the American Council of the Blind, the California Council of the Blind and the American Foundation for the Blind. CVS is now providing ScripTalk talking prescription labels through cvs.com mail order to customers across the United States. The agreement was reached through Structured Negotiations; no lawsuit was needed. Along with the Law Office of Lainey Feingold, Linda Dardarian of Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho working with the blind organizations on this important health and safety initiative. Read more… CVS Talking Prescription Container Settlement Agreement

Walmart Expands Program to Provide Talking Prescription Containers

Need information about how to order Talking Prescription Containers for prescription medications obtained from Walmart? You’ll find everything you need in this post. In June, 2012, Walmart became the first national pharmacy retailer to offer Talking Prescription Containers free of charge to persons with visual impairments. The ScripTalk Talking Prescription program is being offered to customers across the country through Walmart mail order. In addition to the national mail order program, Walmart recently began offering ScripTalk at 33 stores around the country. A list of stores where ScripTalk is available, as well as instructions for ordering, appear in this post. Read more… Walmart Expands Program to Provide Talking Prescription Containers

The Cities Project: Building Free Accessible WordPress Themes

The Law Office of Lainey Feingold’s website is a WordPress site designed and maintained to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 AAA Success Criteria. Yet according to Joseph Karr O’Connor, an accessibility advocate and consultant and a WordPress expert, only a handful of themes in the WordPress Theme Directory are accessible to all users. Just four of of 1,747 themes as of April, 2013 designed to be inclusive? Karr O’Connor is out to change those numbers with the Cities Project, an international effort to increase the number of free accessible WordPress themes. Karr O’Connor will be bringing his message to the University of California Berkeley on June 11, and the public is invited to learn more about the collaborative creative effort that is the Cities Project. Read more… The Cities Project: Building Free Accessible WordPress Themes

New United States Talking ATM Regulations Now On Line

The United States Department of Justice has now made the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design available on line. The Standards were included in the revised ADA regulations announced by the Department in September, 2010, but the 257 page document was not on line until November 15, 2010. The Standards include, for the first time, detailed requirements for Talking ATMs. Read more… New United States Talking ATM Regulations Now On Line