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<p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> Suzanne Turner <smturner.234@gmail.com> <br>
<b>Sent:</b> Thursday, June 8, 2023 10:58 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> smturner.234@gmail.com<br>
<b>Subject:</b> H.R. 3702 and S. 1467 Access Technology Affordability Act<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Access Technology Affordability Act<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">article<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Issue--The cost of critically needed access technology is out of reach for most blind Americans.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The high cost of access technology creates a difficult economic reality. Most access technology ranges from
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">X<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">6,000. For example, a leading screen reader is <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">X<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">5,495, one model of a refreshable Braille display is <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">X<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">3,695. According to the United States Census Bureau 69.1 percent of blind Americans are either unemployed or underemployed.1 Consequently, most blind Americans<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">do not have sufficient financial resources needed to purchase these items.2 These financial barriers can ultimately lead to a loss of employment, insufficient<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">education, or even isolation from community activities.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Medical insurance will not cover the cost of access technology. Current definitions of "medical care," "medical necessity," and "durable medical equipment"<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">within common insurance policies do not include access technology. These definitions were adopted in the 1960s “when medical care was viewed primarily<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">as curative and palliative, with little or no consideration given to increasing an individual's functional status.”3 Many states’ Medicaid programs and<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">individual health insurance plans have adopted similar definitions and likewise will not cover the cost of access technology.4<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Access technology enables blind Americans to participate in today’s workforce. Blindness is well-defined and measurable,5 but affects each person differently<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">and at different ages. Since individuals’ needs differ, manufacturers have designed various tools that enable each blind American to perform tasks that<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">they were once unable to accomplish themselves due to their blindness. Braille notetakers are frequently used in schools, screen-reading software allows<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">workers to check their email at home, and screen-magnification software can help seniors losing vision learn about community activities. Access technology<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">equips blind Americans to seek employment and stay employed. For the 69.1 percent of blind Americans who are either unemployed or underemployed, it is<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">a vehicle that facilitates the job seeking process. Despite this critical need, public and private entities struggle to meet consumer demand.6 This leads<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">to untimely delays in the delivery of necessary technology and ultimately harms the blind consumer.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Solution--Access Technology Affordability Act:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Makes access technology more affordable so that blind Americans can procure these items for themselves. It establishes a refundable tax credit for blind<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Americans in the amount of $2,000 to be used over a three-year period to offset the cost of access technology. The credit created by ATAA will sunset after<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">five years and will be indexed for inflation.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Provides flexibility for individuals to obtain access technology based upon their specific needs. Accessibility requires an individualized assessment of<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">one’s own skills and needs. Therefore, blind Americans should be given the opportunity to procure access technology on their own to ensure that they are<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">receiving the tools that are most useful for them.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Will increase federal income tax revenue. More blind Americans working means more people paying taxes. It also means that those blind Americans who obtain<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">gainful employment through this tax credit will no longer need to draw from federal programs such as Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Insurance and will instead be paying into the Social Security Program. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">GOAL--IMPROVE AFFORDABILITY OF CRITICALLY NEEDED ACCESS TECHNOLOGY NECESSARY FOR EMPLOYMENT AND INDEPENDENT LIVING.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Cosponsor the Access Technology Affordability Act (ATAA)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To cosponsor the ATAA in the House of Representatives (H.R. 431), contact:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Crozer Connor, Senior Legislative Assistant for Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Phone: 202-225-3311, Email: crozer.connor@mail.house.gov<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To cosponsor the ATAA in the Senate (S. 212), contact:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ron Storhaug, Legislative Aide for Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Phone: 202-224-4524, Email: Ron_Storhaug@sbc.senate.gov<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For more information, contact:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jeff Kaloc, Government Affairs Specialist, National Federation of the Blind<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Phone: 410-659-9314, extension 2206, Email: <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">jkaloc@nfb.org<o:p></o:p></p>
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