[il-talk] The Seeing Eye responds to Delta's new service animal policy

Wed Jan 24 20:47:21 UTC 2018

What is an airline to do when someone comes to the airport with a
restless 200 pound Great Dane and decides to call it a service animal
for a mental health condition? Advocates say that neither disability
documentation nor training certificates can be required. Many people
are bringing what I understand to be house pets aboard planes as
service animals.

On 1/23/18, Robert Hansen via IL-Talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>  I might even call the guide dog group And see if I can make a radio
> segment out of this. This is interesting and this just came out I think
> last week.
>
> Sincerely
> Robert A. Hansen
> hansen.robert70 at gmail.com
> Robert A. Hansen https://www.securitylife.com/gpm?agnt=010N4261 Get started
> on your dental insurance quote today! For assistance, please contact your
> GPM H&L agent or call the Ameritas Sales Connect Team at 800.371.1133.
> Illinois residents only
>
>
>
> On Jan 23, 2018 1:47 PM, "Patti Chang via IL-Talk" <il-talk at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
>
>> I suggest you reach out to our division for guide dog users. It is called
>> NAGDU and Marion Gwizdala is president. NAGDU is the best source for guide
>> dog info.
>> I copied Marion here for your convenience. I have not yet seen anything on
>> this but I am not a dog handler.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Patti Chang Esq.
>> Treasurer
>> National Federation of the Blind of Illinois
>> (773) 307-6440
>> www.nfbofillinois.org
>>
>> Find us on twitter: "NFBI"
>> Search for "National Federation of the Blind of Illinois" on facebook.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: IL-Talk [mailto:il-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Harris
>> Singer
>> via IL-Talk
>> Sent: Tuesday, January 23, 2018 8:05 AM
>> To: NFB of Illinois Mailing List <il-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: Harris Singer <harris.singer at gmail.com>
>> Subject: [il-talk] The Seeing Eye responds to Delta's new service animal
>> policy
>>
>> Good morning everyone,
>> I have a guide dog from the Seeing Eye and received the below message from
>> them regarding Delta Airlines new policy on service animals. The Seeing
>> Eye
>> makes excellent points about the discrimination which will come with this
>> policy and the concern of it becoming an industry standard. Please read
>> below. Has the NFB taken a position on Delta's service animal policy?
>> There
>> are links below which can bring you to file comment with the government
>> against Delta's new policy.
>>
>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> From: "advocacy at seeingeye.org" <advocacy at seeingeye.org>
>> Date: Tue, 23 Jan 2018 05:01:52 -0600
>> Subject: The Seeing Eye responds to Delta's new service animal policy
>> To: Harris Singer <harris.singer at gmail.com>
>>
>> The Seeing Eye
>>
>>
>>
>> Dear fellow Seeing Eye graduate,
>>
>> Many of you have contacted The Seeing Eye with concerns about Delta's new
>> service animal policy. The new requirements, effective March 1, call for
>> disabled passengers to take several steps before they will be allowed to
>> fly
>> with a service animal. These steps include uploading proof of rabies and
>> distemper vaccinations to the Delta web site on an annual basis, and
>> requiring passengers to report to the check-in counter for verification
>> each
>> time they go to the airport.
>>
>> The Seeing Eye recognizes that all airlines must establish practical and
>> reasonable policies as part of ongoing efforts to keep passengers safe.
>> However, we believe that Delta's new service animal policy compromises the
>> rights of guide dog handler's to fly free from discrimination.
>>
>> In response to Delta's new policy, and the likelihood that if left
>> unchallenged, other airlines will quickly adopt similar requirements, The
>> Seeing Eye has submitted the below complaint to the Aviation Consumer
>> Protection Division at the U.S. Department of Transportation:
>>
>> 1.  Passengers with guide dogs should be able to complete check-in online,
>> at a kiosk or curbside, just like anyone else. Instead, Delta's new policy
>> requires these passengers to "Visit the airport check-in counter", where
>> the
>> disabled passenger's "request will be verified at the airport by a Delta
>> Representative." This is an undue burden and a serious inconvenience for
>> blind passengers -- especially when traveling with family, friends or
>> business colleagues who prefer to check-in curbside or  who have already
>> secured advance boarding passes. This practice violates the disabled
>> passenger's right to choose what check-in process works best for his/her
>> individual circumstances, and will likely force passengers to depend on
>> Delta representatives or others for additional assistance that they might
>> not otherwise require. Moreover, segregating blind passengers from their
>> traveling companions or other non-disabled passengers simply to enforce
>> compliance with a vaccination requirement that is already mandated by most
>> state laws is degrading and cause for considerable humiliation,
>> embarrassment, and loss of dignity.
>> 2.  The 48-hour advance notice seems to preclude last minute or emergency
>> travel if the trip is the passenger's first flight of the renewal year.
>> 3.  The policy fails to address what will happen when other airlines need
>> to
>> reschedule disabled passengers onto Delta flights if those passengers do
>> not
>> have the required documentation for their service animals.
>>
>> Graduates who are concerned about this new policy are encouraged to submit
>> their own comments describing any negative impact on air travel on Delta
>> by
>> completing the complaint form at:
>>
>> http://support.seeingeye.org/site/R?i=MZ_YNFTGMlXh3qohbgNVrg
>>
>> If your only means of contacting the Division is by phone, you may leave a
>> message at (202) 366-2220.
>>
>> To read more about Delta's new service animal policy, visit:
>>
>> http://support.seeingeye.org/site/R?i=IVB3eVCKIBe5AsvEBFIk-A
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>
>> Ginger Bennett Kutsch
>> Advocacy Specialist
>> The Seeing Eye, Inc.
>> Morristown, New Jersey
>> (973) 539-4425
>> www.seeingeye.org
>> http://support.seeingeye.org/site/R?i=U8Uwhg9t9twJpQzrsgjWAg
>>
>>
>>
>> The Seeing Eye
>> 10 Washington Valley Road
>> Morristown, NJ 07960
>> ph (973) 539-4425
>> e info at seeingeye.org
>>
>> unsubscribe:
>> http://seeing.convio.net/site/CO?i=ZGgijsTF9PRQCJIILjwCUAUGQYAonf
>> 40&cid=1061
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> IL-Talk mailing list
>> IL-Talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/il-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> IL-Talk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/il-talk_nfbnet.org/
>> pattischang%40gmail.com
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> IL-Talk mailing list
>> IL-Talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/il-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> IL-Talk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/il-talk_nfbnet.org/
>> hansen.robert70%40gmail.com
>>
> _______________________________________________
> IL-Talk mailing list
> IL-Talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/il-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> IL-Talk:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/il-talk_nfbnet.org/kellytalk%40gmail.com
>