[nagdu] Medical Center Settles Section 504 Violation

[Natalie]

Well, glad to hear the settlement has opened the hospital's eyes.
Best,
Nat and Liam Joshua

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Steven Johnson" <blinddog3 at charter.net>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Cc: "'Wisconsin Association of Guide Dog Users List'" <wagdu at nfbwis.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 05, 2012 5:31 PM
Subject: [nagdu] Medical Center Settles Section 504 Violation


> News Release
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> January 3, 2012
> Contact: OCR Press Office
> (202) 619-0403
>
>
> St. Mercy Medical Center settles violation of Section 504 of the
> Rehabilitation Act
> Following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human
> Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR), St. Edward Mercy Medical
> Center (Mercy), in Fort Smith, Arkansas has agreed to make changes to its
> policies and procedures to comply with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation 
> Act
> of 1973 (Section 504).
>
> The settlement resulted from a complaint filed with OCR by a person with a
> lumbar and spinal disability who requires a service animal to assist him 
> in
> a number of daily functions, including carrying and picking up items and
> helping to stabilize his walking. While the complainant sought emergency
> medical treatment for his father, Mercy refused to allow the service 
> animal
> to accompany the complainant into the hospital. The complainant was told 
> his
> service animal was not a "seeing eye dog" and the animal would need to be
> removed from the hospital because he could not show vaccination records or
> tags verifying the health of the animal. After an investigation, OCR found
> that Mercy's policies and procedures regarding access to service animals
> inappropriately excluded service animals already being used by qualified
> individuals with disabilities other than vision impairment.
>
> "Service animals are used by people with disabilities for various purposes
> and this action sends a strong reminder to facilities to ensure that 
> people
> with service animals have an equal opportunity to participate in their
> programs and services," said OCR Director Leon Rodriguez.  "HHS is 
> committed
> to continuing its strong enforcement of Section 504 and ensuring access to
> health care for all Americans."
>
> Under Section 504, a covered entity may not limit access to only those
> service animals used by persons who are blind or have low vision. A 
> covered
> entity may also not deny access to a service animal based on an 
> individual's
> failure to produce a tag or other documentation demonstrating that the
> animal is a service animal or what tasks the service animal performs, or a
> veterinarian's health certificate or other documentation of the service
> animal's health.
>
> Among the terms of the settlement agreement, Mercy will establish
> non-discrimination policies, provide notice to its staff and program
> participants of such policies, and ensure staff receives comprehensive
> training on their obligations to provide services without discrimination 
> to
> qualified persons with disabilities and specific training on permitting
> service animals into its facility in accordance with Section 504.
>
> People who believe that an entity receiving federal financial assistance 
> has
> discriminated against them (or someone else) on the basis of disability, 
> may
> file a complaint with OCR at:
> http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/civilrights/complaints. A copy of the Settlement
> Agreement in this matter, along with more information about OCR's efforts 
> to
> enforce Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1972 can be found at
> www.hhs.gov/ocr.
>
>
> ###
>
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are
> available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
>
>
> "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things 
> not
> seen." Hebrews 11
>
>
>
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