COAT legislation petition now signed in 44 states!
We would like to encourage each of you to support some very important legislation that will make a tremendous difference in the lives of deaf and hard of hearing citizens. The 21st Century Communications & Video Accessibility Act is going to be re-introduced and we would like Congress to know that the needs of deaf and hard of hearing Americans should not be overlooked.
As you may know, CSD was one of the founding members of the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) and we have joined them in efforts to ensure that the federal laws that we have worked so hard to enact over the past 20 years keep in pace with new technologies. For instance, television shows that are re-shown over the Internet are under no requirement to be captioned – even if they had captions when they were shown on TV! Also, small TVs, cell phones, PDAs, and other mobile devices are not required to display captions, even though they are now capable of showing TV shows. Also, for now, 9-1-1 emergency call centers cannot accept calls from people who need to communicate in video or via pagers.
There is still much work to be done and we need to show our support by signing petitions on the COAT website. Overall, the goal is to have 5,000 signatures before the 21stCentury Communications & Video Accessibility Act is re-introduced! Please show your support now by logging onto their website at http://www.coataccess.org/node/add/petition to electronically sign their COAT petition.
Ideally, the petitions should be representative of consumers from all 50 states. But at this time, there are few or no petition signers from the following states: Iowa, North Dakota, Nevada, Nebraska, Oklahoma and West Virginia. Regardless of what state you are from, please go to the COAT website and learn more about their efforts and support their cause by signing the petition — they still need more petitioners from ALL 50 states.
Below is a copy of the petition itself. If you agree with it, again please go to their site and SIGN THEIR PETITION! It takes only a few moments and will do a great deal in showing members of Congress how much we all care about access in the 21st century.
We, the undersigned, support the legislative and regulatory proposals of the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) to ensure full access by people with disabilities to evolving high speed broadband, wireless, and Internet communication and electronic technologies.
Over the last 20 years, various federal laws to ensure access to telephone and television technologies have been enacted. However, these federal laws have not kept pace with new technologies. For example, television programs distributed over the Internet are not required to have closed captions or video description – even if they had captions and description when they were shown on television. Also, although televisions with screens larger than 13 inches must display closed captions, small televisions, cell phones, PDAs, and other mobile devices do not have this same requirement; nor are they required to pass through video description. In addition, although federal law requires phones over the regular public telephone network to be hearing aid compatible, it is not clear whether this obligation carries over to smart phones used for communication over the Internet. Nor are there any affordable phone devices that work for people who are deaf-blind. The list goes on and on – nearly every time new technology is introduced in the marketplace, people with disabilities get left behind! We say enough is enough!
We want access. We need change. We support COAT’s efforts to enact the Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act and other laws and policies that will ensure equal access to telecommunications, the Internet, and television programming!
If you would like to forward this email request and petition to your friends and family members, please do so. Don’t hesitate to forward the petition to anyone who might be willing to send their signature! You can use the automatic petition forwarder at the following: http://www.coataccess.org/node/88
Thank you in advance for your support and for helping to make a difference!
At LI Deaf-Blind Facility, a Place to Call Home
By Delthia Ricks, Newsday 2/16/09
Melville, NY – One in a row of brown and beige look-alike buildings, Destiny Home appears as any other 1960s duplex in Port Washington. But inside, five residents are cocooned in an environment geared for people who are blind – or almost so – and deaf.
Deaf-blindness is an unusual disability that presents a number of challenges. There are mobility problems as a result of the blindness. It is more difficult to navigate from place with low or no vision. Being hearing-impaired complicates communication. An estimated 85 percent of what anyone knows about the surrounding world is perceived through vision and hearing. When both senses are impaired, affected individuals are extraordinarily disadvantaged.
The home – a first of its kind in New York that is expected to become a model for other states – is an uber-supportive environment. The passport into it is a knowledge of American Sign Language. Designers of the home’s interior took into consideration what it’s like to be cut off from the world of sights and sounds.
Beds vibrate to signal an emergency. Kitchen cabinet knobs are oversized. One resident with low vision has a computerized relay system for telephone conversations, which features a live operator who appears on screen to translate a caller’s spoken words into sign language. The resident’s signed words are translated into spoken ones for the person with both senses.
Buzz of activity
Roland, David, Damali, Tanisha and Linda are Destiny Home’s five residents. (Administrators of the home asked that residents’ last names not be published to protect their families’ privacy.) They range in age from early 20s through early 40s. They moved into the home last summer, each having waited for years to live in a supportive atmosphere.
Eavesdropping on this world, it’s easy to discover a community abuzz with activity though nary a word is heard.
While Roland donned a wide-brimmed hat on a recent chilly afternoon, as he prepared to escort a visitor around Destiny Home’s backyard, David busied himself at his computer.
A Braille version of a Nancy Drew novel – the size of a major city’s Yellow Pages – captured Tanisha’s attention, as Damali helped herself to milk and a cookie in the kitchen. Linda dressed for visitors: a purple dress and matching purple necklace.
This makeshift family has been molded from a common disability. They are among an estimated 70,000 deaf-blind people nationwide, though that figure may be as high as 1.5 million, some experts say, when adults who lose hearing and vision due to age and medical disorders are counted.
All three women are completely blind; the two men are legally blind. “When we talk about legal blindness, that’s 20/200 in the good eye with correction,” said Joseph McNulty, executive director of the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults, which administers the residence. All Destiny Home residents are deaf.
Most people who are deaf-blind from childhood, as is the case with Destiny Home’s residents, lose their hearing and eyesight to one of two causes: Usher’s syndrome, a rare genetic condition; or congenital rubella syndrome, which occurs during the fetal stage when pregnant women catch German measles.
Eyes on LI facility
None of the residents had been successful living independently on Long Island despite having undergone training at the Helen Keller center in Sands Point, McNulty said. The region is expensive, a job is necessary and a support system is vital. Organizers hope Destiny Home’s emphasis on job training will give residents stronger financial footing.
State-funded, the duplex has a staff of 15 people who work in shifts around the clock. It costs $1 million annually to run.
The state’s support for Destiny Home includes “life coaches” who serve as constant companions to each resident. They help with tasks such as choosing clothing and dressing, as well as explaining what’s going on, moment by moment, using American Sign Language.
For those with low vision, sign language is performed as it would be for someone who is deaf. For residents with no eyesight, words are “finger spelled” into their hand. Helen Keller famously learned to understand the world through the same technique more than 120 years ago.
Destiny Home is winning high marks from experts outside New York.
“We are excited to see that Destiny Home is available for deaf-blind people and they are living in an environment where they can be independent and still receive the support they need to be fully independent,” said Elizabeth Spiers, who is deaf-blind and spokeswoman for the American Association of the Deaf-Blind in Silver Spring, Md. Spiers was interviewed by e-mail. She is legally blind but can read words on her screen in large type.
A sign of hope
In the general population, the deaf-blind are often cut off from communication, even within their own families, often because of an unwillingness among parents to learn sign language, said Suzanne Ressa, marketing and development director at Helen Keller.
“They’re very vulnerable to abuse because they’re a silent population,” Ressa said. “How would they communicate to authorities if something happened – to say they need help?”
One of the five Destiny residents (whom neither Ressa nor other administrators would name) is a survivor of the notorious Willowbrook State School, whose long and sullied history resulted in a spate of lawsuits against the state of New York.
The Staten Island institution, closed in 1987, served as a home for mentally disabled and deaf-blind children. Many were subjected to a series of abuses, including the intentional injection of the hepatitis virus in a bizarre scientific experiment, a state commission later found.
Whatever their past traumas, the residents indicate they view Destiny Home as a safe haven and a place to grow.
David has a job at La Piccola Angelina, an Italian restaurant in Port Washington. He works in the kitchen. The opportunity came after a group from the Helen Keller center – communicating at its table in sign language – lunched there last year.
Tanisha has an internship at the Stop & Shop in Port Washington. “She unrolls the cookie dough and puts the dough on [baking] trays.” said Laura Rocchio, of the Helen Keller center. “She also does the bread. We’re evaluating her production. She can do a good number of trays in 55 minutes.”
Tanisha signs a response.
And Rocchio interprets aloud: ” ‘I love the smell of baked goods.’ ”
- Thanks to NVRC, Fairfax
Music teachers are ordered to wear earmuffs by health and safety watchdog
By Stephanie Condron, The Daily Mail (UK), 1/21/09
School music teachers have been warned to wear earmuffs or stand behind noise screens to protect their hearing.
This is because beginners tend to blast away much louder than professionals.
The most potentially deafening instrument is the cornet, with just one honk being enough to cause permanent ear damage.
And standing in the direct fire of instruments such as the flute, oboe and saxophone can become risky after just 15 minutes.
Standing next to a school band is even more dangerous, the Health and Safety Executive warns.
‘Sound levels produced by groups of student instrumentalists are likely to be higher than those produced by a professional group of players because of less-developed technical abilities and natural exuberance,’ the organisation said.
‘Damaging sound levels have been measured at the conductor’s position in school bands.’
The warning has been posted on the HSE website. It sets the lower safe daily limit for exposure to a prolonged noise at 80 decibels.
This level takes account of the actual volume of sound and how long it continues.
Noise exposure is not the same as sound level, which is the noise measured at a particular moment.
After just 15 minutes of a saxophone lesson, teachers can reach their safe daily exposure limit.
Conducting a brass, woodwind and percussion orchestra can be done safely for just 19 minutes.
For a one-off sound, the lower safe limit is 135 decibels and 140 decibels must not be breached.
When officials visited a school, they found that noise in a cornet lesson hit 140 decibels. In comparison, a pneumatic drill makes a 100-decibel sound and 140 decibels equates to a plane taking off.
A school that allows staff to be exposed to the cornet without protection would likely be in breach of noise regulations, the HSE warns.
‘Sounds peaking above 140dB are liable to cause immediate and lasting damage rather than accumulating over time,’ the HSE warns.
‘It is therefore crucial that a thorough noise control strategy is in place before any exposure to loud noise might occur.’
To avoid overexposure, teachers can stand behind screens, ensure they do not stand in the line of fire of an instrument or, as a last resort, wear ear protectors.
If they do use acoustic screens, they must be careful not to place them so that the sound reverberates back to the child, putting them in added danger.
The advice is aimed at protecting workers. But the HSE says: ‘Consider the use of hearing protection for both teachers and students to protect hearing during “loud” lessons.’
Thanks to bhNEWS and NVRC, Fairfax
OSHA: 20 Years of Workplace Noise Regulations
From Healthy Hearing, 2/23/09
http://www.healthyhearing.com/articles/34760-osha-workplace-noise-exposure
In the spring of 2008, the Occupational and Safety Administration (OSHA) – charged with keeping workers safe on the job – released the agenda for the administration’s fall session. The agenda covered numerous workplace, health-related issues including exposure to toxins on the job – certainly a safety issue.
Unfortunately, the agenda only included one long-term activity with no set completion date for the study in its list of topics under discussion. As ohsonline stated in its report:
“This is disappointing because the agency and hearing conservation professionals agree hearing loss is a significant problem in the industry, and OSHA published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking in August 2002 to gather information on the extent of hearing loss among workers in different trades and then held stakeholder meetings in 2004. Now, the agency says, “Work continues on collecting and analyzing information to determine technological and economic feasibility of possible approaches.”
Now, think about that for just a second. We all know the dangers of long-term exposure to workplace noise. OSHA has studied the problem for more than 40 years! There’s certainly enough data collected, wouldn’t you say? Further, the administration, 20 years ago, put into place stringent regulations designed to protect workers in noisy environments so the regulations are on the books.
Yet, the problem continues to get worse.
It’s a Noisy World in Which We Live
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| It’s a noisy world |
Factories and manufacturing plants have always been noisy, what with heavy equipment, stamping machines, extruders, forklifts – it’s a cacophony of sound on some assembly floors. And, by now, company owners and assembly line managers are well aware of the problems of noise-induced hearing loss and the fines that OSHA levies when workers’ hearing is unprotected. Even so, many workers spend their shifts working without any ear protection at all. By choice. Others wear ineffective hearing protection devices, enabling loud noise to enter the ear canal and damage the delicate hearing mechanism within the ear.
If There Is a Solution, Why Is There a Problem?
Noise-induced hearing loss is one of the most common workplace injuries, yet it’s also one of the most insidious. Hearing loss occurs over time so the impact isn’t immediate. Drop a pallet of iron ingots on your pinky toe, the effect is immediate and you start hopping around in pain – and maybe looking around for a severed pinky toe.
Not so with hearing loss. For one thing, hearing loss has long been associated with the aging process. It’s called nerve deafness (the pros call it presbycusis) as the ear workings simply wear out, along with knee joints and that receding hairline. All part of growing up, right? Nope.
Anthropologists trekked through the African jungle to study the hearing of tribal members who had never been exposed to loud noise – at least not on a daily basis. These explorers made an interesting discovery. Tribal elders heard as well as teens in the tribe because they hadn’t experienced loud noise – except maybe during rituals and ceremonies, but not everyday standing over a jackhammer.
The study of this remote tribe demonstrated that hearing loss isn’t necessarily entirely related to the aging process. Oh sure, your inner ear gear wears out some, but not as much as it does when exposed to a lifetime of loud noise that surrounds us every day – even weekends. Hey, if you aren’t working on a loud assembly floor, you’re probably mowing the lawn or blasting your favorite tunes on your MP3 player.
Or maybe you travel the NASCAR circuit or simply live in a city with buses, subways, honking horns, semis and the general din that saturates the air around you. The fact is, workplace noise is a preventable danger, but we still live in a noisy world.
Should I Worry?
You bet you should worry. More than 27 million Americans report hearing loss significant enough to have a negative impact on their lives. Some minor hearing loss may be inconvenient. Moderate to severe hearing loss leads to isolation, depression and a host of other psychological and family problems.
And living with someone who experiences hearing loss can be more than a little frustrating, too. You find yourself raising your voice, and begging to turn down the volume on the television.
Here’s what happens: when ears are exposed to loud noise over a long period of time (with no respite in between listening sessions) the ear produces corrosive little molecules called free radicals. You’ve heard of free radicals. Scientists have associated these acidic little bad guys with everything from hearing loss to the aging process itself.
So, to ward off free radicals, nutritionists tell us to eat foods that are high in anti-oxidants: leafy green vegetables, citrus fruits and other “good-for-you” foods. Anti-oxidants diminish the damage caused by free radicals. Get the picture.
But here’s the problem: you can eat spinach all day every day and still have hearing loss caused by a loud workplace noise.
The National Hearing Conservation Association
The president of The National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA), Teresa Schulz, knows all about noise-induced hearing loss. She’s heard all the sad stories.
At a recent convention, the subject turned to tinnitus, aka ringing in the ears – for many a problem even worse than hearing loss itself. “Tinnitus can be, for many, even worse than the hearing loss itself, as the sounds can become distressing and in many cases, they never go away,” Schulz says.
Bottom line? Hearing loss is just one problem associated with workplace noise. Imagine a ringing in your ears 24/7/365 days a year. You know that’s going to get annoying fast.
Go Pro-Active In the Workplace
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| Be proactive -wear ear protection |
Obviously, the best defense against hearing loss is to wear hearing protection. Depending on the workplace, this protection can range from earplugs to noise cancellation ear cups.
Don’t think of a noisy workplace as a coal mine or assembly plant. With open offices, there’s a lot of cross talk taking place throughout the day and though you may not be aware of it (it’s not painful) nonetheless it’s there. So, give a listen to the noise levels in any work place – office, outdoors, driving a semi, industrial or construction site – there’s noise everywhere.
In a very informative article on the topic of workplace noise published in ehstoday.com Brad Witt, Director of Hearing Conservation for Sperian Protection stated, “eliminating occupational noise through engineering controls should be the company’s first line of defense if possible. Certain measures, such as installing “silencers” (mufflers and baffles, for example) on equipment, work by absorbing sound.”
“Sometimes, though, it is very difficult to do that, either because it is often times not feasible or technically possible,” Witt notes.
Witt also points out that the technology to protect hearing exists but that workers don’t always wear this gear. The number one reason given for NOT taking pro-active, protective measures? Workers can’t hear each other – an important element in any cooperative endeavor.
“So even though ear plugs are passed out, workers take them out to talk to their coworkers and it defeats the whole purpose,” Witt points out.
“Technological advances in hearing protection have enabled manufacturers to come out with hearing protection that manages sound, rather than just blocking it. For instance, level-dependent earmuffs have microphones mounted on the surface of the ear cups, which feed the signal to an amplifying circuit with a built-in limiter.
While wearing them at a construction site, for example, a worker would clearly hear warning signals and co-workers’ voices, but also be protected from the intermittent noise of power tools or unexpected impact sounds,” Witt says.
So, the problem seems to come down to one of education: educating those responsible for providing utility hearing protection and educating workers about the new “hear-through” technology that equips them to communicate clearly and still protect the inner workings of the ear.
The Wrap Up
It comes down to something simple. Noise-induced hearing loss can be eliminated because today’s protection technology fits virtually any noise exposure conditions – even the jackhammer guy who spends eight a day in the noisiest environment imaginable.
All that’s required is that company owners or independent contractors or employees purchase the proper ear protection for their circumstances and then wear it. Again, today’s technology equips people to hear each other and still block destructive levels of noise.
One final note: don’t stop protecting your ears at the workplace. Practice healthy hearing at home. We are assaulted by noise everyday: lawn mower, saw, MP3 players – practice healthy hearing at work and at home.
You get the idea. No matter where you work or when you’re exposed to loud noise, take cover and enjoy hearing health all life long.
- Thanks to NRVC, Fairfax
IP Relay Call Hang-Ups or Refusals
This fact sheet by the Federal Communications Commission is helpful for anyone who uses IP Relay and also helpful for using other forms of relay who have experienced businesses hanging up on them or refuse to accept a relay call. The final section mentions that the Americans with Disabilities Act requires that they accept relay calls.
FCC Consumer Advisory
Doing Business Using IP Relay
To print a copy of this fact sheet: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/iprelayfraud.html
Overview
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has received informal complaints that people without disabilities, who are posing as deaf or hard of hearing consumers, are misusing an Internet based telecommunications relay service (TRS) called Internet Protocol (IP) Relay to perpetrate fraudulent business transactions, often by using stolen or fake credit cards. This practice has caused concern among businesses and legitimate users of IP Relay who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability. Merchants that accept orders made by telephone for goods or services should take steps to ensure that, for any order placed by phone, the payment method or credit card is valid and the purchaser is authorized to use the particular credit card. The FCC is taking steps to prevent the misuse of IP Relay, and alerts businesses to actions they can take to protect themselves from misuse while still enjoying the benefits of conducting business by phone with millions of Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing or have a speech disability.
Background
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) requires that TRS be made available nationwide so that people who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability can use the telephone network to call voice telephone users. TRS facilities are staffed by specially trained communications assistants (CAs) who relay calls between a person using a text telephone (TTY) or other device, and a person who uses a telephone. For example, during the call, the CA voices what the person using a TTY or other device types, and types what the telephone user says. Many TRS users now use a computer or similar device and the Internet to communicate with an IP Relay CA, who continues to serve as the link to the telephone user. Advancements in technology are enabling other forms of TRS as well, such as connecting through video conferencing equipment with a CA who is a sign language interpreter. For more information about TRS in general, see our consumer fact sheet at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/trs.html. For more information about IP Relay, see our consumer fact sheet at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/iprelay.html.
The ADA and FCC regulations governing the provision of TRS require that calls made using TRS be “functionally equivalent” to telephone calls. Reaching a CA and instructing the CA to make a TRS call is, in effect, the same as receiving a dial tone. CAs are generally intended to be transparent in handling TRS calls and are required to keep all TRS calls confidential. For these reasons, FCC regulations require that CAs relay all calls verbatim and generally prohibit CAs from intervening in any conversation.
Anyone can use TRS. Using TRS, people who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability can communicate with telephone users and vice versa. Unfortunately, people without disabilities who are posing as deaf or hard of hearing consumers are misusing IP Relay to perpetrate fraud. Although the ADA prohibits businesses from rejecting calls made using TRS, businesses can take the steps outlined below to protect themselves against fraud.
What You Can Do
The FCC urges merchants to use caution in handling telephone orders for goods or services. Merchants that accept orders made by telephone for goods or services should take steps to ensure that, for any order placed by phone, the payment method or credit card is valid and the purchaser is authorized to use the particular credit card. In addition, there are some indicia of fraudulent telephone orders or business transactions that merchants can use to help determine if an order placed by telephone is legitimate. These indicia include a caller who:
- is happy to order “whatever you have in stock;”
- supplies multiple credit cards as one or more are declined;
- cannot provide the credit card verification code number (the three digit number on the back of the card);
- wants the goods shipped through a third party and/or to an overseas location;
- will not identify himself or give a company name;
- changes delivery or payment method after the order has been approved.
If you have been a victim of fraud or attempted fraud, you can report it directly to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at www.ftc.gov or 1-888-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). You can also report such activities to state law enforcement agencies. Further, you can file complaints and information regarding Internet crimes with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at www.ic3.gov.
What We Are Doing
The FCC is working with the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the FTC to prevent fraudulent business transactions made by phone or over the internet. In addition, the FCC has issued Public Notices to warn businesses of the potential for fraudulent business transactions being perpetrated through IP Relay. The FCC is also working with consumer groups and IP Relay providers to prevent misuse. Finally, the FCC has issued a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on other steps it might take to prevent misuse of IP Relay.
Don’t Hang Up!
We remind businesses that, if they accept calls, receive orders, or do business by phone with the public, the ADA requires them to accept calls, receive orders, and do business by phone with members of the public who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability and use TRS. By working together, the FCC, law enforcement, informed businesses, and TRS providers can combat fraud and ensure that people who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have a speech disability have equal access to the products and services any business has to offer.
For more information about the applicability and requirements of the ADA, see the United States Department of Justice ADA Web site at www.ada.gov or call the ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (voice) or 1-800-514-0383 (TTY).
- Thanks to NVRC, Fairfax
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