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Health Access Project

The delivery of health care service is in crisis for people with disabilities. For example, one out of every five Californians has a long-lasting condition or disability. Based on the findings from independent research that lead to our publication A Call to Action, the majority are receiving second-class health care from managed care organizations. Although people with disabilities pay four times more for medical services than their peers without disabilities, they receive significantly inferior care. Our Health Access survey results show the following:

  • 17% of all people with mobility disabilities reported difficulty getting in the main entrance of their doctor's office.
  • 29% of all people with mobility disabilities reported difficulty accessing waiting rooms.
  • 33% of all people with mobility disabilities experienced barriers accessing examination rooms.
  • 43% of wheelchair users reported difficulty using exam chairs.
  • 69% of wheelchair users reported difficulty using exam tables.
  • 60% of wheelchair users reported difficulty being weighed due to inaccessible scales.
  • 45% of wheelchair users reported difficulty using x-ray equipment, such as mammography equipment.
  • 26% of individuals who are deaf reported difficulty in getting interpreters for medical appointments.
  • 98% of individuals who are blind or partially sighted reported NOT receiving provider lists in alternative formats (Braille, CD, large print).
  • 90% of individuals who are blind or partially sighted reported NOT receiving educational materials in alternative formats.
  • 95% of individuals who are blind or partially sighted reported NOT receiving medical history forms in alternative formats.
  • 59% of individuals with learning disabilities and 64% of individuals with cognitive disabilities reported that their providers communicate with someone else in the room rather than directly communicating with the patient.
  • 79% of individuals with cognitive disabilities report receiving too little time to communicate their symptoms to the provider and ask questions of the provider that are necessary to ensure effective communication.

These failings should be of concern to everyone. Such health care inadequacies have a devastating impact on the health and life of an individual with a disability. To address the numerous barriers to quality health care and insurance that people with disabilities face everyday, DRA has created the Health Access Project.

This project is an outreach and education campaign aimed at expanding access to health services for people with disabilities by advocating for physical accessibility and culturally competent health resources, service delivery and care by major health providers.

With the exception of Through the Maze, Edition 2, DRA's Health Access Project provides free publications to people with disabilities, disability advocates, lawyers, policy makers, and health care providers about the health care and insurance rights and concerns of people with disabilities and serious health conditions. The first, Disability Watch, Volume 2 is a statistical report on the status of people with disabilities in the United States. Disability Watch, Volume 2 examines the problems that people with disabilities encounter trying to access health care and health insurance. Through the Maze, Edition 2 tackles these problems by educating people about their rights to accessible health care and about the laws that can help them access quality insurance. Know Your Rights is a pocket guide summarizing the laws covered in Through the Maze. Finally, our report, A Call to Action, provides a snap shot of Californian's experiences regarding a wider range of access needs in health care. This report also describes promising health care practices and makes recommendations for managed health care plans to improve the care provided to people with disabilities.

Our sweeping settlement with Kaiser resulted in removal of a range of access barriers, including architectural barriers, inaccessible medical equipment, and policies and procedures that create access barriers for patients with disabilities. DRA is working to expand on its successes with Kaiser by simultaneously exerting pressure, collaborating with the community, and offering constructive solutions to other health care providers to ensure that they provide access for their disabled consumers and have the tools, equipment, and disability training necessary to provide quality health care and multi-cultural competence. Read more about DRA's settlement with Kaiser>

Logo: The California EndowmentThe Health Access Project is supported by a generous grant from The California Endowment.

Know Your Rights Training

DRA offers training on health care access rights for people with disabilities, their families, caregivers, and advocates. This training provides an overview on legal rights to health care and insurance, advocacy tips, and resources, and more.

Contact Dorene Giacopini, Outreach Coordinator at DGiacopini@dralegal.org for more information.

Upcoming Trainings

Please check soon for calendar updates