FEDERAL DISABILITY POLICY: WHERE ARE WE NOW?

September 19, 2012— The National Council on Disability (NCD) released its annual report on U.S. disability policy titled the 2012 NCD Progress Report. The report presents NCD’s assessment of federal disability policy, the impact that emerging trends and policies had on quality of life and provides recommendations to the legislative and executive branches, including: the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing to formulate a plan to distribute and/or subsidize affordable hand-held currency readers; and the Department of Justice and Federal Communications Commission to collaborate on enforcement actions to encourage more accessible and effective emergency communications.  NCD chairman Jonathan Young noted “In the current era of fiscal restraint, our nation’s long-term fiscal stability depends, in part, on creating meaningful opportunities for Americans with disabilities to contribute to our nation’s collective well-being and eliminating policies that trap people with disabilities in cycles of poverty and dependence.”