Protection plan
The doctors answer a question about sunscreen use on babies.
Laws meant to prohibit discrimination against the disabled fall short when it comes to visiting the doctor’s office, leaving patients with disabilities to navigate a tricky obstacle course that not only leaves them feeling awkward but also jeopardizes their care.
Lisa Iezzoni, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, uses a wheelchair because of multiple sclerosis. She went 20 years without being weighed properly, she said, which means basing treatment plans, and even prescriptions, on educated guesses rather than exact information.
Despite laws that require ramps and wider doors for access, many medical offices don’t have scales that can accommodate wheelchairs, or adjustable exam tables for patients who cannot get up on one.
The Affordable Care Act was set to update standards for accessible medical treatment within the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), which is enforced by the Justice Department. But the Trump administration stopped action on this change late last year as part of its sweeping effort to roll back regulations across the federal government.
“I was in shock when I heard that (Attorney General Jeff) Sessions’ Justice Department had pulled back on their rule-making,” Iezzoni said.
Denise Hok, 54, who lives in Colorado Springs and uses a wheelchair, opts for home health care when possible and avoids doctors’ offices where “it feels like it doesn’t really matter if something is wrong.” When offices don’t have accessible equipment, she said, it “sends a message.”
The ADA, a 1990 civil rights measure designed to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities, requires public places to be accessible, meaning new buildings and certain commercial establishments must provide ramps and doorways wide enough for a wheelchair, handrails and elevators.