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Accessibility News International
Accessibility News International will strive to bring you as much information as possible from around the Globe regarding issues of accessibility for the Disability Community.
.Samsung Struggles to Block iPhone Function for the Blind
By Leo Kelion
22 February 2013 Last updated at 13:34 ET
Technology reporter
The VoiceOver function is designed to help blind and partially sighted consumers use the iPhone
Samsung has suffered a setback in its effort to win an iPhone ban based on a function making its software accessible to blind people.
The South Korean firm had sought an injunction in a German court arguing Apple’s VoiceOver screen-access facility infringed one of its patents.
However, the judge has ordered the case to be suspended pending another ruling that could invalidate Samsung’s claim.
Disability campaigners had expressed concern about the case.
B.C. Plans to Slash Funding for Adults With Disabilities
Lindsay Kines / Times Colonist
February 20, 2013
The B.C. government plans to drastically reduce the average amount of money it spends on adults with developmental disabilities over the next three years, budget documents show.
Adults with fetal alcohol disorder and autism who receive service under the personal supports initiative will see the biggest decline. Documents show the average cost per client in that program dropping from $24,000 to $16,000 this year alone — a 33 per cent decline.
In two years time, the average cost per client in the program will be less than half what it is today, the documents show.
Autism’s New Frontiers PART 2: ‘The bridge to nowhere’
The transition from youth to adulthood is the weakest link in the country’s already fractured approach to caring for children with autism
By Pauline Tam, Ottawa Citizen February 18, 2013
Two years ago, when Ashley Corbett of Arnprior turned 18, she entered Ontario’s Byzantine world of autism services for adults.
At best, the system treated her with benign neglect. At worst, she was invisible to it. Knowing that the wait was long for a coveted place at a provincially funded group home, Linda Murphy put her daughter’s name on the list when Corbett was just 13.
Six years later, she’s still waiting — one of 6,000 Ontarians with developmental disabilities who are on hold for residential care.
HHS enforces equal access for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in New York and DC
February 8, 2013
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has taken two important enforcement actions to ensure deaf and hard of hearing individuals living in New York and Washington, D.C., have equal access to programs and services provided by local government agencies.
These agreements follow complaints that individuals were denied access to sign language interpreters in Cattaraugus County Department of Aging (CCDOA) in New York and the District of Columbia Children and Family Services Agency (DCCFSA). OCR conducted investigations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which require that covered entities ensure effective communication for persons with disabilities.
University of York student develops 3D crossword puzzles for gamers with vision disabilities
Feb 11, 2013
A University of York student has successfully completed a challenge that will allow people who are blind or low vision to complete 3D crosswords.
Sam Twidale, an undergraduate student in the Department of Computer Science, tackled the challenge laid down by Eric Westbrook, of 3D Crosswords Limited, to develop a computer program to allow a totally blind crossword solver to tackle a 3D crossword independently.
Sam’s program allows users to select crossword clues, which the Speech Application Programming Interface (SAPI) on their computer then reads out. The computer will also spell out any words that are not clear, are ambiguous or are homophones. The solver types their answers using the keyboard and these are recorded visually in the grid and the table of clues.
Hearing Aid Prices Much Higher Than Their Actual Cost
Manitoba audiologist says final price includes many services
By Holly Moore, CBC News Posted: Feb 8, 2013
Hearing aid subsidies vary in Canada, fall short in Manitoba
Even though consumers can pay thousands dollars for a single hearing aid, a CBC News investigation has found that the actual cost of making a hearing aid averages around $150.
That figure comes from the operator of Audicus Inc., an online company that distributes hearing aids direct from the manufacturer at a reduced cost to customers around the world.
Audicus president Patrick Freuler says he has broken out the cost of a typical hearing aid, based on his own research with manufacturers.
Bionic Eye Gives Hope to the Blind
by Agence France-Presse
Feb. 6, 2013
Second Sight Medical Products’ Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System
WASHINGTON — After years of research, the first bionic eye has seen the light of day in the United States, giving hope to the blind around the world.
Developed by Second Sight Medical Products, the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System has helped more than sixty people recover partial sight, with some experiencing better results than others.
Consisting of 60 electrodes implanted in the retina and glasses fitted with a special mini camera, Argus II has already won the approval of European regulators. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is soon expected to follow suit, making this bionic eye the world’s first to become widely available.
New smartphone app helps people with vision disabilities take notes on iOS devices
Feb 5, 2013
NEW YORK: For the millions of Americans with vision disabilities looking for a simple, convenient way to take notes at work, at school, or at home, the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) launched the AccessNote™, a specialized notetaker for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod
Read more at
http://oldhatguide.com/a-new-app-for-notetaking-on-your-ios-device/
iPhones Help Blind Navigate a Sightless World
January 29, 2013|By Ben Wolford, Sun Sentinel
When visually impaired people gush over iPhones, they swear they aren’t just following the sighted onto the Apple bandwagon. The device isn’t simply the trendy choice for them. It’s pretty much the only choice.
Out of the package, there’s nothing you need to see and no setup necessary. Just turn it on. There are GPS apps to help navigate, count currency and detect color. Meanwhile, the iPhone is competing with Braille, and nonprofit workers in Fort Lauderdale and elsewhere are offering classes on how to use it.
Yoda on AODA: “Hmmm. The more AODA faith have you greater the disappointment shall you see”
By Victor Schwartzman
Human Rights Nudge
February 1, 2013
Yes, even Yoda would turn cynical after the history of AODA in Ontario. Where is the Force when you need it?
Advocates who worked tirelessly in Ontario to push the Government into creating and implementing a new law (AODA) to eliminate access barriers currently do not know whether the Provincial Government has been/will be Darth Vader or Obi Wynne Kenobi.
Read more at
http://enforcement.aoda.ca/yoda-on-aoda-hmmm-the-more-aoda-faith-have-you-greater-the-disappointment-shall-you-see/
Yoda on AODA: “Hmmm. The more AODA faith have you greater the disappointment shall you see”
By Victor Schwartzman
Human Rights Nudge
February 1, 2013
Yes, even Yoda would turn cynical after the history of AODA in Ontario. Where is the Force when you need it?
Advocates who worked tirelessly in Ontario to push the Government into creating and implementing a new law (AODA) to eliminate access barriers currently do not know whether the Provincial Government has been/will be Darth Vader or Obi Wynne Kenobi.
Read more at
http://enforcement.aoda.ca/yoda-on-aoda-hmmm-the-more-aoda-faith-have-you-greater-the-disappointment-shall-you-see/
911 Staff Will Text Message With Deaf Canadians
Users must register 1st, as texting alone still won’t reach emergency services
CBC News Posted: Jan 24, 2013 3:22 PM ET
Canadians who have hearing or speech problems will soon be able to send text messages to 911 services.
Other Canadians, however, must continue to communicate with 911 services over the phone, says Canada’s telecommunications regulator.
By Jan. 24, 2014, all telephone and wireless companies must upgrade their networks to support text messaging communication with Canadians who have hearing and speech impairments. The service may become available before then in areas where the upgrades are completed early.
Older people with sight loss face major disadvantages not being online
January 28, 2013
Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) and BT tackle barriers preventing older people with disabilities benefiting from internet
Almost nine out of ten (87 per cent) blind and partially sighted older people in the UK have never used the internet, according to research carried out by RNIB in partnership
with BT.
The report – Tackling Digital Exclusion – older blind and partially sighted people and the internet – reveals people over 65 with sight loss are increasingly at risk from technological alienation. The majority are not taking full advantage of the many benefits of being online, such as staying in touch with friends and family, managing finances and online shopping. Of those that said they had used the internet – more than half of them had not used it at all or had only used it once in the last six months.
Air Carrier Access Act – Web Accessibility Requirements
by Timothy Stephen Springer on January 29th, 2013
U.S. and foreign air carriers operating flights to or selling tickets to the U.S. public are required to ensure that the public-facing content of websites that they own or control conforms to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level A and Level AA. If enacted, the proposed requirements will not just apply to U.S. air carriers’ public-facing pages; they will also apply to foreign carriers’ public-facing pages that are used to advertise or sell to the U.S. public for air transportation that begins or ends in the U.S.
Disabled Canadians Form Significant and Untapped Labour Pool
By Bill Mah, Edmonton Journal January 22, 2013 StoryPhotos ( 2 )
It’s not enough for the federal government to merely issue a report on the fact that labour-starved companies are overlooking a talented pool of disabled workers, says the head of a disabled advocacy group.
“It’s positive with respect with what employers have to say,” said Bruce Uditsky, CEO of Alberta Association for Community Living. “What’s disappointing is that there’s no actions following from the federal government with respect to what can be done to further promote and ensure greater employment of people with developmental and other disabilities.
“It’s essentially all left to the employers to figure this out.”
Nortel Reaches Settlement With US Long-Term Disabled Workers
By Peg Brickley, Dow Jones Newswires
Wednesday 23 January 2013
Bankrupt equipment maker avoids trial.
Nortel Networks Corp. has reached a $28 million settlement with disabled U.S. workers, averting a trial over its treatment of some of its most vulnerable creditors.
Outlined in bankruptcy-court documents, the settlement allows Nortel to shut off pay and benefits to some 200 people with chronic disabilities at the end of May. They will get an unsecured claim in the former telecommunications equipment maker’s bankruptcy case instead.
What the claim is worth, and when the affected workers will be able to cash in on it, depends on the outcome of the dispute over the $7.3 billion raised in the bankruptcy sale of Nortel’s businesses and patents, court papers say.
Government Response to Recommendations of the Accessibility Advisory Council for a Made-in-Manitoba Accessibility Act
Posted January 21, 2013
More than 15% of Manitobans face barriers that prevent their full participation in activities others take for granted. These barriers are very costly – to persons with disabilities, to their family and friends, and to their communities. In Manitoba, accessibility legislation will provide a process for the removal of barriers, as well as the prevention of new ones.
Agony Behind Bars
January 18, 2013
Some inmates with mental health problems “manifest symptoms of their illness through disruptive behaviour, aggression, violence, self-mutilation, suicidal ideation, withdrawal, refusal or inability to follow prison orders or rules,” according to Correctional Investigator of Canada Howard Sapers.
Most Canadians are familiar with the shocking video footage that was presented in a coroner’s court in 2012 as part of an inquest into the Oct. 19, 2007 self-strangulation of teenager Ashley Smith inside a solitary confinement cell at the nation’s only federal women’s prison, the Grand Valley Institution for Women in Kitchener, Ontario.
Nebraska Doctor Develops Smartphone App for Parents of Autistic Children
By ERIN ANDERSEN / Lincoln Journal Star JournalStar.com
January 16, 2013
If you have a child with autism, now there is an app for that.
This new smartphone/tablet application is designed for parents, with the goal of helping them teach their primarily non-speaking children to communicate.
The app, “MySocius,” was developed by Keith Allen, professor of psychology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Munroe-Meyer Institute in Omaha. It was created by the behavior app division of Sector Now, LLC, a Lincoln-based smartphone development company.
Think beyond the apps that let us play games like “Bubbles” and “Jewel Quest.” Beyond apps that track our phones, map our routes or provide a handy flashlight when the lights go out.
Deaf Woman’s eBay Complaint Highlights Dispute Over Web Access for Disabled
By Doug Gross, CNN
updated 11:18 AM EST, Thu January 10, 2013
Melissa Earll, of Nevada, Missouri, says she can’t use eBay’s seller-verification system because she is deaf.
(CNN) — Melissa Earll owns stacks of classic comic books, baseball cards that include a young Hank Aaron and Whitey Ford and other collectibles she wants to sell.
But she can’t do so on eBay, she says. According to Earll, the popular auction site can’t confirm her as a seller because she’s deaf.
“eBay keeps me from taking advantage of opportunities that other people have and it’s because I couldn’t hear,” Earll, of Nevada, Missouri,
told CNN affiliate WDAF-TV.
