Disabilities

People who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid face maddening challenges accessing health care. The government spends $500 billion on this care, yet patients often can't get what they need.

Vulnerable Americans are stuck in a Medicare-Medicaid maze. Is a fix in sight?

12:50pm March 14, 2024

by Leslie Walker and Dan Gorenstein, Tradeoffs

A bipartisan Senate bill, dropping Thursday, promises better health care for some of the poorest, sickest Americans, who are known as "duals" because they qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid.

Passengers wait in line at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in 2021 in Virginia.

National

The Transportation Department proposes new rules for how airlines handle wheelchairs

11:22am February 29, 2024

by Joel Rose

Airlines often damage or lose wheelchairs. Now the Biden administration is proposing new standards for how airlines accommodate passengers with disabilities.

The CPSC commissioned new stock photos showing Americans with disabilities using a variety of home safety devices, including portable generators.

People with disabilities aren't often seen in stock photos. The CPSC is changing that

2:56pm May 23, 2023

by Rachel Treisman

The Consumer Product Safety Commission took photos of people with disabilities using home safety devices like flashlights and smoke alarms — then put them in the public domain for anyone to use.

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame of Ghana is the new chair of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities — the first African woman in that post. Asked to define disability, she says: "It is not the presence of the impairment, but it is the social and attitudinal barriers that are hindering our performance."

Health & Safety

When Getty began losing her vision as a girl, she was told her life was over. Wrong!

7:38am May 13, 2023

by Ari Daniel

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame says she could not imagine "what the future had in store." She faced sorrow — but ultimately triumphed. She is the new chair of the U.N. committee for disability rights.

For some with disabilities, the pandemic raised fears that they couldn't get medical care they need. Now, groups are saying California's assisted suicide law also devalues their lives, and they have filed a lawsuit.

Disability groups claim California's assisted suicide law discriminates against them

6:08pm April 27, 2023

by Joseph Shapiro

A California law allows a terminally ill person to end their life, but some people with disabilities say they're at risk of being coerced into seeking the medications needed for assisted suicide.

Queue Listen Now

The Paralympics TikTok account combines sports footage with viral audio to showcase athletes. But critics of compilations posted to Twitter say it mocks them instead.

Edgy or insensitive? The Paralympics TikTok account sparks a debate

5:00am April 24, 2023

by Rachel Treisman

People are slamming the account for what they see as mocking Para athletes. But those behind it, and some featured on it, say it's an important tool for increasing visibility and understanding.

Health & Safety

Documentary depicts long waits, short staffs for those seeking disability waivers

2:41pm March 09, 2023

by Paul Garber

A new film documents the long wait that thousands of North Carolinians with disabilities face as they seek a waiver to get services in their homes and communities instead o

Queue Listen Now

Photo of Alice Wong, an Asian American disabled woman in a power chair, against a background of bamboo trees. She is wearing a blue cardigan and sitting in a power chair. She is wearing a bold red lip color and a trach at her neck.

Activist Alice Wong reflects on 'The Year of the Tiger' and her hopes for 2023

7:00am February 04, 2023

by Thomas Lu

In the Year of the Tiger: An Activist's Life, Alice Wong shares pieces of her story and experience as a disabled Asian American through a collection of essays, interviews, photos and illustrations.

Evan Woody has needed round-the-clock care since his brain injury and lives with his parents in Dunwoody, Ga. His father, Philip, says his family has some plans in place for Evan's future, but one question is still unanswered: Where will Evan live when he can no longer live with his parents?

Health & Safety

Americans with disabilities need an updated long-term care plan, say advocates

11:01am November 09, 2022

by Sam Whitehead

Nearly 75% of Americans with disabilities live with a family caregiver, many of them age 60 or older. Updating your care plan now, experts say, can help make sure everyone thrives.

Remote work opened some doors to workers with disabilities. But others remain shut

4:22pm October 21, 2022

by Mary Yang

Workplaces have generally become more accommodating for people with disabilities in the last five years, according to a new survey. But some disability rights activists say challenges persist.