News From United Spinal Association: January 2015


Carol Tyson

Carol Tyson Wins 2014 Dr. Rosalyn Simon Award

Carol Tyson, senior policy associate at United Spinal Association, was honored in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 19 with the 2014 Dr. Rosalyn Simon Award in recognition of her dedication to advocating for people with spinal cord injuries to have access to transportation resources that meet their individual needs.

The Dr. Rosalyn Simon Award is presented in honor of the renowned Americans with Disabilities Act expert for whom Metro’s Transit Accessibility Center is dedicated. Dr. Simon was a recognized leader, educator, and advocate for the disability community.

“I’m humbled to work with and learn from members of the independent living and disability justice communities. I share this award with inspiring transportation advocates: Anais Sensiba, Bobby Coward, Terry Moakley and all members of the Accessibility Advisory Committee,” Tyson said.

Currently, Tyson serves as the vice-chair of the District of Columbia Taxicab Commission Accessibility Advisory Committee. The DC Council created the commission to advise on how to increase the accessible taxi fleet which consisted of 20 accessible vehicles out of approximately 7,000 taxis (.03 percent of the entire fleet).

Tyson believes that access to all modes of transportation is a civil right, and advocates for a 100 percent accessible fleet of taxis and equal access to alternative transportation including transportation network company services (e.g., Uber and Lyft) and Bikeshare. She also serves as the co-chair of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Transportation Task Force, as well as a steering committee member of the Transportation Equity Caucus which seeks to drive transportation policies that advance economic and social equity throughout the country.

Tyson graduated from Northern Arizona University with a bachelor of arts, received a master of arts in philosophy from Miami University and a graduate certificate in disability studies from Temple University. She joined United Spinal Association in 2012 and quickly embraced the organization’s tradition of advocating for access to all modes of transportation at both a national and local level. She currently advocates for adequate quality home and community based services; access to Medicaid; accessible, affordable housing; and disability rights.

Tyson previously interned with the National Council on Independent Living. Prior to advocating for progressive disability rights policies, Tyson served as a senior strategic researcher and research coordinator in the labor movement. She worked to support the organizing efforts, and improve the lives, of janitors at the Service Employees International Union in Washington, D.C., and the LHMU in Australia. She also provided strategic research for a campaign to provide quality jobs for energy efficiency workers, and advocated for climate change policies that benefit all communities while at Change to Win.

Tyson was an active presence amongst local disability advocate organizations on Capitol Hill this year, generating discussion and calling for accessibility provisions in the District’s TNC bill and the Transportation Reorganization Act. She, along with other members of the disability community, called for language that would require the TNCs to follow accessibility and non-discrimination standards.

To date, TNCs do not provide wheelchair accessible service in the District. A new draft of the TRA prioritizes expansion of transit service in underserved areas and improvement of access to transit for persons with disabilities. The bill also creates a multimodal accessibility council that could continue to call for full accessibility of the District’s Streetcar, Circulator and Bikeshare service, sidewalks and parking.

Based on recommendations from Tyson and her fellow taxi committee members, Washington, D.C., Councilmember Mary Cheh has introduced B20-889, the For-Hire Vehicle Accessibility Amendment Act of 2014. The bill would provide incentives to for-hire vehicle drivers or companies that operate accessible cabs, require reporting requirements for accessible vehicle companies and drivers to ensure quality service is being provided, and could also require drivers or companies providing inaccessible service to pay into an accessible vehicle fund.

United Spinal Works with White House as Open Enrollment Begins

The open enrollment period for health insurance started Saturday, Nov. 15 and United Spinal is working with the White House to educate Americans with disabilities about the Affordable Care Act and to help get them enrolled. Since the Act went into effect last year, over 7 million Americans have now enrolled in the healthcare marketplaces across the country and approximately 8 million people have enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program since last fall.

The number of uninsured Americans has been reduced by 26 percent. United Spinal wants to help reduce the number of uninsured as much as possible and make sure the SCI/D community takes full advantage of the law’s provisions.

“There are lots of ways the ACA has been great for the SCI community. The number one reason is that there is no discrimination of coverage due to a pre-existing condition. Also, health plans can no longer limit or deny benefits to children under 19 due to a pre-existing condition,” says Alex Bennewith, United Spinal’s vice president of government relations. “But according to President Obama, nine out of 10 people still don’t know about open enrollment.”

Other benefits of the Affordable Care Act include the following: individuals under age 26 may be eligible to be covered under their parent’s health plan; no lifetime limits on coverage on most benefits and changes to Medicare prescription drug coverage which reduce the out-of pocket cost impacts of the “doughnut hole” coverage gap.

Bennewith emphasized that the enrollment period this year, Nov. 15, 2014 – Feb. 15, 2015, is half as long the period last year, meaning time is of the essence.

For more details on coverage rights and protections: www.healthcare.gov/health-care-law-protections/

New Spinal Cord Resource Center Launched

We have revamped our membership website to become the premier hub connecting people living with SCI/D to timely resources and support. All of our fact-filled Knowledge Books pertaining to SCI/D are still available for free on the site as are the archives of our regular webinar series — now in a much easier to use and cleaner to look at format. See for yourself at: www.spinalcord.org

United Spinal Looking at Developing App for Daily Care

United Spinal is considering developing an app for smartphones and tablets that would help people with SCI/D manage their daily care. As part of the initial research, we are distributing a survey to help secure a grant and learn more about the habits and needs of the SCI/D community. The responses will help us begin locking in the app’s functionality and focus.


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