Photo by Anthony Tusler
Seventeen states are suing the United States government to repeal Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This foundational law protects people with disabilities from discrimination by federal agencies, and by schools, hospitals, doctors’ offices and other entities that receive federal funding or accept Medicare. A precursor to the ADA, Section 504 provides the bedrock of disability civil rights.
The lawsuit is positioned as a response to language added in 2024 about gender dysphoria, but at the end of the filing, the states ask that the entire rule be declared unconstitutional. If this happens, the disability community would lose important 2024 updates to the rule that:
• Prohibit discrimination in medical treatment based on stereotypes about quality of life, judgments that an individual will be a burden on others, or beliefs that the life of an individual with a disability has less value than the life of a person without a disability. These include, for example, decisions about life-sustaining treatment, organ transplantation, and rationing care in emergencies.
• Adopt the U.S. Access Board’s accessibility standards for medical equipment to address barriers to care, requiring most doctors’ offices to have an accessible exam table and weight scale within two years.
• Improve the 50-year-old law in other key ways.
Disability organizations, including United Spinal Association, are mobilizing for the fight. Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund explains how you can take action if you live in one of the states suing the federal government.
New Mobility is collecting your stories to express how important Section 504 is in maintaining our legal rights to educational opportunity, accessible healthcare and community inclusion. The repeal or erosion of 504 could set a precedent that reverses decades of civil rights gains.
What would your life be like without Section 504? Please comment below or send your story to tsherer@unitedspinal.org.
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I was homeless for 7 months, but because of the standards of government housing, I was finally able to get a wheelchair-accessible unit through base housing. While getting a job has not been as easy as it was prior to my injury because of the 504 protections, I have been steadily employed for the last 7 years even though I have certainly been forced to jump through hoops.
Through her 504 plan, my daughter was able to take the mandatory high school PE course online in the summer, rather than having it sap her energy in the regular school year. She also was provided with access, and a key, to the school elevator through her 504, and also has extra time to get to class. It makes all the difference — leveling the playing field for a highly motivated, enthusiastic student who otherwise might be left behind or feel shame for a physical condition she was simply born with and for which there is zero treatment or cure.
There would be no problem with this bill if they leave the gender issues out of wheelchair user rights
The primary driver here is a Biden era expansion on what is considered a disability. This should never had been done and if they had left it alone, there wouldn’t be any issue with this.
Done!
Keep the 504
Dear Attorney General John Gaurd,
My name is Kathleen Abels. I am a permanent wheelchair user since a motorcycle accident in 1990. Paralyzed from the waist down at 33.
I would like to request that the state of Florida drop out of the suit against section 504. My main reason is access to medical care. So many imaging facilities say we are a no lift facility, if you can’t get on the table for X-ray, MRI’s, CT scans or Pet scans, etc. don’t come here.
The manufacturer of these tables are slowly lowering them but they are still too high for my 95 yo mother and me. Especially X Ray tables which the majority are still too high! If you have an adult child you are expected to lift that child on the table by yourself because these medical professionals don’t want to touch you. I say get a manual Hoyer lift in all facilities $159, until the manufacturers make them lower to 19 inches. It’s just adding another stopping point for the manufacturer and they should be responsible for making their expensive equipment accessible for all through making all new replacement machines lower so all can use them without liability for any lifting. I object to Texas v. Becerra.
As baby boomers are ageing this is a true need!!
Also examination tables in doctor’s offices. They should have at least one that is low enough for a wheelchair user to transfer on and off of. I am a spinal cord injury and have to do everything with my arms. My doctor of 10 years has Never had me on an exam table. So I never get the benefit of a full exam. He Did just put in a wheelchair scale with handles so even all other patients can use it safely including our elders. I applaud him for stepping up and doing that, but he needs one exam room that has a lower table like in physical therapy, they use a lower table as standard.
Lastly I would address the glass cubes with seat that they use for testing respiratory issues. A non walking wheelchair user can not get in there! My 95 yo Mom can but she walks with a walker. My husband of 30 years just passed from Agent Orange. He had his lung removed in 2002 attributed to cancer from being exposed to AO in Vietnam, and was deemed 100% disabled and unable to work. He was checked a lot in those glass cubes. I would always go with him.
He cared for me in my wheelchair as he was a physical therapist and ambulatory. We automatically assumed that since he the big C that he would die soon so we tried to get in as much bucket list stuff as we could. Being from Florida with 5 cruise ports, we did that a lot.
Turns out only 15% of people who have a lung removed survive more than 2 years. Luckily they didn’t tell us that!
They said it would go to his brain next so watch for signs. It took until 2015 and he developed Mylofibrosis, a blood cancer. They put him on chemo pills and gave him 6 years to live. He also had Glaucoma and went completely blind 2 years before he passed from a major heart attack attributed to the Mylofibrosis. He was my love and married me even though I used a wheelchair.
I drove our van after he started losing his vision. I have been driving with hand controls since I was injured. I took him to all his Doctors appointments and sat in because he wouldn’t give me the full info, he didn’t want to worry me. Type 2 diabetes, heart attack, dental, physical therapy as he lost some ability to walk.
As a physical therapist he always advocated for more accessibility and accountability in medical environments, from lack of parking to no place to be in the waiting area except the middle of the room, and more.
Section 504 gives people with disabilities the God given right to fully live the American Dream!!
I have seen a lot of good come from the Americans with Disabilities Act! But there are businesses that just refuse to accommodate people with disabilities!! In addition the justice department uses the disabled population to police the situations with no compensation for their time and efforts. There is no ADA police unless a person with a disability files a complaint. No handicapped parking for Mom with her walker? Tough luck. No curb cut for a wheeler, sue me!
Nobody asked to have a disability! But now they have to live in a world that does not respect them and takes advantage of the fact that sueing is a lengthy, stressful activity and we don’t have time or energy!! We are attempting to live our lives as best we can and I was able to go back to work full time after my injury, my Fortune 500 company not only paid for my home modifications, but rented a new accessible office space while I was rehabbing and changed my job description from field service technician with a company car to in house customer service avoidance and a security position. I worked for them another 7 years until I married and moved to Florida.
Most people who have a disability would love to work!! But they can’t even get in the beach toll booth or work behind a counter that is over their head at the DMV. I could go on but I’m pretty sure I stated my case succinctly for updating and keeping section 504.
Your support is appreciated!
Thank for taking the time to read this.
Your always patriotic Florida citizen,
Kate Abels
386 871 4251
343 Auburn Dr
Daytona Beach, Fl 32128
if can access MAYO CLINIC I believe they will assist you in getting onto table, I have been repeatedly lifted on to table when needed. so many even those with mobility often need help getting onto those tables they are often slippery because if the pore-less surfaces for cleaning reasons, and we often have difficulty getting on those platforms, especially when we are sick and thus need the scans. the issues is lift equipment that interfere with the scanning equipment that is at issue. that can collect and hold onto radiation etc. and the actual cost and how often they would use it.
small hospitals can not handle people with disabilities most of the time because they don’t have the resources to access all the tools to assist us the small county medical center here for example fired me as a patient because my disabilities became too complicated for them to handle. where they don’t have the kind of patient quantity coming through to justify specialized equipment and services. IF not MAYO look for other LARGE medical institutions once find one stay exclusive to them as much as possible even when struggle with them, they tend to have the needed resources and training to handle your unique needs. At times I struggle even with MAYO clinic trying to get disability needs meet especially related to their failure to effectively communicate with me. example I still have NO remote means to set up any doctors visits. despite repeated accommodation request to implement a communication disability process for setting up appointments that do NOT include using phone as any step in the process.
most seem to not know section 504 full history……. in its original form, it was exclusive to effective communication for deaf and blind when originally created. it was only 3-4 lines long in its original state. that covered providing effective communication to those of us who had communication disability.
As part of my right as hard of hearing and deaf during the 80’s I was forced to study in detail section 504. I remember clearly complaining to my teachers “Is that it??” these 3-4 lines is all there is?? it was never a disability rights law it was a RIDER to cover the most grievous exclusion occurring refusal to communicate with communication disabled people. which caused 100% exclusion from every service that refused to communicate effectively with us.
this rider to another law was consequence of disabled being dropped from civil rights law after King was assassinated and all hell broke lose.
the most grievous discrimination needed to be addressed ASAP and that was why Section 504 was so bare-boned in its original form that I have used my entire life. I was born in 74′ so it was there my entire life going through school etc.
everything else that see today was NOT part of section 504, it was added at later time to match what was put into the ADA so that anti discrimination was uniform across the board and not so limited on the federal services side of things that is only answerable to section 504 and NOT ADA.
original section 504 did NOT cover any other disability other than communication needs of communication disabled like me.
NONE of my other disabilities was protected under section 504 throughout school.
those were protected by IDEA. many get the two mixed up and many with mobility especially in school setting was actually protected from IDEA not section 504.