of this year and also look at what I think might come next year.
First looking back at 2009, a year of change. We had the inauguration of
the first President of African-American heritage which is a historic event
no matter what your political persuasion is. He spoke of hope and change
but by the end of this year we are seeing anything but hope and change.
We've seen changes in the economy,not all of it for the better either.
Forclosures were up and so were business failures with bailouts going to
these businesses. We have people losing their jobs and states unable to pay
their bills. Many of these things affect those of us who are blind or
deaf-blind as we live our lives as part of a larger society.
We've seen technology for reading books become smaller and smaller with the
advent of the booksense, the plextalk pocket and the Victor Stream. We have
note takers with Braille displays that make reding books portable for those
who must use a Braille display. Reading books on the go is easier than it
was just ten years ago, not to mention at the beginning of this year.
What needs to happen this coming year? There is much that needs to happen
in my opinion but much of what I am going to discuss does not depend on
one's political persuasion. For one thing, no matter what you think about
health care, we do need better access to prescription drug information, not
to mention Medicare and insurance reimbursement for vision services. This
would improve people's lives by allowing them to betther manage their health
through more effectively taking their medication and learning the skills
they will need in order to become contributing members of society after
loosing their vision. Coverage for hearing aids would also improve the
quality of people's lives by allowing them to be part of life rather than
isolated because they can't hear what is going on.
There are a couple of other issues which need to be worked on this coming
year. One of these is H.R. 3101. Technology is changing fast and we who
are blind or deaf-blind cannot afford to be left behind. This is why we
must resolve to work tirelessly to see that H.R. 3101 is passed so that we
can be on an equal footing when it comes to technology. No more being one
or two steps or more behind everyone else in this area.
We also need to work to make the pedestrian environment more accessible.
This means dealing with the quiet car issue once and for all; and this can
be done by seeing that H.R. 734 and S.841 are moved so that we will have a
standard for sound emission for these quiet cars. This will help not only
those who are blind but everyone.
We also need to work toward better access to books right off the shelf. You
are seeing things like the kindle and the knook coming on the market. These
devices have the potential to change how books are accessed, especially in
education. We must not be left out and right now I am not aware of any
access for those who use Braille displays and audio access is limited at
this point in time.
As you can see, much has happened in 2009 and much needs to happen in 2010.
Let's all enjoy the holiday and then be prepared to work to make the above
-mentioned pieces of legislation a reality in 2010 so that access for those
who are blind or deaf-blind will be improved. If this is what you as an
advocate want, then please join me as I do my part to work to make this
happen.
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