Advocacy Alerts
Advocacy Alerts
Ask Your U.S. Representatives To Pass S. 3304 - the “Twenty-First Century Communications & Video Accessibility Act”!
A Big Step Forward for Accessible Phones, TV and Internet!
Last week the U.S. Senate passed its version of the “Twenty-First Century Communications & Video Accessibility Act”, S. 3304. Its passage marked a hard fought victory over the telecommunications and electronic media industries which opposed it.
This historic legislation will:
- Require captioned television programs to be captioned when delivered over the Internet.
- Authorize the FCC to require 7 hours per week of TV video description on the top 4 network channels and top 5 cable channels nationwide.
- Allocate up to $10 million per year for communications equipment used by individuals who are deaf-blind.
- Require televised emergency information to be accessible to individuals who are blind or have low vision.
- Require accessibility of advanced communications equipment and services, such as text messaging and e-mail.
- Require access to Internet services that are built-in to mobile telephone devices, like smart phones, if achievable.
- Require devices of any size to be capable of displaying closed captioning, to deliver available video description, and to make emergency information accessible.
- Require accessible user controls for televisions and set-top boxes, and easy access to closed captioning and video description.
Act Now to Protect Your Rights!
This is a critical time for advocates to take action to protect civil, human and linguistic rights.
S. 3304 will now be sent to the U.S. House of Representatives to be considered when the House returns from its summer recess in a few weeks. It is generally felt that S. 3304 will pass easily in the House because it is very similar to a bill it already passed, but its passage cannot be taken for granted. We must preserve the hard fought victory realized with the recent Senate passage of S. 3304 and make sure it is adopted by the House!!
PLEASE Contact your U.S. REPRESENTATIVES right now – call, WRITE, and send email -- ASK them to adopt S. 3304!
Rep. Carol Shea-Porter
1508 Longworth HOB
Washington DC 20515
202-225-5456 (Washington, DC office)
603-743-4813 (Dover, NH office)
603-641-9536 (Manchester, NH office)
To e-mail ep. Carol Shea-Porter, click here
Rep. Paul Hodes
1317 Longworth HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
202-225-5206 (Washington, DC office)
603-223-9814 (Concord, NH office)
603-444-8967 (Littleton, NH office)
To e-mail Rep. Paul Hodes, click here
Support the Competitive Bidding Repeal Act!
Act would repeal the Medicare competitive acquisition program.
The Competitive Bidding Repeal Act (H.R. 3790), introduced in October 2009 by Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.), would repeal the Medicare competitive acquisition program for durable medical equipment and prosthetics, orthotics and home medical supplies. There are many problems with the current program, which affects Medicare recipients of equipment such as wheelchairs, leg braces and hospital beds. Such equipment enables people with disabilities to maintain mobility and independence.
Fundamental problems in the current competitive bidding program include:
- Disruption to patient services. Patients have been required to go to multiple, unfamiliar providers for different items and services.
- Non-local providers. Providers with no history of servicing a geographic area or no operations in a bidding area have been awarded contracts.
- Inexperienced/unlicensed providers. Companies have been awarded Medicare contracts to provide equipment and services for which they are not licensed in their states and for which they had no previous experience providing.
- Desperation bidding. Structural flaws in the bidding program have caused providers to submit artificially low bids in order to get the business.
Please contact your U.S. Representatives today and let your voice be heard! Sound off on your support for H.R. 3790!
Representative Paul Hodes (D)
Phone: (202) 225-5206
Representative Carol Shea-Porter (D)
Phone: (202) 225-5456