The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a proposal to improve almost 50 years old regulations safeguarding people with disabilities from discrimination in healthcare services. The roughly 400 pages long proposed rule, put forth on Thursday, intends to modernize the provisions under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act initially issued in 1977.
Section 504 defends the rights of individuals with disabilities in availing care from healthcare programs that come under federal funding. It aims to prevent unjust treatment of such individuals. Now, the HHS plans to revise Section 504 to make its language more explicit and aligned better with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act, and amendments to the Rehabilitation Act.
The proposal brings clarity to Section 504’s provisions, expressly prohibiting providers that receive federal funding from declining or restricting treatment to a qualified individual with a disability based on prejudice or stereotypes, judgments that a person with disability will burden others, or a belief that the life of a disabled person is lesser in value than of a non-disabled person. Moreover, it brings attention to mandates for web accessibility, strengthens nondiscrimination stipulations in the nation’s child welfare system, and establishes enforceable standards for accessible medical equipment.
The rule also prohibits using value assessment techniques that devalue the life-extension services for people with disabilities. HHS noted in its proposal that patients with disabilities have been denied care in the past because their providers considered their lives to be of lower quality.
A noticeable point the HHS explains in the proposed rule is the continuing medical discrimination many Americans with disabilities face, despite the existing protective regulations. Evidence for this comes from the results of a research study conducted in 2021, which can be found here.
The proposed rule is set to be published in the Federal Register on September 14, after which the HHS will be open to public comments on the proposal for 60 days. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra expressed his thoughts on this matter in an official statement.