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April 25, 2008

via Fax 202-619-7870

Honorable Michael Leavitt
U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services (HHS)
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, DC 20201

Dear Secretary Leavitt:

The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the largest cross-disability national membership organization, is alarmed and disturbed that the American Health Information Community (AHIC), a taxpayer-funded and supported governmental advisory panel, struck out two accessibility provisions affecting persons with disabilities from recent consumer work group recommendations.

The recommendations eliminated by AHIC said that HHS should:

• "coordinate to ensure that Personal Health Records (PHRs) sponsored by the federal government are consistent with accessibility standards found in the Rehabilitation Act;" and
• "HHS should develop and accommodate to technological applications that can be used by persons with disabilities...."

Such action can only indicate that going forward, AHIC intends to discriminate against persons with disabilities.

Without these recommendations, there may be distrust by persons with disabilities, and their families and representatives, of health information technology initiatives, and likely excessive costs to retrofit in the future to ensure persons with disabilities have accessibility to and usability of electronic health records.

We recommend you reinstate these recommendations to show leadership and willingness to address the concerns of people with disabilities as health information technology advances.

Sincerely,

Jenifer Simpson
Senior Director, Telecommunications and Technology Policy Initiatives
American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD)
1629 K Street, N.W., Suite 503
Washington, DC 20005