Accessibility in the News — 1/9/2026.

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AITN Quote of the Week

“The day I rest, is the day I die.” ― Willie Nelson (Still Learning How to Fly)

Feature Stories

Medicaid Changes Could Limit Access For People With Disabilities, Advocates Warn

January 5, 2026 | Source: Disability Scoop

As federal officials begin to outline more stringent Medicaid eligibility rules, worries are running high about what the changes will mean for people with disabilities. Congress approved sweeping legislation last summer that includes nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts. Central to the plan are so-called “community engagement” requirements stipulating that many Medicaid beneficiaries must prove that they are working, volunteering or going to school in order to qualify for coverage. Now states are tasked with establishing systems to determine whether beneficiaries meet the new standards and there are big questions about how they will do so…

Trump’s return-to-office mandate exempted feds with disabilities. Many are being ordered to work in-person anyway

January 8, 2026 | Source: Government Executive

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued a directive largely ending telework and remote work for federal employees, arguing that the workplace flexibility had been abused following the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualifying civil servants with disabilities, however, were exempt from the return-to-office mandate. The Office of Personnel Management in December reiterated this exception in its guide to telework and remote work for the federal government, noting that telework as a reasonable accommodation is distinct from an agency’s general telework policy…

Ed Department Pushing Ahead With Plan To Offload Special Education

January 9, 2026 | Source: Disability Scoop

With a pair of new hires and recent comments, advocates say the Trump administration appears to be actively laying the groundwork to transfer special education out of the U.S. Department of Education. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told a group of disability advocates she met with last month that she’s committed to proceeding with plans to move special education oversight to another federal agency. “The secretary was cordial but very clear that she intends to move all of the department offices to other agencies and close the department…

National News (U.S.)

‘Don’t mourn, organize.’ How disability rights advocate Bob Kafka helped shape Austin and the nation

December 29, 2025 | Source: KUT and NPR

Bob Kafka, an Austin-based activist who pushed for accessibility at the local, state and federal level for more than 40 years, died at his home in Austin on Friday at the age of 79. The former Army veteran moved to Texas in 1974 after a car crash left him quadriplegic, beginning a decades-long career of advocacy for disability rights. The Bronx native first joined the fight for accessibility in 1984 and became a pillar in the movement that balanced on-the-ground resistance with political know-how. Kafka is survived by his longtime partner and fellow advocate, Stephanie Thomas, who joined him in the long fight to increase access to public transit, Medicaid funding and voting rights for people with disabilities…

Seniors with disabilities not asking for help, Michigan survey finds

December 31, 2025 | Source: Bridge Michigan

In her house in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Barbara Meade said, “there are walkers and wheelchairs and oxygen and cannulas all over the place.” Barbara, 82, has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, so a portable oxygen tank accompanies her everywhere. Spinal stenosis limits her mobility, necessitating the walkers and wheelchairs and considerable help from her husband, Dennis, who serves as her primary caregiver. “I know I need hearing aids,” Barbara added. “My hearing is horrible.” She acquired a pair a few years ago but rarely uses them. Dennis Meade, 86, is more mobile, despite arthritis pain in one knee, but contends with his own hearing problems. ..

When Is it Okay to Kill the Disabled?

January 2, 2026 | Source: The Progressive

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently in the process of determining how states can decide who is intellectually disabled enough to be exempt from receiving the death penalty. On December 10, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Hamm v. Smith, concerning an Alabama man who has been on death row in that state for more than two decades. Joseph Clifton Smith, who was convicted of serial rape and capital murder in 1997, has taken five IQ tests, with scores ranging from 72 to 78…

Senate proposal aims to increase accessibility in movie theaters for deaf, hard of hearing

January 2, 2026 | Source: WNEM

State senators are considering a bill that would mandate open movie captioning screenings in theaters across Michigan. The measure aims to increase access to movies for the deaf and hard of hearing. “I think that the idea behind it is important,” said Trevor Baker, Chief Operating Officer for Emagine Entertainment. The proposed state law affects theaters with eight or more screens or theaters that show a movie more than five times a week. Those theaters would be required to offer at least two open movie captioning screenings each week and to continue those screenings for at least three weeks following a movie’s release…

Assistive technology makes art accessible to all at Cascadia Elementary

January 5, 2026 | Source: Cascadia Daily News

Eight-year-old Marshall Toney was focused. He pressed a big red button attached to a Crayola airbrush, spraying blue paint onto a white piece of paper. Once enough blue paint was on the page for his liking, he switched to glue, using a paintbrush — with a DIY rattle made of half a water bottle and some beads on top — to spread the paste onto the paper. Then, he used two hands to shake a plastic cylinder full of glitter all over his painting. The result? A glacier, which will be hung on the walls of the elementary school as art of “World Tour Day.”…

Lawmakers Push VA to Fix Accessibility Gaps in IT Procurement

January 6, 2026 | Source: MeriTalk

A bipartisan pair of lawmakers is pressing the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to quickly take action to ensure its technology is accessible to people with disabilities. In a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., ranking member of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and Rep. David Valadao, R-Calif., asked how the agency plans to improve its acquisitions process for IT systems. “Ensuring our veterans have the support, information, and services they need is of the utmost importance – and VA cannot do this unless its technology is accessible to veterans and VA employees with disabilities,” Gillibrand said in a statement…

Philly’s walkable streets and public parks offer older residents chances to stay active – but public transit and accessibility pose challenges

January 6, 2026 | Source: The Conversation

One in five Philadelphians are age 60 or older, and the city’s senior population has been growing for at least the past decade. I’m a Philly-based physical therapist and researcher who studies how to boost physical activity for seniors and people with disabilities. Patients, participants in the studies I conduct, and older community members alike often ask me: “What should I do to stay healthy?” My answer is simple: Movement is one of the most powerful tools we have to support our bodies and minds, and to stay independent as we grow older…

Women’s para ice hockey edges closer to its own Paralympic stage

January 7, 2026 | Source: NPR

When the Paralympics begin in Italy, one sport that won’t be in the competition is women’s para ice hockey. But after a successful World Championships, players hope it could be added in the future. The Paralympic Winter Games start this march in Italy. Athletes will compete in six sports, including para ice hockey. But women who play are looking ahead to 2030, when they hope to compete in their own category. They recently inched closer to that goal with the first-ever women’s Para Ice Hockey World Championships. Emily Chen-Newton reports…

Raising Children With Disabilities Is Hard Work. Why Did Idaho Abandon Parents Like Me?

January 8, 2026 | Source: Rewire News Group

When our first child was born in 2010, my husband and I didn’t understand how profoundly disability would shape our lives. As our son grew, he missed milestones and had frequent, epic meltdowns that left us both exhausted. At age 8, Owen was diagnosed as autistic (Owen is a pseudonym I’m using to protect his privacy). A year later, our daughter—born four years after Owen—received the same diagnosis. The medical picture grew more complex for both of them: Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, hearing loss, vision issues, and migraines…

Jack Fact — According to the CDC, 10.4 percent of adults with a disability have heart disease while 3.7 percent of adults without a disability have heart disease.

Hit The Road Jack —Disabled Hikers Can Now Access A Free Guide To Accessible Hikes In Washington State Parks and Costa Rica Adds 17th Accessible Beach at Playa Blanca and New Washington State Parks hiking guide empowers disabled hikers

International News

Campaigner turned down MBE over ‘scapegoating’ of people with disabilities

December 30, 2025 | Source: The Guardian- Scotland

The head of one of Scotland’s foremost disability rights charities says she turned down an MBE in the recent new year honours because the UK government was “fuelling hatred, blame and scapegoating of people with disabilities”. Tressa Burke, chief executive officer of the Glasgow Disability Alliance, had been recommended by the prime minister for the honour for her services to people with disabilities. Over two decades, Burke has grown the organisation from seed into a nationally recognised voice for disabled people in Scotland’s largest city, and supported more than 5,000 members through the pandemic…

Disabled people ‘excluded by design’ at station

January 2, 2026 | Source: BBC- UK

The lack of step-free access to a station platform is “incredibly frustrating”, the leader of a disability group has said, as an MP has renewed calls for it to be made accessible. One platform of Northwich Station in Cheshire can only be accessed by a footbridge over the tracks and the station has been unsuccessful in securing funding to resolve this in recent years. Lynne Turnbull, from charity Disability Positive, said it can feel like disability is the “poor relation of the Equality Act”. A transport minister said accessibility was an “absolute priority” for the government…

Accessible public transport: ‘I was told once I was inconveniencing other passengers. It’s degrading’

January 2, 2026 | Source: The Irish Times- Ireland

The bus that wheelchair-user Saoirse Smith (34) takes to and from work each morning is, according to Dublin Bus, wheelchair-accessible. More often than not, however, Ms Smith encounters problems on the number 130, which she gets from Clontarf to Dublin city centre. “The 130s are very old buses,” she says. “Because of this, the ramp doesn’t always lower properly. And then there is a problem with the path, which is too low and the ramp doesn’t get down to it, so there’s a gap between the path and ramp…

Canadian officials say US health institutions no longer dependable for accurate information

January 4, 2026 | Source: The Guardian- Canada

Canadian officials and public health experts are warning that US health and science institutions can no longer be depended upon for accurate information, particularly when it comes to vaccinations, amid fears that misinformation from the Trump administration could further erode Canadians’ confidence in healthcare. “I can’t imagine a world in which this misinformation doesn’t creep into Canadians’ consciousness and leads to doubt,” said Dawn Bowdish, an immunologist and professor at McMaster University in Ontario…

The bureaucracy whisperer working to secure a more accessible Israel

January 4, 2026 | Source: The Jerusalem Post- Israel

On her way home to Yokneam after a long day she thought would end just like any other, Monik Konfino’s phone suddenly rang. It rang again. “I was still driving,” she remembers, “and I received calls from first from Haim Bibas, Chairman of the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel and later from Eli Dukorsky, the Foundation’s Chairman and mayor of Kiryat Bailik, informing me I was selected as CEO of the Shalem Foundation.” Having just completed ten years as CEO of Yokneam Municipality, Konfino wasn’t seeking a major career change…

More than 600 disability issues identified in Leinster House accessibility audit

January 5, 2026 | Source: The Irish Times- Ireland

An accessibility audit of the Leinster House complex has identified 645 issues affecting people with disabilities, nearly 200 of which posed a risk to health and safety, or were considered likely to give rise to legal proceedings. The audit was carried out by specialist consultants over three days, and revealed “several critical areas needing attention” among hundreds of concerns regarding accessibility at the national parliament. Disabled parking bays were incorrectly marked out, a security scanner at the public entrance was too narrow for wheelchair users, and a number of issues were identified with accessible toilets in the complex…

How an accessible houseboat turned the tide for my family with disabilities

January 5, 2026 | Source: The Times- UK

After a work meeting on an uneventful day in 2018, Phil Desrosiers slipped off to secretly view a barge for sale in Ruislip. The spot he chose was Hampton Hall Farm, a co-operative of 35 houseboats close to where he and his wife, Narinda, and their two children were living in cramped but conventional conditions on land. The boat was in a “pretty horrendous” state but the tranquil surroundings were beautiful enough for Phil, 47, to convince the family to swap their home for one on the water in November 2018…

Kingston re-launches scaled-back accessible taxi service

January 6, 2026, | Source: The Kingston Whig Standard- Canada

The city is dramatically scaling back how many accessible taxi rides are available each day as it tries to maintain the bankrupt program. As of Monday, the city is limiting the number of accessible taxi rides to 24 per day and individuals are to be able to book two rides per day. The service is to be provided equally between the two taxi companies in Kingston — Amey’s and Modern Taxi — with each company providing 12 rides per day. And to be eligible for an accessible taxi riders will have to demonstrate a clear need for the service according to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act…

Tokyo boosting support for accessibility to arts

January 6, 2026 | Source: The Japan Times- Japan

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is strengthening its support for improving accessibility to the arts for people with disabilities. The Japanese capital is offering subsidies to arts organizations that introduce measures to help people with visual or hearing difficulties enjoy art, such as brochures written in Braille and sign language interpretation. The initiative was introduced after Tokyo was selected in 2022 to host the Deaflympics for the first time. The 12-day sporting event, known as the Olympics for people with hearing difficulties, took place in November last year…

Law, inclusion, and the architecture of accessibility

January 6, 2026 | Source: Meer- India

These insights were not abstract. They were paid for in time, fatigue, exclusion, and negotiation. This article shares the essential findings from my own personal experience in life on law and inclusion. It traces how accessibility can progress from a checklist requirement to a behavioral culture inside institutions. The study argues that inclusion succeeds only when it becomes measurable, habitual, and internalized within systems of governance, education, and technology. Accessibility should not remain the domain of compliance officers or diversity statements; it must become part of organizational DNA…

Disability in universities is both everywhere and nowhere

January 8, 2026 | Source: Wonkhe- UK

In 2023/24, 18 per cent of students in UK higher education reported having a disability. By 2027, projections suggest this could rise to one in four. In some universities in the UK, the proportion is already approaching 40 per cent. These figures might suggest steady progress – more students feeling confident to share their disability, more support in place, and more inclusive campuses. However, according to recent research, the picture is more complicated. A study published in the British Educational Research Journal by Koutsouris et al. describes disability in UK universities as an “absent presence.”…

Disability consultancy founder ‘humbled’ by CBE

January 8, 2026 | Source: BBC- UK

The chief executive of a consultancy that helps disabled people find work has spoken of her pride after she was appointed CBE. Helen Cooke, from Windsor, set up MyPlus in 2006, which works with firms to ensure they are inclusive and provides students with specialist careers advice. She said she was “incredibly proud [and] very humbled”. Cooke, who uses a wheelchair following a childhood spinal cord injury, said the award was a recognition of how “important this work is to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to have the career that they want to have”…

Thousands of Quebec children with disabilities kept out of school due to lack of resources

January 8, 2026 | Source: CBC- Canada

While kids across Quebec return to school after the holidays, nine-year-old Ellie isn’t among them. “I was so mad at my parents,” she said. “Cause I want to go to school.” CBC News is withholding Ellie’s last name to reduce online harm and bullying. She normally attends St. Lawrence School on Montreal’s South Shore, but this year, the school hasn’t been able to provide her with the support she needs and she’s been staying home since November. Ellie is autistic and has dyslexia. Her school had been providing extra support, such as staff who’d help her get breaks when needed, calm her stress and help her with her reading skills…

Long waits for disability benefit claims unacceptable, MPs say

January 9, 2026 | Source: BBC- UK

Some people are waiting more than a year to have their disability benefit claims processed, which risks pushing them into debt and poverty, MPs have warned. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) aims to process 75% of new claims for Personal Independence Payment (Pip) within 75 working days but in the last financial year only 51% of claims were processed within this timeframe. A report by the cross-party Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said the department was providing “unacceptably poor service levels”…

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