In collaboration with the National Health Law Program and the National Partnership for Women and Families, the National Women’s Law Center led a joint comment on a proposed rule about disability discrimination in health and human services. We were joined by over 70 organizations that advocate for gender justice and reproductive health, rights, and justice.
The comment responds to a proposed rule by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a law banning disability discrimination in federally funded programs. In HHS’ first update to its regulations since 1977, the proposed rule would strengthen and enforce nondiscrimination requirements in HHS-funded programs and activities. Our joint comment uplifts the experiences and priorities of disabled women and disabled LGBTQI+ people, highlights the rule’s impact on gender justice and sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice, and urges HHS to adopt robust policies that promote disabled people’s dignity, self-determination, and full access to health and human services.
Our full comment can be found here.