This week we’re reading a slew of new federal reports on SSDI, employment and mental health, plus making design and technology accessible.
- As Congress and the White House tee up their respective SSDI reform proposals, the National Council on Disability weighs in with their own: “Securing the Social Contract: Reforming Social Security Disability.”
- Also released this past week, “Recruiting, Hiring, Retaining, and Promoting People with Disabilities” is a new resource guide for employers and the product of a federal cross-agency initiative to increase employment opportunity for people with disabilities. It hit the streets the same day as this Bloomberg op-ed on inclusive employment practices.
- Wired magazine explores the future of interaction design. Sneak peek: it’s accessible and “humanized.” Plus, the U.S. General Service Administration’s DigitalGov blog is taking a look at how to make 2015’s top digital media trends accessible.
- A new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office – Congress’s in-house watch dog – details the federal government’s 112 programs to support Americans with mental illness. POLITICO summarizes the report’s findings, which conclude coordination is lacking and Health and Human Services leadership is needed. And, the National Alliance on Mental Illness highlights an 11-part series by USA Today that shares the everyday challenges of Americans with mental illness as they navigate the U.S. mental health system.
- More on mental health: USA Today features an op-ed by David Satcher and Patrick J. Kennedy on four goals for “ensuring the best possible mental well-being for every American,” while Kaiser Health News tracks implementation of mental health parity in Medicaid managed care.