In this, the 50th anniversary year of the landmark federal civil rights law for people with disabilities, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, we applaud the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra’s decision to update and strengthen the law’s healthcare-related regulations. Section 504 of the Rehab Act is a cornerstone of disability rights law, prohibiting disability discrimination by federal agencies and recipients of federal funding and providing the framework for The Americans with Disabilities Act. Though the Rehab Act remains a powerful tool to challenge the unequal treatment of people with disabilities, discrimination and unequal access remains a lived reality for many disabled people, especially in the world of medical treatment.

That is why we are thrilled by Secretary Becerra’s announcement. In the decades since the regulations were first adopted, the healthcare landscape has changed in significant ways, from the development of new technologies, to advances in civil rights laws, to the emergence of modern public health crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The reasons given by HHS for its decision to update the Section 504 regulations affirms what the disability community has always known to be true: Having a disability does not diminish a person’s quality of life; discrimination does. The factual findings highlighted in the proposed rule echo the experiences of our clients. Ableism pervades the healthcare system, leading to substandard care or no care at all. Our community knows the harm that results when people with structural power—doctors, hospital administrators, insurance providers, and others—are allowed to act on their prejudices, their biases left unchecked. We also know the harm of healthcare structures and systems that were not designed with the disability community in mind. 

In the months to come, DRC will analyze HHS’s proposed regulations and provide feedback through the public comment process on how the regulations can be strengthened to strengthen and better enforce disabled people’s rights to equitable, accessible healthcare. We will also focus on those who are multiply marginalized in the healthcare system – BIPOC, LGBTQIA2S+, and unhoused people with disabilities – are prevented from receiving quality care. In the meantime, we thank Secretary Becerra and the Biden-Harris Administration for their efforts to improve the lives of people with disabilities by eradicating discrimination. We are hopeful that stronger regulations, backed by robust enforcement, will reform a dysfunctional healthcare system into one that gives the disability community the treatment it deserves.

Disability Rights California (DRC) – Is the agency designated under federal law to protect and advocate for the rights of Californians with disabilities. The mission of drc is to defend, advance, and strengthen the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities. For more information visit: https://www.disabilityrightsca.org.