The following article is forwarded to you by the Great Lakes ADA Center (www.adagreatlakes.org) for your information:
Dallas News January 15, 2017 Food allergy group files federal complaint over American Airlines’ peanut policy Conner Shine, Aviation Writer A food allergy advocacy group filed a federal complaint against American Airlines this week over the carrier’s policy of not allowing passengers with severe nut allergies to preboard its planes along with other passengers with disabilities. “The Air Carrier [Access] Act says anyone with any type of disability can preboard to stabilize themselves on the aircraft before general boarding starts,” said Dr. James Baker, CEO and chief medical officer of Food Allergy Research and Education, a nonprofit advocacy group. “We aren’t asking them not to serve nuts or restrict people from serving any type of food. All we want them to do is simply to remove the pre-boarding restriction for people with food allergies.” Allowing people with severe allergies to preboard gives them time to wipe down their seats and tray tables before the hectic general boarding process begins, Baker said. American does not serve peanuts on its flights but does serve other nut products. There’s also the chance other passengers will bring peanuts on board. On its website, American said it does not allow people with nut allergies to preboard and adds that it is not able to provide nut “buffer zones.” “Our planes are cleaned regularly, but these cleanings are not designed to ensure the removal of nut allergens, nor are our air filtration systems designed to remove nut allergens,” the company’s policy reads. “We are unable to guarantee that customers will not be exposed to peanuts or other tree nuts during flight, and we strongly encourage customers to take all necessary medical precautions to prepare for the possibility of exposure." An American spokesman said the company has not reviewed the complaint and declined to comment beyond the publicly available nut allergy policy. Baker’s group filed the complaint with the Department of Transportation on Tuesday, asking the agency to investigate the alleged violation of the Air Carrier Access Act. Source: www.dallasnews.com/business/american-airlines/2017/01/13/food-allergy-group-files-federal-complaint-american-airlines-peanut-policy
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We are pleased to announce that the ADA National Network is hosting the 21st annual ADA National Symposium on the Americans with Disabilities Act and related disability issues. The Symposium will take place at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare in Rosemont, Illinois from May 14th to May 17th, 2017.
The ADA Symposium includes up to date information regarding employment, communication, transportation, emergency preparedness, case law, regulatory updates for government and private entities and the latest on the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design. Hear from presenters representing various federal agencies including the Departments of Justice, Education, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and U.S. Access Board. This year there are break-out sessions on a wide-range of ADA related topics and online access to hand-outs from all sessions prior to the conference. You can view the Symposium schedule and agenda on-line. The Great Lakes Center will continue our history of supporting participation and attendance from across our six state region. To that end, we are making available a number of stipends in the amount of $750.00 to cover the cost of registration (we will not pay late registration fees). The conference is very popular and registration numbers have imploded over the past few years resulting in cut off of registration before the deadline due to it being full. Thus, it's very important that individuals desiring to attend register for the conference in a timely manner. Applications will only be accepted from individuals who reside in the Great Lakes Region (IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, and WI). This stipend is only valid for the 2017 Symposium and registration should be completed as soon as possible. Applications will be accepted through January 27th, 2017. Notification to recipients will be made by email within the first week of February. Individuals will be responsible for completing the registration process in a timely manner. The sooner you register, the better chance you have of getting the sessions that you want as well as reduce the risk of the registration closing due to being full. Individuals who fail to register in a timely manner will forfeit the stipend. Receipt of the stipend does not guarantee registration. The registration process for the National symposium is a first come, first serve process and our office does not have control over it. Questions regarding the Symposium and the stipend program should be directed to the Great Lakes Center at 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) between the hours of 8:0am-5:00pm Central Time or by email to adata@adagreatlakes.org. Stipend recipients are responsible for their own travel arrangements and travel costs. The registration fee includes 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches plus a networking reception. The 2017 Symposium will be held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, Rosemont, IL. Rooms are available at a discounted rate of $159.00 plus tax. Hotel information can be found on the Symposium Website or by calling (847) 696-1234. Link to Stipend Application: http://www.adagreatlakes.org/Webforms/Symposium/ |
AboutA news blog on issues in the community of people with disabilities and accessibility. The Center for Disability Empowerment Archives
July 2022
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