Disabilities can make life difficult in a variety of ways. One of these ways is maintaining access to healthcare. Some healthcare facilities can fail to provide accommodations for those with disabilities to easily access their medical services. When this happens to you, you may have legal options under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Feel free to consult with a Philadelphia disability lawyer about your legal options.

Your Options Under the Americans with Disabilities Act

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was created to protect people with disabilities from unfair practices like discrimination and being denied or blocked from services that are available to the public. One major part of society that the ADA offers protection for is healthcare. These usually involve protecting people with disabilities from:

• A failure of a healthcare professional to provide accessible medical services
• Insurance coverage limiting resources to people with disabilities
• Healthcare professionals not making reasonable modifications to activities or services for people with disabilities

Some of the most common protections revolve around maintaining accommodations related to physical and communication barriers. Healthcare professionals are expected to provide alternatives and accommodations to help those with physical or communication disabilities gain reasonable access to medical services.

This may look like ramps and railings for those who struggle with walking. For those with communication disabilities, this may look like alternative ways to communicate like writing on paper, digital assistance, a sign language interpreter, or real-time captioning. There are a variety of ways modern healthcare can offer accommodations for a variety of disabilities.

Common Disability Challenges in Healthcare Treatment

Many people would be surprised at how many people with disabilities are denied accommodations for medical services. Some of the most common disability challenges in healthcare treatment involve:

• Accessible communication
• Physical access
• Fair insurance benefits

Accessible communication barriers come into play for those struggling with disabilities that impair hearing, written communication, or verbal communication. There are a variety of accommodations available for this like telecommunication and auxiliary aids. However, studies reveal that many people with communication disabilities do not receive these accommodations. Instead, many receive poor substitutes.

Physical access barriers impact those with physical impairments that prevent them from walking or using their arms. Medical equipment and facilities that are physically inaccessible can prevent those with physical disabilities from using these services. Many healthcare facilities install ramps, railings, and enlarged bathroom stalls for accommodations.

Fair insurance benefits may not always be available to those with disabilities. Common problems include high costs, limits, and exclusions. Consider contacting a Philadelphia disability lawyer if you think you were denied access to care or reasonable accommodations from a healthcare provider. A lawyer can help you take steps to secure your access to proper medical care.

Contact Edelstein & Nelson for Legal Help

Being blocked from what you need because of a disability can be frustrating. Talk to a Philadelphia denied benefits appeal attorney about your legal options if your disability rights or disability benefits were denied. Call Edelstein & Nelson today at (800) 300-0909 for a consultation about what legal steps you can take. Our experienced team of lawyers is ready to help you defend your disability claim.