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Monday, September 25, 2017
Access Theater Performances of "Fun Home" - Victory Gardens Theater - October in Chicago
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Dementia Patients finding 'Google Street View' technology
In 2007, Google sent out the first fleet of cars armed with cameras to map the world. Who could have guessed that a decade later, a researcher, biomechanical engineer Anne-Christine Hertz would use Street View technology to help dementia patients remember.
Anne-Christine was trying to develop new methods to treat Alzheimer’s patients and those suffering from dementia. Specifically, she wanted to help them preserve old memories. Memory loss is one of the most traumatic side effects of dementia, both for patients and their loved ones.
To combat this, she built a prototype called BikeAround, which pairs a stationary bike with Google Street View to take dementia patients on a virtual ride down memory lane. Patients input a street address of a place that means something to them - a childhood home for instance - and then use the pedals and handlebars to “bike around” their old neighborhoods.
For much more on information on "Google Street View" technology: CLICK HERE
source: Google
YouTube published by Google
Anne-Christine was trying to develop new methods to treat Alzheimer’s patients and those suffering from dementia. Specifically, she wanted to help them preserve old memories. Memory loss is one of the most traumatic side effects of dementia, both for patients and their loved ones.
To combat this, she built a prototype called BikeAround, which pairs a stationary bike with Google Street View to take dementia patients on a virtual ride down memory lane. Patients input a street address of a place that means something to them - a childhood home for instance - and then use the pedals and handlebars to “bike around” their old neighborhoods.
For much more on information on "Google Street View" technology: CLICK HERE
source: Google
YouTube published by Google
Friday, September 22, 2017
Illinois Disability Rights Consortium meeting to focus on Trauma Informed Advocacy - Professional Responsibility - Sept 27, 2017 webcast
The next Illinois Disability Rights Consortium meeting will take place on Wednesday September 27th, 2017 from 9:30-11:00 at Equip for Equality’s Chicago office (20 N. Michigan, Suite 300). The topic will be trauma informed advocacy and Sarah Hess from the Legal Council for Health Justice will be the presenter.
Here’s a description of the session: Disability advocates often work with clients who have endured traumatic events that impact their ability to work, go to school, attend appointments, "comply" with medical advice, and feel safe. By understanding trauma and how it presents in clients, advocates can better respond to and advocate for their clients. Trauma-informed practices benefit all clients by eliciting more information, creating a more trusting relationship with the client, and empowering clients following representation. This session will provide practical tools for advocates to provide trauma-informed services, to incorporate trauma-sensitive arguments into their work, and to adapt their environment and systems to account for client trauma and advocate secondary trauma.
This session will be available via webcast. Here is the link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/1269815368568993025
Here’s a description of the session: Disability advocates often work with clients who have endured traumatic events that impact their ability to work, go to school, attend appointments, "comply" with medical advice, and feel safe. By understanding trauma and how it presents in clients, advocates can better respond to and advocate for their clients. Trauma-informed practices benefit all clients by eliciting more information, creating a more trusting relationship with the client, and empowering clients following representation. This session will provide practical tools for advocates to provide trauma-informed services, to incorporate trauma-sensitive arguments into their work, and to adapt their environment and systems to account for client trauma and advocate secondary trauma.
This session will be available via webcast. Here is the link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/1269815368568993025
This program will be eligible for 1.5 hours of Continuing Legal Education Credit and we will be applying for Professional Ethics credit. A captioner will be present for the meeting.
U.S. Republican Congressman Cites Lawsuit Abuse in Attempt To Destroy The Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act has been in effect for 27 years, and is responsible for familiar accessibility features like handicapped-designated parking spots and ramps in public spaces and large businesses.
09/21/2017 | ConsumerAffairs.com | article By Amy Martyn
Like other civil rights legislation, the ADA is enforced by either filing a complaint with the federal government or by filing suit. However, a few unscrupulous attorneys and plaintiffs have abused this to such an extent that the ADA may soon face legislation to weaken it.
In Los Angeles, a wheelchair-bound convicted pedophile sued more than 1,000 businesses over ADA violations before his legal scheme was exposed by a newspaper report. He committed suicide four months later.
In Phoenix, a group billing itself as advocates for the disabled sued a reported 2,120 businesses over the size of their handicapped parking spots. In Austin, an attorney targeted nearly 400 small businesses with either lawsuits or demand letters asking for money to settle supposed ADA violations.
A bill that could kill the ADA completely
Congressman Ted Poe, a Texas Republican in the House of Representatives, has introduced a bill that he claims “will curb frivolous lawsuits filed by cash-hungry attorneys and plaintiffs that abuse the ADA.”
His legislation, HR 620, recently cleared the House Judiciary Committee with support from Democratic lawmakers in California.
"The ADA is being abused by lawyers who've often never seen these properties,” says Representative Scott Peters, a California Democrat who is co-sponsoring HR 620.
But over 200 civil rights organizations warn that HR 620 will severely weaken a landmark piece of legislation for the disabled and do little to deter the problem of ADA lawsuit “trolls," as they are sometimes called.
Texas civil rights attorney Jim Harrington counts the ADA as one of the best civil rights laws ever enacted. But last year, Harrington took an unexpected turn defending small businesses in Austin targeted by frivolous ADA lawsuits.
Austin attorney Omar W. Rosales sued so many local businesses over technical ADA violations that local disabled persons advocacy groups publicly denounced him. Among Rosales’ targets were small pediatric clinics, which his adult client would be unlikely to ever visit.
The “offenders” often agreed to pay Rosales settlements “because it was less expensive for them to settle than fight him, even though they would win [a court battle]," Harrington says.
Individual attorney problem
Rosales has since been sanctioned, sued by the State Bar, and suspended from practicing law in the Federal Western District Court for the next three years. He still advertises his “commitment" to the disabled on his website, but refused attempts to be interviewed by a ConsumerAffairs reporter.
“Are you hiding from debt collectors? IRS problems?” he responded in one hostile email to a reporter.
Critics note that HR 620 doesn’t specifically target people like Rosales. Under HR 620, if any prospective customer finds they cannot access a building because of their disability, they would be required to first send a written notice to the business owner, wait 60 days for a response, then, assuming the business owner responds, wait an additional 120 days for the business to correct the problem. Only after this waiting period would they be able to sue or lodge a complaint.
Human Rights Watch says this bill would “act as a profound deterrent to people looking to enforce their rights under the ADA.”
Though the measure has attracted sponsorship from a slew of Democratic California lawmakers like Representative Peters, he sounds less enthusiastic when discussing the details of the bill, particularly the 180-day waiting period. "Would the ACLU agree this is a good bill if there was 60 days?" he asks.
Harrington points out that no other civil rights law requires a person to send in a written notice before they can sue. "We don't do that with civil rights law,” he argues.
Harrington and disability groups say that the frivolous lawsuit problem isn’t really a problem with the ADA itself, but an individual attorney problem, and should be dealt with as such.
"These clowns around the country have given [Congressman Poe] and other folks the opportunity to come in and essentially gut the ADA,” he says. “The courts are really basically taking care of this. They really clamped down on these jerks."
Many large business associations, representing apartments, retailers and shopping centers, have thrown their support behind HR 620. But those associations don’t fit the profile of the type of businesses that Harrington and Peters say are typically victimized by frivolous ADA litigation.
“Who I hear from mostly,” Peters says, “are these small restaurants who rent space from a land owner."
Reporter Amy Martyn is a writer and investigative reporter now based in San Diego by way of Tijuana, BC, Dallas, TX and Los Angeles, CA. She primarily writes about how consumers, taxpayers and businesses are affected by corporate and government policies.
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/texas-representative-cites-lawsuit-abuse-in-attempt-to-gut-the-americans-with-disabilities-act-092117.html
09/21/2017 | ConsumerAffairs.com | article By Amy Martyn
Like other civil rights legislation, the ADA is enforced by either filing a complaint with the federal government or by filing suit. However, a few unscrupulous attorneys and plaintiffs have abused this to such an extent that the ADA may soon face legislation to weaken it.
In Los Angeles, a wheelchair-bound convicted pedophile sued more than 1,000 businesses over ADA violations before his legal scheme was exposed by a newspaper report. He committed suicide four months later.
In Phoenix, a group billing itself as advocates for the disabled sued a reported 2,120 businesses over the size of their handicapped parking spots. In Austin, an attorney targeted nearly 400 small businesses with either lawsuits or demand letters asking for money to settle supposed ADA violations.
A bill that could kill the ADA completely
Congressman Ted Poe, a Texas Republican in the House of Representatives, has introduced a bill that he claims “will curb frivolous lawsuits filed by cash-hungry attorneys and plaintiffs that abuse the ADA.”
His legislation, HR 620, recently cleared the House Judiciary Committee with support from Democratic lawmakers in California.
"The ADA is being abused by lawyers who've often never seen these properties,” says Representative Scott Peters, a California Democrat who is co-sponsoring HR 620.
But over 200 civil rights organizations warn that HR 620 will severely weaken a landmark piece of legislation for the disabled and do little to deter the problem of ADA lawsuit “trolls," as they are sometimes called.
Texas civil rights attorney Jim Harrington counts the ADA as one of the best civil rights laws ever enacted. But last year, Harrington took an unexpected turn defending small businesses in Austin targeted by frivolous ADA lawsuits.
Austin attorney Omar W. Rosales sued so many local businesses over technical ADA violations that local disabled persons advocacy groups publicly denounced him. Among Rosales’ targets were small pediatric clinics, which his adult client would be unlikely to ever visit.
The “offenders” often agreed to pay Rosales settlements “because it was less expensive for them to settle than fight him, even though they would win [a court battle]," Harrington says.
Individual attorney problem
Rosales has since been sanctioned, sued by the State Bar, and suspended from practicing law in the Federal Western District Court for the next three years. He still advertises his “commitment" to the disabled on his website, but refused attempts to be interviewed by a ConsumerAffairs reporter.
“Are you hiding from debt collectors? IRS problems?” he responded in one hostile email to a reporter.
Critics note that HR 620 doesn’t specifically target people like Rosales. Under HR 620, if any prospective customer finds they cannot access a building because of their disability, they would be required to first send a written notice to the business owner, wait 60 days for a response, then, assuming the business owner responds, wait an additional 120 days for the business to correct the problem. Only after this waiting period would they be able to sue or lodge a complaint.
Human Rights Watch says this bill would “act as a profound deterrent to people looking to enforce their rights under the ADA.”
Though the measure has attracted sponsorship from a slew of Democratic California lawmakers like Representative Peters, he sounds less enthusiastic when discussing the details of the bill, particularly the 180-day waiting period. "Would the ACLU agree this is a good bill if there was 60 days?" he asks.
Harrington points out that no other civil rights law requires a person to send in a written notice before they can sue. "We don't do that with civil rights law,” he argues.
Harrington and disability groups say that the frivolous lawsuit problem isn’t really a problem with the ADA itself, but an individual attorney problem, and should be dealt with as such.
"These clowns around the country have given [Congressman Poe] and other folks the opportunity to come in and essentially gut the ADA,” he says. “The courts are really basically taking care of this. They really clamped down on these jerks."
Many large business associations, representing apartments, retailers and shopping centers, have thrown their support behind HR 620. But those associations don’t fit the profile of the type of businesses that Harrington and Peters say are typically victimized by frivolous ADA litigation.
“Who I hear from mostly,” Peters says, “are these small restaurants who rent space from a land owner."
Reporter Amy Martyn is a writer and investigative reporter now based in San Diego by way of Tijuana, BC, Dallas, TX and Los Angeles, CA. She primarily writes about how consumers, taxpayers and businesses are affected by corporate and government policies.
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/texas-representative-cites-lawsuit-abuse-in-attempt-to-gut-the-americans-with-disabilities-act-092117.html
Jen Brea’s Film "Unrest" Shares Journey of Medical Issues and Becoming A Person With A Disability
When Harvard Ph.D. student Jennifer Brea is struck down by a fever that leaves her bedridden, she sets out on a virtual journey to document her story as she fights a disease that medicine forgot.
The film "Unrest" is a vulnerable and eloquent personal documentary that is sure to hit closer to home than many could imagine. Unrest world-premiered January in the documentary competition at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, where it won a Special Jury Prize for editing.
Please visit the "Unrest" official website at: https://www.unrest.film/
The film "Unrest" is a vulnerable and eloquent personal documentary that is sure to hit closer to home than many could imagine. Unrest world-premiered January in the documentary competition at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, where it won a Special Jury Prize for editing.
Please visit the "Unrest" official website at: https://www.unrest.film/
OFFICIAL TRAILER
Dr. Roberto A. Fernandez of Miami Sentenced for Role in Pain Pill Diversion and $4.8 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
Sept. 20, 2017 - A Miami physician was sentenced today to 97 months in prison and three years of supervised release, for his role in a $4.8 million health care fraud scheme that involved the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and the illegal prescribing of controlled substances, including oxycodone and hydrocodone.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office and Special Agent in Charge Brian Swain of the U.S. Secret Service’s (USSS) Miami Field Office made the announcement.
Roberto A. Fernandez, M.D., 51, of Miami, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Cecelia M. Altonaga of the Southern District of Florida. Judge Altonaga also ordered Fernandez to pay $4.8 million in restitution, jointly and severally with his co-conspirators. Fernandez pleaded guilty on July 11, to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud in connection with a scheme, that ran from April 2011 to February 2017, involving the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and the illegal prescribing of controlled substances, including oxycodone, hydrocodone and alprazolam.
As part of his guilty plea, Fernandez admitted that he referred Medicare beneficiaries to pharmacy owners in exchange for illegal health care kickbacks. Fernandez admitted knowing that the pharmacy owners were billing and receiving reimbursements from Medicare for prescription drugs based upon the prescriptions he sold, and that many of his prescriptions were medically unnecessary. For example, he admitted providing prescriptions for expensive, name brand drugs, including HIV/AIDS medications that conflicted with other HIV drugs already prescribed to the beneficiaries.
Fernandez also solicited referrals of Medicare beneficiaries to his own practices from his co-conspirators, he admitted, including submitting claims to Medicare under his Part B provider number for services he did not, in fact, render. Additionally, Fernandez admitted to receiving kickbacks in return for signing plans of care and prescriptions for medically unnecessary home health services.
Fernandez further admitted that he prescribed controlled substances, including addictive opioids, to patients and patient recruiters in return for $100 to $200 cash per prescription. Fernandez admitted that he knew these patients did not need the controlled substances he prescribed, and that he would sometimes write prescriptions for controlled substances for patients whom he did not even examine.
The FBI, HHS-OIG and USSS investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa H. Miller of the Southern District of Florida and a former Fraud Section trial attorney, and Fraud Section Trial Attorney Adam G. Yoffie are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which is part of a joint initiative between the Department of Justice and HHS to focus their efforts to prevent and deter fraud and enforce current anti-fraud laws around the country. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force operates in nine locations nationwide. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force has charged over 3,500 defendants who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for over $12.5 billion.
source: press release Department of Justice
New Orleans Woman Kim Ricard Convicted for Role in $2.1 Million Medicare Kickback Scheme
Sept 14, 2017 - A federal jury found a New Orleans woman guilty of conspiracy, identity theft and false statements charges for her role in an approximately $2.1 million Medicare kickback scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge C.J. Porter of the Office of Inspector General – Health and Human Services Dallas Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Jeff Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Field Office made the announcement.
After a two-day trial, Kim Ricard, age 51, of New Orleans, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks in connection with Medicare beneficiaries. In addition, Ricard was convicted of three counts of accepting kickbacks, along with three counts of identity theft and one count of making false statements to federal agents. Sentencing has been scheduled for December 7, before U.S. District Judge Jane Milazzo of the Eastern District of Louisiana, who presided over the trial.
According to evidence presented at trial, from 2008 to 2013, Ricard and others engaged in a scheme to refer mentally ill Medicare patients to home health agencies in and around New Orleans, in exchange for kickbacks. The evidence further established that Ricard unlawfully used the Medicare identification information of three Medicare beneficiaries in connection with the scheme. Ricard then lied to investigators, the evidence showed.
As a result of the scheme, Ricard’s co-conspirator caused Medicare to pay over $2.1 million based on those illegally-obtained referrals
One other defendant was charged in this matter. Milton Diaz, 65, of Harvey, Louisiana, pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
This case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the FBI. Trial Attorneys Claire Yan and Kate Payerle of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 3,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $12.5 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge C.J. Porter of the Office of Inspector General – Health and Human Services Dallas Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Jeff Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Field Office made the announcement.
After a two-day trial, Kim Ricard, age 51, of New Orleans, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks in connection with Medicare beneficiaries. In addition, Ricard was convicted of three counts of accepting kickbacks, along with three counts of identity theft and one count of making false statements to federal agents. Sentencing has been scheduled for December 7, before U.S. District Judge Jane Milazzo of the Eastern District of Louisiana, who presided over the trial.
According to evidence presented at trial, from 2008 to 2013, Ricard and others engaged in a scheme to refer mentally ill Medicare patients to home health agencies in and around New Orleans, in exchange for kickbacks. The evidence further established that Ricard unlawfully used the Medicare identification information of three Medicare beneficiaries in connection with the scheme. Ricard then lied to investigators, the evidence showed.
As a result of the scheme, Ricard’s co-conspirator caused Medicare to pay over $2.1 million based on those illegally-obtained referrals
One other defendant was charged in this matter. Milton Diaz, 65, of Harvey, Louisiana, pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
This case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the FBI. Trial Attorneys Claire Yan and Kate Payerle of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 3,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $12.5 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov
.source: press release Department of Justice
EEOC Alleges Wood Group Refused to Hire Worker Because of His Disability
Global Offshore Company Refused to Hire Offshore Worker Because of Diabetes, Federal Agency Charged
NEW ORLEANS - Sept 21, 2017 - Wood Group PSN, Inc., a global company which provides operations and maintenance to the oil, petrochemical and gas industries, denied employment to an offshore worker because of his disability, the EEOC alleged in a lawsuit filed today.
The suit, filed in United States District Court in the Eastern District of Louisiana, Case No. 2:17-cv-09339, alleges that in June 2015, Calvin McKelroy, a type I insulin-dependent diabetic, was denied employment as a Production Operator because of his medical condition in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, as amended. The suit further alleges that McKelroy had worked on the same platform as a Production Operator for Grand Isle Shipyard for many months without incident. During that employment, McKelroy never experienced any issues related to his disability.
In June 2015, Fieldwood Energy changed staffing contractors from Grand Isle Shipyard to Wood Group. As a result of this transition, the lawsuit alleges, McKelroy was required to complete a new job application and undergo a physical examination to maintain his employment. The job which McKelroy would have done for Wood Group was the same job, at the same location that he already had been performing successfully, according to the EEOC.
Following a medical examination, on June 3, 2015, a project manager for Wood Group notified McKelroy that Wood Group would not hire him because of the purported risk posed by his disability.
The EEOC alleges that Wood Group violated the ADA when it refused to hire McKelroy because of his diabetes. The EEOC is seeking injunctive relief prohibiting Wood Group from engaging in unlawful discrimination on the basis of disability in the future, as well as lost wages, compensatory and punitive damages for McKelroy, and other relief the court deems proper.
Keith Hill, New Orleans Field Office Director, said, "Employers should be reminded that they are required to engage in an individualized assessment of whether an employee can do the job with or without accommodation." Rudy Sustaita, Regional Attorney, stated "Discrimination on the basis of disability in the employment process will not be tolerated."
Wood Group PSN, Inc. is an international company with locations throughout the world.
The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.
source: EEOC press release
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