ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The United States Attorney’s Office announced a settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Colonial Heights Vision Center Optometry, PC (CHVC), a professional eye care center located in Colonial Heights.
The settlement agreement resolves allegations that CHVC’s eye exam chair and equipment were not accessible to patients with mobility disabilities, who may use mobility equipment such as walkers, scooters, or wheelchairs, and that CHVC had a practice of asking patients who use mobility devices to bring an attendant-such as a family member or friend-to facilitate manual transfer into the exam chair.
Medical facilities are not accessible under the ADA standards unless medical equipment, such as diagnostic and treatment equipment, is made accessible to all patients, including those with mobility disabilities. Accessible health care for people with disabilities is especially critical in detecting and treating serious medical conditions, which may become life-threatening if patients with disabilities do not receive equal access to care. Manual transfer of individuals with mobility disabilities can be dangerous for both patients and health care staff, unnecessarily risking bodily injury.
“The resolution of this case represents this office’s ongoing commitment to ensuring compliance with the ADA’s requirement that people with disabilities have equal access to and independence when accessing health care," said Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “No patient should be denied health care as a result of a mobility disability."
To resolve this complaint, CHVC agreed to supplement its exam equipment, adopt new ADA policies that ensure that patients with mobility disabilities may attend appointments independently, transfer safely to the exam chair, and receive full and equal access to eye examinations. CHVC has also agreed to pay $1,000 to the complainant patient, for whom CHVC was unable to provide an eye exam.
The case was handled by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren “Lo" Stadler and Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Gordon, who is the Civil Rights Enforcement Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The Department of Justice has several resources available to assist healthcare entities in complying with the ADA, including a Technical Assistance Publication entitled: Access to Medical Care for Individuals with Mobility Disabilities. For more information on the ADA and to access these publications, please visit http://www.ada.gov or call the Justice Department’s toll-free ADA information line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TDD). ADA complaints may be filed by email to ada.complaint@usdoj.gov.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The civil claims asserted are allegations only; there has been no determination of civil liability.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
