California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) for failing to provide appropriate access at intersections, sidewalks and Park and Rides lots, for putting people with disabilities in danger and for its unresponsiveness to the public’s demand that these barriers be fixed.
Northwest Airlines for its draconian attitudes toward travelers with disabilities and for its lack of disability awareness, and lack of disability customer service training.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Never before has a Turkey been awarded to the same entity twice. Back in 2004, a turkey was awarded when they have created a policy stating that if wheelchair users require power chairs when they go out of their houses but do not require them in their homes, they will NOT be reimbursed for the chair. This year CMS has continued its devastating program of exclusion by further increasing eligibility restrictions while reducing reimbursement rates. These policies, in effect, confine those who need power wheelchairs to their homes.
2005 Turkeys
Taco Bell Corporation for refusing to remove architectural barriers, including narrow queue lines, high counters and narrow pathways in the dining areas. They also refused to provide sufficient accessible parking and accessible restrooms.
Hotels.com for refusing to guarantee accessible hotel rooms for customers with disabilities.
The State of Georgia (which was sued by a paraplegic prisoner for lack of accommodations) for its claim that ADA suits do not apply to its prisons.
The Schwarzenegger Administration, for proposing deep cuts to In Home Support Services providers' wages in its 2005 budget - a cut that would have diminished the wages of providers to the legal minimum wage.
2004 Turkeys
Unum Life Insurance of America for its discriminatory practices in refusing to provide the securities and benefits of life insurance to people with disabilities. Their application form might as well say "Disabled people need not apply: You will not get insurance".
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid for the Catch-22 they have created for people who use wheelchairs. They have created a new policy which states that if wheelchair users require power chairs when they go out of their houses but do not require them in their homes, they will not be reimbursed for the power chair. This policy, in effect, confines them to their homes permanently.
State of Tennessee, a state that was sued by a disabled individual who could not use the courthouses because they were fully inaccessible. In fact, George Lane, the plaintiff, dragged his body up the steps to get to the courtroom for his first hearing. When he refused the second time to crawl, he was arrested. After the Supreme Court affirmed the lower court decision that said that Tennessee must make its courthouses fully accessible, they have still not made any alterations to any of them. There is no equal access to justice in Tennessee.
Norwegian Cruise Line Ltd. for refusing to make their ships accessible to people with mobility disabilities. The U.S. Supreme Court began its new term with just one major disability case on its docket: Spector v. Norwegian Cruise Lines, Ltd. The cruise company argues that because its ships sail under foreign flags (Bahamian and Liberian), American laws do not apply to them, even if they are sailing in U.S. waters. The decision to not make their cruise line wheelchair user-friendly seems particularly counterintuitive, considering how many people are getting older and becoming disabled and might choose to take more cruises.
