Settlement Reached to Provide Equal Access to Critical Health Care Services
New York, NY (August 14, 2018)—In resolution of a federal lawsuit brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act by Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) last March, NYU Langone Health, NRAD Medical Associates, and related entities have agreed to acquire and install height-adjustable examination tables and related accessible medical equipment at each of their radiology centers in Nassau County and New York City.
The agreement settles a lawsuit brought in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York by Plaintiff Sandra Lamb, a Long Island resident who uses a wheelchair and unsuccessfully sought healthcare at NYU Langone-NRAD facilities. There are 119,000 people in Nassau County with mobility disabilities who can potentially benefit from this new equipment.
Height-adjustable examination tables with safety features are necessary for patients with mobility disabilities who cannot stand and walk to a standard-height examination table. Inaccessible equipment can create safety risks, and if only inaccessible equipment is offered, patients cannot receive a medical evaluation as thorough as those given to patients without disabilities.
“It is unfortunate that so many years after the Americans with Disabilities Act it can still be difficult to find accessible care,” said Plaintiff Sandra Lamb, “I am glad that I and other people with mobility disabilities will be able to access radiology services at regional NYU Langone locations.”
“It’s important that people with disabilities have access to equipment that allows them to receive diagnostic examinations and the medical care they need,” said Rebecca Serbin, a Staff Attorney at DRA, “We are pleased that NYU Langone will make it easier for New Yorkers with disabilities to obtain radiology services.”
A copy of the settlement agreement is available below.
About Disability Rights Advocates
Founded in 1993, Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) is the leading national nonprofit disability rights legal center. Its mission is to advance equal rights and opportunity for people with all types of disabilities nationwide. DRA represents people with the full spectrum of disabilities in complex, system-changing, class action cases. Thanks to DRA’s precedent-setting work, people with disabilities across the country have dramatically improved access to health care, employment, transportation, education, disaster preparedness planning, voting and housing. DRA’s health care cases have helped to ensure equal access for patients with disabilities at hospitals and medical centers around the country. For more information, visit www.dralegal.org.