An advocacy group for the blind and visually impaired is applauding bipartisan legislation in the House to investigate the federal government’s “systemic failure” to provide materials in accessible formats for recipients of Medicare and Medicaid.

U.S. Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Anna Eshoo (D-CA) in late July introduced H.R. 3457, which would require the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an evaluation on the extent to which the Medicare and Medicaid programs provide reasonable accommodations to individuals who are blind or visually impaired.

“This legislation will make it possible for people who are blind to independently read and understand important health-related information — an issue that has been on our radar for many years now,” says Kim Charlson, president of American Council of the Blind.

“With today’s technology, the continuing lack of vital health documents in an accessible format for people who are blind and visually impaired is inexcusable, and puts up a barrier to quality health care for a growing percentage of Americans.”

The bill calls for a GAO study to be submitted to Congress on the extent to which reasonable accommodations are provided to individuals who are blind or visually impaired within the two entitlement programs.

The report must also provide, among other things, the number of complaints submitted to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services or state Medicaid agencies claiming materials are not being provided in an accessible format and whether such a failure to provide such materials in such a format resulted in an interruption in coverage or denial in care or the failure to appeal such a denial before the specified deadline.

While the CMS is required under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to provide materials in an accessible format for recipients who are blind and visually impaired, ACB executive director Eric Bridges says that it has been difficult to track the number of blind and visually impaired individuals covered under CMS programs, making it difficult to track CMS’ effectiveness in meeting those requirements.

“There's a lot of missing data that makes it hard for us to know just how widespread the problem is,” Bridges says. “But what we do know is that our office continually receives complaints on CMS’s failure to provide accessible materials, which is resulting in serious disruptions for individuals’ health care coverage due to a lack of equal access to vital print materials.”

H.R. 3457 was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means.