CommunicationFIRST held a brainstorming session to begin to identify some of the “good, bad, and ugly” ways technologies can uniquely impact people with speech-related disabilities.
CommunicationFIRST publicly recruited a diverse group of AAC users who were willing to be interviewed on camera about their priorities for AAC research.
In a first-of-its-kind event held May 13-14, 2024, people with speech-related disabilities from around the U.S. told senior federal officials and researchers how future research dollars should be prioritized.
It’s gratifying when policymakers #LISTEN! On November 21, 2022, CommunicationFIRST submitted comments to the National Institute on Disability, Independent…
CommunicationFIRST is excited to announce the following additions to its leadership team: Our new Vice Chair is Pancho Ramirez…
On April 19, 2023, CommunicationFIRST was honored to be given an award from the Association of University Centers on…
Like others in the disability community and around the world, everyone at CommunicationFIRST is devastated by the untimely loss…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a resolution that applies to all MedStar Health Inc. (“MedStar Health”) care locations in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, MedStar Health has agreed to end its discriminatory treatment of patients with disabilities, including William King, a 73-year old man with communication-related disabilities, and to modify its policies to ensure patients with disabilities can access the in-person supports needed to communicate and have equal access to medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CommunicationFIRST, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), and the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint (AASR) today condemned the Golden Globe-nominated movie MUSIC, directed by singer-songwriter Sia Furler. The film, released widely via video on-demand services today, contains a number of deeply disturbing and potentially harmful scenes.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CommunicationFIRST, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, and the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint today expressed grave concern about the soon-to-be-released, Golden Globe-nominated movie MUSIC, directed by singer-songwriter Sia.
CommunicationFIRST and the 47 undersigned supporters of communication rights, access, and equity urge the incoming Biden-Harris Administration to take immediate and specific steps to safeguard and advance the human and civil rights of people with disabilities, especially individuals who have little to no understandable speech and rely on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC).
Including, respecting, honoring, and listening to people who cannot rely on speech to be heard and understood can be…
On October 16, 2020, CommunicationFIRST joined with the National Association of the Deaf other communication rights organizations to formally petition the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to include text and direct video calling options to allow people with speech and hearing disabilities to access a federally mandated three-digit National Suicide Lifeline that will launch in 2022.
Yesterday, CommunicationFIRST joined Disability Rights DC and other disability rights groups in filing a complaint against MedStar, a private hospital in the District of Columbia, for violating the communication rights of a patient for failing to provide him the in-person supports he requires to communicate with health care personnel and to provide informed consent.
Yesterday, CommunicationFIRST joined an amicus brief in federal court in support of Washington state’s Attorney General to seek a preliminary injunction to prevent a regulatory rollback of communication protections in health care settings.