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Department
of Human Services Families
First Online Policy Manual Rights and Responsibilities |
Revised: |
31.4 |
DISCRIMINATORY CONDUCT ON THE BASIS OF HANDICAP/DISABILITY THAT IS PROHIBITED IN PROGRAMS AND SERVICES |
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DHS may not discriminate against any
qualified individual with a disability in providing services or administering
any program or activity, whether or not the program receives federal
financial assistance. In general, an
individual with a disability is “qualified” if that person meets the
essential eligibility requirements for receipt of services or participation
in the program or activity. DHS may
not refuse to allow a person with a disability to participate because the
person has a disability. It may be
necessary to make reasonable accommodations to allow participation. DHS may not harass a program participant or
applicant based on a disability. Examples: ·
The director of a day care program which
includes children of Families First participants who are attending employment
training programs may not refuse to accept children who have emotional
problems or who take medication for their disabilities. ·
Families First
recipients with disabilities may not be prohibited from work activities,
education, or training opportunities based on assumptions that such
individuals are not qualified to participate in training or work. ·
A community college offering job-training
for Families First participants may not require students with disabilities to
provide medical histories if such histories are not required of all students. DHS is required to make reasonable modifications in policies,
practices, and procedures that deny equal access to individuals with
disabilities, unless a fundamental alteration in the program would result. Examples: ·
Job-training courses for Families First participants
must extend testing time when a person with a learning disability requests
extra time to complete the test because of his/her disability. The course provider may ask the individual
who is seeking extra time to provide reasonable documentation of the learning
disability and the additional time that is required. ·
A Families First applicant with a mental
disability who is unable to complete the application must be assisted. ·
If an individual with a disability, with or
without reasonable accommodation, is unable to perform the essential
functions of an available job, the Department should seek alternative
solutions. As appropriate, the work
activity contractor may intervene with an employer to determine if specific
job functions are essential and what, if any, accommodations can be made to
assist the client. Bulletin 33, FA-07-14 DHS must ensure that programs and services are provided in an
integrated setting, unless separate or different measures are necessary to
ensure equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities. Programs that provide special benefits to
people with disabilities are permitted, but people with disabilities cannot
be compelled to participate in those programs. Examples: ·
A county DHS office may offer an alternate
site for an eligibility interview at the Community Mental Health Center for
those with mental disabilities.
However, the office may not require people with mental disabilities to
go to an alternate site for interviews. ·
A county DHS office may not require people
with HIV to be served in a separate room from the other participants. ·
A county vocational training program may
offer special training opportunities for people with vision impairments. However, it may not require people with
impairments to participate in a special program or refuse to permit them to
participate in courses open to other program participants. DHS must ensure effective communication with individuals who have
hearing, speech, or vision impairments.
Programs must provide auxiliary aids and services when necessary to
ensure effective communication for program purposes. However, they are not required to provide
auxiliary aids that will result in undue financial and administrative burdens
on the agency. Any questions regarding
the potential burdens that may result from the provision of such aids must be
referred to the State Office. Examples
of auxiliary aids are Braille materials, sign language interpreters, readers,
or text telephones (TTYs). Bulletin
33, FA-07-14 Examples: ·
A job placement program that makes
information about job openings available by telephone must ensure that the
information is available to users of TTYs. ·
Printed information for
applicants/participants about welfare eligibility requirements must also be
provided on audiotape or in Braille for people who have vision impairments,
or materials must be read to them. ·
Job training programs for Families First
participants must provide sign language interpreters for deaf students when
it is necessary to ensure effective communication for those students. DHS may not exclude individuals with disabilities from programs and
activities because buildings are inaccessible. However, the providers are not required to
take any action that would result in the fundamental alteration in the nature
of a program or activity or in undue financial and administrative
burdens. This means that providers
need not remove physical barriers, such as stairs in existing buildings, as
long as the programs are made accessible to individuals with disabilities in
other locations or through other methods. Examples: ·
A DHS office that is located on the second
floor of a building that has no elevator may make its services available to
an applicant who uses a wheelchair by meeting with that applicant in an
accessible ground floor office. ·
A job-training program that usually offers
classes in an inaccessible second-floor classroom may make its program
accessible by relocating the class to an accessible classroom in another
building. An applicant with a physical disability who cannot be accommodated at
the county office must be offered an alternative to the office interview that
will accommodate his/her needs and, at the same time, satisfy program
requirements. |
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