Dan Harris, a wheelchair person who works on the Boston Center for Independent Living, mentioned with out using his powerchair, he can not depart his condominium safely and a loaner chair from the corporate who makes the product has been a “sticking point” throughout all of his repairs.
“Every time I’ve called for a repair, and every time a repair is needed to be done, the first thing I ask about is, when can I get back to doing what I do, and is a loaner chair available?” he mentioned on the State House Thursday. “And every time I’m told ‘oh, we’ll look.’”
Legislation outlining new necessities for wheelchair warranties and non permanent loaner chairs unanimously cleared the Senate Thursday, alongside two different payments that legalize using fentanyl take a look at strips and direct state officers to create a blue envelope folks with autism can use to ease interactions with cops.
Sen. John Cronin, the Senate sponsor of the wheelchair invoice, mentioned the proposal is “a consumer protection bill that strengthens protections under the law for those in our community, many joining us today at the State House, that rely on wheelchairs for their mobility.”
Thousands of individuals in Massachusetts depend on their wheelchairs for the “basic freedom to maneuver” that almost all others take as a right, he mentioned.
“But when their wheelchair breaks down, too often, our neighbors, our friends, our family are stripped of this basic freedom for days or weeks or months while they wait for a service technician to assess a defect, or for a part to come in on backorder, or for the actual repair itself to be made,” he mentioned from the ground of the Senate.
The laws extends warranties on wheelchairs from one to 2 years and mandates service suppliers diagnose restore points inside a “reasonable assessment period” — three days for distant evaluation and 4 days after that if an in-person evaluation is required.
The proposal additionally requires sellers to reimburse or present a loaner chair inside 4 or eight days if a chair is inoperable all through repairs. The Massachusetts lawyer common is granted the authority to take motion towards anybody who violates the provisions of the invoice.
Chris Hoeh, a wheelchair person from Jamaica Plain, mentioned the necessity for fast repairs and loaner wheelchairs is a human rights and financial difficulty. He mentioned he took his chair to be fastened in November when it broke down, and the corporate that made the chair mentioned it couldn’t be repaired till March.
While he ultimately managed to get an appointment in a couple of weeks, he mentioned he realized that the corporate solely had two technicians who’re in a position to make dwelling appointments.
“It’s an outrage,” he mentioned. “This legislation helps us.”
Sen. Cindy Creem, a Newton Democrat who serves because the department’s majority chief, mentioned laws legalizing using strips to check for the presence of fentanyl in different medicine is a “common sense strategy” to forestall overdose deaths.
“All too often Massachusetts residents are overdosing when using cocaine, MDMA, ketamine and other drugs that unexpectedly contain fentanyl. This can be particularly dangerous because someone who has no tolerance for fentanyl and expects to be using a different drug is at an increased risk of overdose,” Creem mentioned.
The last piece of laws directs the Registry of Motor Vehicles alongside the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association to develop a blue envelope that individuals with autism can hand to legislation enforcement to higher facilitate an interplay.
Sen. Jo Comerford, the Senate backer of the invoice, mentioned the envelope might maintain issues like a driver’s license, registration, or an insurance coverage card. The envelope additionally has directions on the skin for an officer or first responder to be taught extra concerning the driver’s analysis or potential triggers.
“It’s a very pragmatic, very simple tool,” Comerford mentioned, whereas noting that Connecticut already has an identical program in place.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”