I agree about the word "retail" as we may need to run into the first available building we can find in an emergency. Is that possible? If the word retail is not there, the omission may not be noticed and we can get access to the facilities.
I am ready to donate and do whatever is necessary to get this project off the ground and I don't even go anywhere right now. I think this is that important!!!
gail
A Medical Disability Card
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Erica and Laura,
When I get all the details worked out I'll probably post a download link on the MCF website where a PDF of the front and back of the card (or a single card meant to be folded) can be downloaded to be printed. The card can then be cut out, folded and either glued together and used that way, or laminated if you have a way to do that. There will also be a description of how to receive a printed plastic card.
And I'm pretty sure that we'll send a card to anyone who has MC and who requests a card, whether they make a donation or not. After all, what good would the organization be if it can't even do that? But if Crohn's or UC patients request a card, it should be fair to expect a donation from them, since the CCFA doesn't do anything for MC patients.
Brandy and Gail,
A few websites, when discussing the law, don't include the word "retail" when mentioning "businesses" that fall under the law. But I have no doubt that such comments are merely a result of incomplete wording, not an implication that the law applies to all businesses. As far as I am aware, The Restroom Access Law, aka Ally’s law, typically only applies to retail stores that do not provide public restrooms for shoppers. The law requires such retailers to provide access to employee only restrooms for patrons with IBD (or another medical condition) that may require immediate access to a toilet.
Yes, we could omit the word "retail", but that would imply an obligation for non-retail businesses that the law (Ally's Law) does not provide. And for a national organization to issue a card with such "misleading" wording might possibly open the door to a legal challenge when cardholders start going around demanding to use the restrooms in locations that are not covered by the law. Remember that over two-thirds of the states do not have a law in place anyway.
The cornerstone of this card (IMO) is the ADA. Ally's Law is simply a small extension of the ADA. All business have not only heard of the ADA, but virtually all of them have had to spend money (in some cases, a lot of money) to accommodate the provisions of the law. Businesses respect the ADA, because a complaint about a violation of the ADA almost always costs money. So IMO the real power behind the wording of this card lies in the terms of the ADA that applies to IBDs and defines them as a legal disability. No other card out there bothers to point that out. Instead, they all focus on Ally's Law. But Ally's Law is only valid in 16 states (and the terms vary in all of those states), while the ADA is valid in all 50 states.
My take on this is that if I needed access to a restroom in a hurry, and I was at a place of business that is not covered by the law, I would try the card anyway, because it may not dawn on the person reading the card that Ally's Law does not apply to them. But more than that, all business are well aware of the ADA, so they may never bother to turn the card over to read the back anyway. They may grant permission after reading the front of the card. They might glance at the back (to see who issued the card), but they might not have ever heard of Ally's Law, anyway. There is no recourse if a non-retail business declines a request, but it never hurts to try. But the bottom line is that if we try to make Ally's Law something that it isn't, it could backfire on us as an organization.
The proper way to deal with this discrepancy would be to lobby our legislators to extend the law so that it applies to commercial businesses, retail or not.
But in every state where a "Restroom Access Act" has been enacted into law, there are always restrictions and protections for businesses, and the terms vary by state. Here's how the terms were defined in Illinois' House Bill on the act, for example:
When I get all the details worked out I'll probably post a download link on the MCF website where a PDF of the front and back of the card (or a single card meant to be folded) can be downloaded to be printed. The card can then be cut out, folded and either glued together and used that way, or laminated if you have a way to do that. There will also be a description of how to receive a printed plastic card.
And I'm pretty sure that we'll send a card to anyone who has MC and who requests a card, whether they make a donation or not. After all, what good would the organization be if it can't even do that? But if Crohn's or UC patients request a card, it should be fair to expect a donation from them, since the CCFA doesn't do anything for MC patients.
Brandy and Gail,
A few websites, when discussing the law, don't include the word "retail" when mentioning "businesses" that fall under the law. But I have no doubt that such comments are merely a result of incomplete wording, not an implication that the law applies to all businesses. As far as I am aware, The Restroom Access Law, aka Ally’s law, typically only applies to retail stores that do not provide public restrooms for shoppers. The law requires such retailers to provide access to employee only restrooms for patrons with IBD (or another medical condition) that may require immediate access to a toilet.
Yes, we could omit the word "retail", but that would imply an obligation for non-retail businesses that the law (Ally's Law) does not provide. And for a national organization to issue a card with such "misleading" wording might possibly open the door to a legal challenge when cardholders start going around demanding to use the restrooms in locations that are not covered by the law. Remember that over two-thirds of the states do not have a law in place anyway.
The cornerstone of this card (IMO) is the ADA. Ally's Law is simply a small extension of the ADA. All business have not only heard of the ADA, but virtually all of them have had to spend money (in some cases, a lot of money) to accommodate the provisions of the law. Businesses respect the ADA, because a complaint about a violation of the ADA almost always costs money. So IMO the real power behind the wording of this card lies in the terms of the ADA that applies to IBDs and defines them as a legal disability. No other card out there bothers to point that out. Instead, they all focus on Ally's Law. But Ally's Law is only valid in 16 states (and the terms vary in all of those states), while the ADA is valid in all 50 states.
My take on this is that if I needed access to a restroom in a hurry, and I was at a place of business that is not covered by the law, I would try the card anyway, because it may not dawn on the person reading the card that Ally's Law does not apply to them. But more than that, all business are well aware of the ADA, so they may never bother to turn the card over to read the back anyway. They may grant permission after reading the front of the card. They might glance at the back (to see who issued the card), but they might not have ever heard of Ally's Law, anyway. There is no recourse if a non-retail business declines a request, but it never hurts to try. But the bottom line is that if we try to make Ally's Law something that it isn't, it could backfire on us as an organization.
The proper way to deal with this discrepancy would be to lobby our legislators to extend the law so that it applies to commercial businesses, retail or not.
But in every state where a "Restroom Access Act" has been enacted into law, there are always restrictions and protections for businesses, and the terms vary by state. Here's how the terms were defined in Illinois' House Bill on the act, for example:
TexState of Illinois Public Act 094-0450 HB0834 Enrolled LRB094 07984 RXD 38166 b
AN ACT concerning public health, which may be referred to as Ally's Law. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Restroom Access Act.
Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: "Customer" means an individual who is lawfully on the premises of a retail establishment. "Eligible medical condition" means Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, any other inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, or any other medical condition that requires immediate access to a toilet facility.
"Retail establishment" means a place of business open to the general public for the sale of goods or services. "Retail establishment" does not include a filling station or service station, with a structure of 800 square feet or less, that has an employee toilet facility located within that structure.
Section 10. Retail establishment; customer access to restroom facilities. A retail establishment that has a toilet facility for its employees shall allow a customer to use that facility during normal business hours if the toilet facility is reasonably safe and all of the following conditions are met:(1) The customer requesting the use of the employee toilet facility suffers from an eligible medical condition or utilizes an ostomy device. (2) Three or more employees of the retail establishment are working at the time the customer requests use of the employee toilet facility.
(3) The retail establishment does not normally make a restroom available to the public. (4) The employee toilet facility is not located in an area where providing access would create an obvious health or safety risk to the customer or an obvious security risk to the retail establishment. (5) A public restroom is not immediately accessible to the customer.
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I'm a little late weighing in here.
Thanks for all the good work you've put in, Tex, and thanks for all the good suggestions from the rest of you.
I personally prefer not to have the Hazmat wording. To me that sounds like we're going to have an accident that is going to produce something lethal and dangerous, and they're going to have to go to a huge expense to call in experts to clean it up. And really, it's just poop. It's nasty and stinky, but has anybody other than the university library of one of our member's experience actually called a Hazmat team?
So I'd prefer the "unpleasant" wording.
I like the idea of a plastic card that looks like something issued by an organization, not a laminated one that I printed out and did myself. I would pay extra to have that, although I can understand if others would prefer to print them out themselves.
Tex, once things get going, please let us know how to make payment/a donation.
Martha
Thanks for all the good work you've put in, Tex, and thanks for all the good suggestions from the rest of you.
I personally prefer not to have the Hazmat wording. To me that sounds like we're going to have an accident that is going to produce something lethal and dangerous, and they're going to have to go to a huge expense to call in experts to clean it up. And really, it's just poop. It's nasty and stinky, but has anybody other than the university library of one of our member's experience actually called a Hazmat team?
So I'd prefer the "unpleasant" wording.
I like the idea of a plastic card that looks like something issued by an organization, not a laminated one that I printed out and did myself. I would pay extra to have that, although I can understand if others would prefer to print them out themselves.
Tex, once things get going, please let us know how to make payment/a donation.
Martha
Martha
Hi Martha,
Good point, because that certainly makes most people uneasy. But it's not unreasonable to point out the risk because human waste, whether liquid, semi-liquid, or solid, is considered to be biohazardous at various levels, depending on the toxins or pathogens that might be present. And when the risk is unknown, then most guidelines tend to err on the cautious side. I have a hunch that these days, a substantial accident in a public area of any government building would prompt a hazmat cleanup, and this might happen in many other public areas if any bureaucrats or law enforcement officers are alerted, because they are required to report such problems and see that correct procedures are followed. In a situation such as that, what happens will likely depend on who is there to witness the event, and their attitude (or training).
So maybe we need to offer 2 slightly different versions.
The printer has arrived, but no supplies yet.
Tex
Good point, because that certainly makes most people uneasy. But it's not unreasonable to point out the risk because human waste, whether liquid, semi-liquid, or solid, is considered to be biohazardous at various levels, depending on the toxins or pathogens that might be present. And when the risk is unknown, then most guidelines tend to err on the cautious side. I have a hunch that these days, a substantial accident in a public area of any government building would prompt a hazmat cleanup, and this might happen in many other public areas if any bureaucrats or law enforcement officers are alerted, because they are required to report such problems and see that correct procedures are followed. In a situation such as that, what happens will likely depend on who is there to witness the event, and their attitude (or training).
So maybe we need to offer 2 slightly different versions.
The printer has arrived, but no supplies yet.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I guess the hazmat option is a good one, after all.My last employer was a very large one and when a woman had a "poo accident", they required a Hazmat response, which did not mean you call 911 Hazmat Team - it meant that the employer's Hazmat Response Group needed to wear appropriate Hazmat garb to clean up the mess, not just use paper towels. Use heavy rubber gloves, special wipes, disposable plastic bags, rubber boots if it was a huge mess, disposable jump suits if it was a huge mess, etc. Then everything was disposed of in special plastic bags and double or triple bagged and labeled "hazardous waste" and it had to be disposed of in a certain way. I don't know what that was - we were a large employer and had procedures for it but I wasn't involved in that but I assume today most employers have procedures for this because of risk of infection within the waste material, just as there is in blood.
Martha,
Yes, a special printer is required to print on plastic cards.
It's the time of year for unpleasant weather, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area seems to be a magnet for bad weather for some reason or other.
I hope your weather behaves itself tonight.
Gail,
I believe you're right on target. These days businesses have to have "plans" or "programs" in place so that they can handle all sorts of issues that may arise. Legislators continue to pass more and more laws, and more bureaucrats are hired to develop the details and make sure that they are enforced. For example, when I was in the food corn processing business, after the 9/11 attacks we had to register for a special program with the FDA and certify that we had a plan in place for reporting and dealing with any terrorist threats that might result in contamination of any of our products, even though our facility was located out in the country, on a farm.
Tex
Yes, a special printer is required to print on plastic cards.
It's the time of year for unpleasant weather, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area seems to be a magnet for bad weather for some reason or other.
I hope your weather behaves itself tonight.
Gail,
I believe you're right on target. These days businesses have to have "plans" or "programs" in place so that they can handle all sorts of issues that may arise. Legislators continue to pass more and more laws, and more bureaucrats are hired to develop the details and make sure that they are enforced. For example, when I was in the food corn processing business, after the 9/11 attacks we had to register for a special program with the FDA and certify that we had a plan in place for reporting and dealing with any terrorist threats that might result in contamination of any of our products, even though our facility was located out in the country, on a farm.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
-
twirlitgirl
- Adélie Penguin
- Posts: 181
- Joined: Thu Aug 21, 2014 5:46 am
- Location: Canada
Tex,
what about those of us from other countries ,Canada as an example , we are close neighbours but just wondering if it would be even valid here, maybe if it were worded differently for
those of us not living in the United States, but maybe that isn't possible ?I don't know if I am the first one to ask this question. I don't mean to be jumping in to disrupt anyone
and the progress that has been made setting this up, maybe it could be a totally different card, once this one goes in place and it is used as a trial to see how it is received by the general public. What do you think? just wondering and I appreciate any answer. thank you for your time
and especially dedication to doing so much for everyone 24hrs a day. you rock!!!
what about those of us from other countries ,Canada as an example , we are close neighbours but just wondering if it would be even valid here, maybe if it were worded differently for
those of us not living in the United States, but maybe that isn't possible ?I don't know if I am the first one to ask this question. I don't mean to be jumping in to disrupt anyone
and the progress that has been made setting this up, maybe it could be a totally different card, once this one goes in place and it is used as a trial to see how it is received by the general public. What do you think? just wondering and I appreciate any answer. thank you for your time
and especially dedication to doing so much for everyone 24hrs a day. you rock!!!
diagnosed with LC by biopsy
in May 2013 , supplements B complex, Vit C ,Vit D3 Zinc, with a multivitamin, and magnesium to round out the pack.
in May 2013 , supplements B complex, Vit C ,Vit D3 Zinc, with a multivitamin, and magnesium to round out the pack.
-
Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
- Posts: 8332
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:12 pm
- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
good point twirlitgirl
I had stayed out of the conversation as it was USA focussed
having the microscropic foundation is great ( as i dont have blood test result for celiac I cant join the Aus Colitis and Celiac society)
maybe a slight variant of the wording that does not mention the USA law.
I dont want to cloud or distract the current progress on the current need for majority of members.
the other aspect is, can those outside of the USA donate to the foundation?
I had stayed out of the conversation as it was USA focussed
having the microscropic foundation is great ( as i dont have blood test result for celiac I cant join the Aus Colitis and Celiac society)
maybe a slight variant of the wording that does not mention the USA law.
I dont want to cloud or distract the current progress on the current need for majority of members.
the other aspect is, can those outside of the USA donate to the foundation?
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Twirlitgirl,
Your post is right on time. I started thinking about that this morning, but I haven't gotten around to posting about it yet.
To design cards for other countries, I'm going to need to know whether the current disability laws of each country apply to IBD patients, and if they do apply, what rights or privileges do the laws confer. The article at the first link below describes what a Restroom Access Law provides, and the second link shows how the law is actually described in a legislative bill in the state of Illinois (in the U. S.), for example:
What Is the Restroom Access Act?
"Ally's Law" - IBD Restroom Access Act
If anyone can help me to locate what these laws say (if such laws exist in various countries), it will make my job of designing a card with effective and appropriate language for each country much easier. Correct information is vital, obviously.
Tex
Your post is right on time. I started thinking about that this morning, but I haven't gotten around to posting about it yet.
To design cards for other countries, I'm going to need to know whether the current disability laws of each country apply to IBD patients, and if they do apply, what rights or privileges do the laws confer. The article at the first link below describes what a Restroom Access Law provides, and the second link shows how the law is actually described in a legislative bill in the state of Illinois (in the U. S.), for example:
What Is the Restroom Access Act?
"Ally's Law" - IBD Restroom Access Act
If anyone can help me to locate what these laws say (if such laws exist in various countries), it will make my job of designing a card with effective and appropriate language for each country much easier. Correct information is vital, obviously.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Gabes,
Yes, anyone can donate (and anyone can serve on the board of directors, for that matter), but legally, as a U. S. organization, we can only offer tax exempt status for donations to U. S. residents. In the long run, it will be necessary to try to establish (incorporate) organizations patterned after this one in other countries, because they will have to operate under the laws and regulations of the respective countries under which they are incorporated, in order to offer tax exemptions for donors in those countries.
Tex
Yes, anyone can donate (and anyone can serve on the board of directors, for that matter), but legally, as a U. S. organization, we can only offer tax exempt status for donations to U. S. residents. In the long run, it will be necessary to try to establish (incorporate) organizations patterned after this one in other countries, because they will have to operate under the laws and regulations of the respective countries under which they are incorporated, in order to offer tax exemptions for donors in those countries.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I'm in the process of setting the printer up and installing software necessary to operate it, etc. IMO the first step should be to print a few cards and send them to members to get some opinions. It's much easier to form an accurate opinion of something such as this when you actually hold it in your hand.
If anyone wants to see a sample, PM or email me your mailing address and I'll send you one tomorrow. But before you do that, let me finish setting it up and make sure that I can actually print a decent card, first.
I'll be back later to either give a
or 
on my rest run.
Tex
If anyone wants to see a sample, PM or email me your mailing address and I'll send you one tomorrow. But before you do that, let me finish setting it up and make sure that I can actually print a decent card, first.
I'll be back later to either give a
or on my rest run.Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
-
Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
- Posts: 8332
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:12 pm
- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
Tex, do you or someone on the board of the foundation happen to have a paypal account? - I can transact money via paypal at no cost to the USA (just exchange rate difference) where as to do international bank transfer costs me $20AUD
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama