New Department of Transportation regulations make flights more difficult and sometimes inaccessible for visually impaired passengers
she is one of the many blind People say it’s gotten harder and harder to get service animals on planes since then new rule The regulation was an effort to crack down on the growing number of passengers disguising untrained pets as service or emotional support animals. Some travelers even tried to put peacocks, pigs, ducks and even miniature horses on the plane. Some animals defecated on planes and attacked crew, passengers and regular service dogs.
Under the new regulations, emotional support animals are no longer considered service animals, narrowing the definition to only properly trained dogs. Airlines may require passengers to complete a service dog training form at least 48 hours before the flight. In addition, airlines must use reasonable efforts to accommodate all passengers with service dogs, even if the application is not submitted on time.
However, disability advocacy groups say airlines seem to interpret the rules differently, enforcing different rules regarding document submission and refusal of forms from other airline websites. ing.
Some passengers said they were denied their dog because of a simple paperwork error. Blind travelers also find it difficult to fill out the required forms, as they are often incompatible with the screen-reader technology used to convert text to speech.
Blind people said in interviews with The Washington Post that regulation would be very difficult. Navigate that they are hesitant to fly now or feel uneasy about the experience. Various groups for the visually impaired are calling for the form to be changed or eliminated.
According to Department of Transportation data, the number of complaints related to service animals from people with disabilities are: It has more than doubled since the new regulations came into force. In 2018, the agency received 116 complaints. In 2022, that number was 451.
The agency acknowledged that people with disabilities have experienced problems flying with service animals and takes their concerns seriously, and has “began investigating these issues further,” it said electronically. said in an email.
“This is a huge mess,” said Albert Elia, director of the National Association of Guide Dog Users and staff attorney at the Center for Civil Rights Education and Enforcement, a nonprofit legal organization focused on disability justice. Ta.
Shane originally tried to submit a form online four days before his JetBlue flight, but was denied by the airline.jetblue customer service I advised her to bring the document to the airport on the day of her flight.
When she arrived, the airline staff told her. She didn’t submit the form by the deadline. Shane said she tried to explain that JetBlue had to make reasonable efforts to get her and Eva on the plane, but was told the airline had the right to turn her dog back.
“If you deny my dog, you deny me,” she said.
Shane missed his flight and spent about $400 on another airline the next day. She then got a refund for her original flight and found out that the form was rejected because she used the wrong flight confirmation code.
This experience is one of many that Shane said had a hard time submitting the form. was done He was treated with suspicion by airline officials.
“It scared me even more. Every time I go to the airport it’s like, ‘Are they going to stop me?'” Shane said. “Even though I know it’s approved, I still feel the pressure of being under a microscope.”
The airline did not respond to questions about Shane’s experience, but JetBlue spokesman Derek Dombrowski said in an email that a timely service dog form would be required to determine if a service dog is eligible for travel. I wrote that I need to submit a About 80% of applications are approved, he wrote, but “customers who do not submit in advance may not be able to travel.”
Elia, an attorney at the Center for Civil Rights Education and Enforcement, said visually impaired people need the latest screen reader technology to complete the forms, which can cost more than $1,000. In some cases, the text he boxes are not labeled properly or are not clickable, making it difficult to work with the form. It took Elia more than 30 minutes to complete the form, and some devices and browsers did not allow the form to be completed at all.
Since the form proved to be very cumbersome, Travelers, including Sherry Gomez, 65, of Paterson, Calif., are currently choosing not to fly. Gomez has previously taught other blind people his computer skills and helped those who encountered problems with his screen reader, but was frustrated with filling out forms himself. Ta.
“It was pretty simple. It’s going to happen,’ she said.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Transportation said in an email that the ministry consulted disability rights groups about the documents and worked with accessibility inspectors. The ministry said it has begun investigating potential problems and welcomes feedback for improvement.
Not enough to stop fake service animals
Despite all the problems the application causes, the application does not stop people from lying or trying to disguise an untrained pet as a service animal, JetBlue Airways and Alaska said. Eric Lipp, executive director of the Open Doors Organization, which reviews service dog applications for airlines, said. Allegiant Air and Sun Country Airlines.
of form listen Owners must certify that their dog has been properly trained to support a disability and behave appropriately in public. Owners must also provide veterinarian contact information and date of last vaccination, but are not required to do so. Other documents. It can be difficult to tell the difference between a legitimate service dog and a fake service dog, Lipp said, and some service dogs are trained by individuals or owners rather than organizations.
Michael Stein, executive director of the Harvard Law School Disability Project, said the regulation was “improperly designed” because it creates additional barriers for people with disabilities and ultimately leaves decisions to decision-makers. It is being done,” he said. Worker’s discretion. He said there was no clear rationale behind the document because it would not help airline officials distinguish between fake and legitimate service dogs.
“This seems to be bent backwards to create some kind of formal requirement,” he said. “I don’t see the logic or the benefits.”
under Americans with Disabilities ActCompanies can ask people if they need a service dog because of their disability and explain what tasks the dog is trained to do.
But it’s still possible to pretend that you actually have a service dog, especially if it’s a dog that helps people with mental illness or other invisible disabilities, Elia said. “How do you know if a dog is trained to perceive seizures? How are you going to prove it? Will it make seizures on demand?”
Asking people to prove they have a disability could also force them to disclose sensitive health information, Elia added.
Some airlines contact service dog training programs to verify information on required documentation. But in early August, the Center for Civil Rights Education and Enforcement warned some airlines and dog training programs that it might be considered. Violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which protects the privacy of medical information.
Airlines for America, a trade group representing U.S. airlines, did not respond to questions about these practices. Association spokeswoman Hannah Walden said in her email that members are complying with Department of Transportation regulations.
The Ministry of Transport said the rules were made to ensure the safety and health of passengers and crew. But the agency said it had no data on whether these rules would reduce accidents involving untrained animals on board.
Although JetBlue has “significantly reduced disruption from untrained dogs,” Dombrowski wrote in an email that some problems persist. On average, JetBlue says there is an incident involving a service dog every three weeks, including a dog biting a passenger or crew member.
Screening fake service animals also helps keep real service animals safe, he said. Donald Overton Jr., Executive Director of the Society of Blind Veterans.
His guide dog, a German Shepherd named Pierce, was trained over the years at a cost of thousands of dollars. After being repeatedly attacked by untrained pets on planes and at airports, Pearce eventually became too reactive and anxious to continue working as a service animal.
“A person who casually and carelessly decides that their pet should be outside can take it all away and destroy it in the blink of an eye,” he says.
American Association for the Blind, Guide Dog Users, Inc., National Federation of the Blind, The National Association of Guide Dog Users has met with Department of Transportation officials to request that the form be repealed or changed.
“We don’t believe airlines should require a different process with respect to guide dogs than is required of others,” said John G. Pare, Jr., executive director of advocacy and policy at the National Federation of the Blind. said. .
But changing the rules can take time. There will be a public comment period before a decision is made.
Meanwhile, some of these organizations have regulations The Senate Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act would establish a pilot program for people to register their service dogs. This will allow visually impaired people to fly repeatedly with their guide dog under a one-time approval process, rather than having to submit an application for each flight.
The provision marks the end of many bipartisan efforts to improve air travel for passengers with disabilities as Congress prepares to reauthorize Federal Aviation Administration funds and programs by Sept. 30. is one.
Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois), a bilateral leg amputee from combat injuries sustained as a U.S. military pilot and the drafter of the provision, said the program Create a more streamlined process for testing service animals.
“Too often, many people continue to be flatly denied or charged exorbitant surcharges to sit in accessible seats or with service companions on commercial flights.” she says
Jessica Beecham, 38, of Colorado Springs, who is blind and is regularly questioned by airline officials about her guide dog, said she has been delayed up to four hours at the airport because of a form problem.
“It feels like a game of guessing if you’re going to get into trouble,” says Beecham. “I just want to fly in peace.”