Class Action Suit to Compel Information on Public Welfare Benefits to be Accessible to the Visually Impaired

Rafferty v. Doar, No. 13-cv-1410 (S.D.N.Y.)

Drinker Biddle & Reath partnered with the National Center for Law and Economic Justice under the auspices of the Barbara McDowell Foundaton  to represent a class of blind and seriously visually impaired individuals to sue the New York City Human Resources Administration, the New York State Office of Temporary Disability Assistance (OTDA), the New York State Department of  Health, and the Commissioners of these agencies for being denied their right to receive Medicaid and Food Stamps benefits information in formats that are accessible to them.  A landmark settlement by a Consent Decree was approved in October 2015 requiring quarterly reporting from the City and State agencies that lists the numbers of individuals in the plaintiff class making alternate visual format requests and the types of formats they elect to access public benefit documents.

This reporting has demonstrated the significant impact of settlement. Through May of 2017, OTDA has reported that 2,202 food stamp clients have requested and received eligibility documents converted into one of the four alternate visual formats; and 377 clients have requested and received administrative fair hearing documents converted into one of the alternate visual formats.