Comments by Pamela Gaston on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 at 06:05 IP Logged Join Us for Our Annual Night Out with The Trenton Thunder Baseball Team Covering the Bases 2011 Friday, July 29th, 2011 – Gates Open at 6:00 p.m. Waterfront Park, One Thunder Road, Trenton, NJ Presented by NJ Department of Human Services, Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired in partnership with The NJ State Library Talking Book and Braille Center For ticket information e-mail: pamela.gaston@dhs.state.nj.us United States no URL given

Comments by Rosemary Keefe on Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 06:09 IP Logged It’s time to make summer plans! IDEAL(Individual Development through Experience, Assessment and Learning) Summer Transition Program at the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CBVI) provides a unique opportunity for blind and visually impaired high school students between the ages of 15 and 21 to develop skills for independence. A tried and true program, for over 15 years IDEAL has successfully helped students transition into the adult world of college or the workplace. Listen to what former IDEAL participants have to say! “My IDEAL summer was awesome! I enjoyed the freedom and independence and felt like an adult!” “I liked learning about new technologies that can help me and that can make my life easier. IDEAL was cool!” “IDEAL taught me so much – I improved in areas that I never thought I would, like cooking and consumer math!” “I had fun! I would recommend IDEAL. Now I feel like I can do more things on my own.” “IDEAL was great! I made lots of new friends!” “Having a roommate at IDEAL helped prepare me for college life. I was also introduced to technology that will definitely help me when I go to college.” “I’m glad I came to IDEAL. I made a cheese cake with cherries and whipped cream. It had a few clumps but it was still good.” Click on the above attachments to learn more about IDEAL or contact Rosemary Keefe at 610-874-1476 ext.161 or rosemary.keefe@cbvi.net. You can help to make this an IDEAL summer for a deserving blind or visually impaired high school student! United States no URL given

Comments by Stewart Hughes on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 07:37 IP Logged Here is an article from the New York Times today which talks about the app that I placed on my IPhone last week. Denice BITS. App Helps the Blind Identify Currency. By NICK BILTON. For the millions of blind people living in the United States, paying for something in cash can pose major challenges because there is no difference between the size and shape of a $1 or $100 bill. To tackle this problem, many blind people set up systems to identify a bill's value by folding the notes into different sizes and shapes, which then make them easily identifiable later. A new application, the LookTel Money Reader, available for $2 on the Apple iOS platform, hopes to help solve this problem by taking advantage of the devices camera to 'read money' and speak the value of the currency out loud. According to the company's Web site, LookTel recognizes all United States currency and can read $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills aloud. LookTel, which is made by the software company Ipplex, says the app can recognize currency denominations in real-time. This means that users can simply wave their phone in the direction of the currency and it will speak the bill's value as it falls into view of the camera. The application does not require an Internet connection. The currency reading software will soon be available on other platforms, LookTel said. Identifying United States currency has long been a problem for the visually impaired. Other countries print currency on different sizes and shapes specifically to help people with sight problems identify the different denominations through touch. Last year, a federal appellate court ruled that under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Treasury Department must change the currency to make it more accessible to the visually impaired. The iPhone's software already offers a number of features to assist the visually impaired. Under the phone's Settings menu, users can navigate to an Accessibility area, which enables them to enlarge the phone's graphics and text. Apple also offers Voice Over, which speaks text aloud when the phone's screen is touched. United States no URL given

Comments by Art-Reach on Wednesday, February 02, 2011 at 10:50 IP Logged Audio Description and Open Captioning at the following dates and locations. Race Philadelphia Theatre Company on Feb. 12 @ 2:00pm Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Tony nominee David Mamet tackles the biggest four-letter word of all… RACE! Two lawyers, one black, one white, find themselves defending a wealthy white executive against the charge of raping a young black woman. When a new legal assistant gets involved, emotions bubbling just beneath the surface explode! Amadeus Walnut Street Theatre ASL Interpretation, Audio Description and Open Captioning on Feb. 13 @ 7:00pm Winner of a Tony Award for Best Play and the Academy Award for Best Film and triumphant in recent revivals in London and on Broadway, Amadeus weaves a confrontation between mediocrity and genius into a tale of breathtaking dramatic power. In the court of the Austrian Emperor Josef, Antonio Salieri is the influential court composer. Enter the greatest musical genius of all time: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The final contest is not between Salieri and Mozart, but between Salieri and God. This theatrical masterpiece, filled with some of the greatest music ever composed, is a thrilling start to the New Year! United States no URL given

Comments by Lynne Maleeff on Tuesday, February 01, 2011 at 10:30 IP Logged The Philadelphia Regional Chapter of the PA Council of the Blind is hosting a Pizza Membership Party. The purpose is to meet new people and learn about what it means to be a member of our organization. This promises to be a great time, and we look forward to having you join us. If you are a member, you are encouraged to bring a friend(s) who may be interested in learning about us. If you are not a member, all the more reason to come and check us out! Date: Friday, February 25, 2011 Time: 4:00-7:00 pm Location: Liberty Resources, 714 Market Street, Philadelphia, Wade Blank Room on the fifth floor R.S.V.P. by Monday, February 21st, to Lynne Maleeff at: Lynne423@gmail.com or 267-481-5150 Space is limited to the first 50 replies, so don’t hesitate to reserve your spot! , Philadelphia Regional Chapter Membership Committee Chair United States no URL given

Comments by IRS on Tuesday, January 25, 2011 at 10:56 IP Logged IRS provides assistance for people with disabilities Hundreds of the most popular federal tax forms and publications are available for download from IRS.gov for sight impaired individuals. These products range from talking tax forms to Braille formats, and are accessible using screen reading software, refreshable Braille displays and voice recognition software. Click on the links below to download these forms and publications: Download Accessible Tax Forms (Braille and Text Formats) Download Accessible Tax Publications (Braille and Text Formats) Download Accessible Talking Tax Forms Download Tax Instructions (Large Print Format) Download Tax Publications (Large Print Format) More Help is Available The IRS also offers customer service assistance for persons who are deaf or who have hearing disabilities. People with TTY equipment may call 800-829-4059, which is a toll-free number, for assistance. People who are unable to complete their tax return because of a physical disability may get assistance from an IRS office, or through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) sponsored by IRS. Taxpayers can find a nearby location by calling 1-800-906-9887. Publication 907, Tax Highlights for Persons with Disabilities, explains the tax implications of certain disability benefits and other issues, and is available at IRS.gov. Visit www.IRS.gov and click on the word “accessibility” for help and information. United States no URL given

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Comments by Amy C. Phelps on Monday, January 24, 2011 at 07:19 IP Logged It is cold outside, so it is time to start thinking about summer fun and Blind Industries and Services of Maryland Independence 2011! Last year Independence 2010 was a great success and this year it is going to be even better. Independence 2011 is a seven-week residential program where blind and low vision youth entering into the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades in the fall of 2011 will have the opportunity to learn the nonvisual skills of blindness from successful blind instructors. We will return to the campus of Towson University, where students will live in apartments with their blind adult instructors/mentors and learn how to manage their own apartment, cook, clean, grocery shop, manage money, wash clothes, to name just a few things. Not only will students of the seven-week residential program learn the skills of blindness through classes such as cane travel, Braille, computer/technology, and independent living (Home Ec.) but they are going to be able to gain that much needed resume builder – paid employment. With these economic times, who doesn’t need a little extra spending money? Students will have the opportunity to work a total of 30-40 hours in the community during the last two weeks of the program. Independence 2011 is going to attend the national convention of the National Federation of the Blind in Orlando, FL and participate in the National Federation of the Blind Youth Slam and we can’t forget spend a day having fun in Disney World. Then, there are the times that we explore Baltimore, Towson, visit our Nation’s capital, attend an O’s game, go swimming, check out a movie or two and we can’t forget those evenings of playing cards until the wee hours of morning. Sound fun!?! You better believe it! Dates: June 19 – August 5, 2011 For information about Independence 2011 please email me at aphelps@bism.org or call 410-737-2642. Warm regards, Amy C. Phelps, CRC, NOMC Check out information about our summer youth program: Independence 2011 Blind Industries and Services of Maryland 3345 Washington Blvd Baltimore, MD 21227 Phone: 410-737-2642 Mobile: 410-274-1647 Fax: 410-737-2689 Toll Free: 888-322-4567 E-mail: aphelps@bism.org United States no URL given

Comments by Stewart Hughes on Wednesday, January 05, 2011 at 08:56 IP Logged American Council of the Blind Commends the President for Signing Pedestrian Safety Legislation WASHINGTON, Jan. 5, 2011 – Late yesterday, President Obama signed S. 841, The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act. This new law will provide blind, visually impaired, and other pedestrians greater security when traveling in close proximity to hybrid or electric vehicles. "As new vehicle technologies become more prevalent in the years to come, The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act will insure that people who are blind will still be able to travel safely," said Mitch Pomerantz, President of the American Council of the Blind (ACB). The legislation will require the U.S. Department of Transportation to begin writing standards that would set requirements for an alert sound that allows blind and other pedestrians to reasonably detect a nearby electric or hybrid vehicle. It also requires that those rules be finalized within three years United States no URL given

Comments by Jane Brody on Wednesday, January 05, 2011 at 08:42 IP Logged Just Because One’s Vision Is Waning, Hope Doesn’t Have To By JANE E. BRODY Published: December 27, 2010 Jim Vlock is on a mission. Afflicted 15 years ago with macular degeneration, a retinal disorder that erodes central vision and thus the ability to drive, read, watch television and recognize faces, Mr. Vlock is determined to spread the word about the many devices that can help people like him live more fulfilling, independent and productive lives. Mr. Vlock, now 84 and a longtime resident of Woodbridge, Conn., told me in an interview that he sought help at three of the country’s best medical centers: Yale, the Cleveland Clinic and Columbia. And though they tried to treat his vision problem, none told him there were ways to improve his life within the limits of his visual loss. “These institutions attempt to cure, but they are not particularly interested or knowledgeable about providing ways to overcome low vision,” he said. His wife, Gail Brekke, said: “We had been spending all our time focusing on a possible cure — stem cells, laser treatments, injections — we were willing to go to the ends of the earth. We didn’t want to live in a land of resignation. We thought there must be something out there to help. But like most of medicine, the specialists we consulted were not knowledgeable about helping you live your life without a pill or scalpel.” Seeking Out Helpful Tools Spurred by his distress over having to give up reading and television, as well as driving and playing tennis, Mr. Vlock, a retired steel executive who describes himself as “a proactive person,” found what he needed on his own. A technician who teaches people with visual impairment how to use computers suggested he seek help at the Veterans Health Administration’s medical center in West Haven, Conn., where he was entitled to free care as a Navy veteran of World War II. With Mr. Vlock, I visited this full-service center, where he said he underwent “the longest and most comprehensive evaluation” he’d yet received — a full six hours of testing — along with a plethora of visual aid devices, including six pairs of specialized glasses for different tasks, a talking watch and a magnified travel mirror to help him shave. Most important, he learned to use a computer with an enlarged keyboard and magnified screen for reading text and e-mail; if he can’t make out what’s on the screen, it will read to him out loud. (He has since donated three of these computers to the public library and local residences for the elderly.) Now Mr. Vlock can again read and enjoy television, theater, ballgames and e-mail. Not only did the V.A. provide the tools to make this possible; it also gave him the instruction and training he needed to function well at home and at work, where he is a consultant to Fox Steel, the Connecticut company he previously owned. He learned of still other services through a chance meeting with David Lepofsky, a lawyer in Toronto who has been blind since he was a teenager yet completed law school and a master’s degree at Harvard. In a long e-mail to Ms. Brekke, Mr. Lepofsky wrote, “There is no reason why, despite his vision limitations, Jim should not be able to read what he wants, including daily newspapers, in a relaxing way and without having to become a high-end computer scientist.” With Mr. Lepofsky’s guidance, Mr. Vlock acquired a Victor Reader Stream, a device that downloads and plays all manner of audio books. He gained access to the National Federation of the Blind’s newsline; using his telephone touch pad, he can listen to articles from newspapers throughout the country as early as 8 a.m. each day. “This was a transformative experience,” he said. “I’m now able to do all these things.” The V.A. rehabilitation programs are meant to help blind and low-vision veterans and active service members regain their independence and quality of life and to function as full members of their families and communities. Lisa-Anne Mowerson, acting chief of the agency’s Eastern Blind Rehabilitation Center in West Haven, calls the center “the best-kept secret.” “It’s hard for people to find us,” Ms. Mowerson told me. “A person’s vision problem doesn’t have to be service-connected for them to receive care here. Their vision problem could be due to diabetes or glaucoma” — or, as in Mr. Vlock’s case, macular degeneration, a familial condition that had afflicted his father and two uncles. There are 10 advanced-care vision centers for veterans around the country. The center Ms. Mowerson runs serves the entire Eastern Seaboard, with referrals from 13 veterans’ centers that provide more basic low-vision services. “We don’t just give devices, we give training inpatient and out, at home and at work,” Ms. Mowerson said. “We may spend 20 hours with individuals to make sure they know how to use the devices properly and can cope independently, which takes training and practice. These devices are available in the community, but people are not trained how to use them.” Mr. Vlock said, “There’s a dedication here — you don’t feel like you’re inconveniencing anyone.” Insurance Stops Short For nonveterans with visual impairments, more is lacking than just adequate training. Also absent is insurance coverage. As with hearing aids, neither Medicare nor private insurance covers these tools and services, a failure of our penny-wise and pound-foolish medical care system that often ends up costing society far more in lost wages and personal care. “The private sector has to step up,” said Kara Gagnon, director of low-vision optometry at the V.A. in West Haven. “Success is directly tied to the quality of the exam and the training — two hours doesn’t do it. “We teach patients where their sweet spot is — the part of their remaining vision through which they can see best — and how to access it so they can see faces and read fluently. Too often we get patients who’ve been unable to read for 20 years, who’ve lost their jobs, their wives, their homes. “Our philosophy is to get patients to do things for themselves, including cooking and laundry, so they can cycle out of depression and feel fulfilled. We ask about their goals, what they enjoyed doing before they became visually impaired. I can get them back to everything except driving a car and flying a plane.” This is the second of two columns on vision loss. This is the second of two columns on vision loss. United States no URL given

Comments by Tina Fiorentino on Tuesday, January 04, 2011 at 11:18 IP Logged Happy Birthday Louis Braille! United States no URL given

Comments by Scott and Leanne Ford on Monday, January 03, 2011 at 08:27 IP Logged Michigan Sports Education Camp 2011 at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI May 8-10 Junior Camp kids ages 9-12 May 11-14 Senior Camp kids ages 13-17 May 13 -14 State Games open to kids ages 13-18, who have previously attend camp. These camps are for kids with visual impairments. You do not have to be a MI resident although preference is given to MI residents. We have accepted kids as far away as Alaska. For more information please email michigansec@gmail.com. Applications will be available soon. We are always looking for new volunteers. If you are interested, please contact us at the above email. Thank you! - Co-Directors United States no URL given

Comments by Stewart Hughes on Monday, January 03, 2011 at 06:44 IP Logged Subject: Paterson worries about leaving NY state governor's office, and inability to find job because he's blind. NY Times: Paterson's Exit Presents Worry With Each Step By MICHAEL BARBARO He worries about how he will make a living. He wonders whether people will value him once he is out of office. But when he thinks about the future, David A. Paterson, the legally blind governor of New York, is most unsettled by something more elementary: how to cross the street. For years, a small army of state employees has done for Mr. Paterson what his predecessors did for themselves: they read him the newspaper, guided him up stairs and around corners, fixed his collar when it was sticking up, and even grabbed a quart of milk for him at the supermarket. "If I go into a grocery store, the state police come in with me," he said. "It's kind of like, hey, Governor, just tell us what you need and we'll get it for you. And, I know I have to adjust." Many politicians who leave office struggle to adapt to civilian life, with its everyday letdowns and indignities - the sudden absence of solicitous aides and gun-toting bodyguards, jam-packed schedules and an ever-ringing telephone. But for Mr. Paterson, who can see nothing out of his left eye and only color and large objects out of his right, the transition will be extraordinary: after three decades in government, he must now relearn the basic routines and rituals of living on his own. In a wide-ranging interview, he spoke candidly, and at times emotionally, about how he was grappling with - and, in some cases, dreading - that change, saying he planned to enroll at a school for the blind that he last attended when he was 3 years old. "I know it can be done," Mr. Paterson said, "but it's just the anticipation of it that gives me anxiety." He also admitted to some concern about money and losing the lucrative perks that come with his post. He is looking for work in the business and academic worlds but has no job lined up, a fact that seemed to slightly nag at him. He has sought the advice of former President Bill Clinton and former Govs. George E. Pataki and Mario M. Cuomo about how to cope with the loss of title and stature. Most of what they tell him boils down to this: "It gets easier." He acknowledged previously unknown strains on his family that accompanied his elevation to governor, especially on his teenage son, who has hated almost every minute of his father's tenure. At one point, Mr. Paterson said, he even told the boy he was sorry for becoming the state's chief executive. He divulged the ways he had been teasing the incoming governor, Andrew M.Cuomo, since his victory in November. And he offered a mediocre assessment of his own skills as a manager, giving himself a B-minus over the last four years. He said he had been reluctant to pack up the governor's mansion and his own office, once gently scolding a staff member for rushing him out. (His last day is Dec. 31.) But looming over the interview was Mr. Paterson's obvious unease about what awaits him. He conceded that he had put off confronting his new reality: he has yet to schedule with his 22-year-old daughter a long-promised practice run on Harlem's sidewalks, subways and streets. When Mr. Paterson was a boy, his parents were determined that he not be treated as disabled. Defying his doctors' advice, he never learned Braille, used a Seeing Eye dog or walked with a cane. Instead, he adapted: he memorized the city's subway system by listening to the conductors' announcements, learned to follow the lead of strangers at crosswalks, and developed a system for catching cabs that would keep him from mistakenly boarding a passenger car. The system was not perfect. He recalled an incident a few years ago when, as a state senator, he hailed what he thought was a taxi in Manhattan. At the end of the ride, the driver refused to take his fare. When Mr. Paterson pressed him, the man explained: 'I am not driving a taxi. I just saw you on the street and thought you might need a ride.' " His survival skills atrophied when he became lieutenant governor in 2007 - and governor a year later after Eliot Spitzer resigned amid scandal. Suddenly, he was chief executive of the state, with a huge security detail and a domestic staff at the governor's mansion. "The reality is that I had a pretty good sense of my own independence. But over the last four years," he said, "I haven't been on the subway. I haven't crossed a street by myself. Haven't gone into a restaurant by myself." Mr. Paterson, 56, said he planned to attend classes at Helen Keller Services for the Blind and, if finances permitted it, hire a full-time aide to help guide him for the first year, in part to deal with strangers he expects will still approach him. "It would probably be good for me to travel with somebody, because, who knows, I may have more pardon requests," he said mischievously. Though he did not rule out running for office again someday, Mr. Paterson, who has earned $179,000 a year as governor, said he was eager to earn a bigger salary in the private sector. That would allow him to put his son through college and to replicate, at least in some ways, the comfortable life he has grown accustomed to. "You have a false income when you're governor, because you live in the executive mansion," he said, ticking off the perks: free meals, free transportation, free staff. "And, so, if you computed that out to a salary, it's probably twice the governor's salary." He confirmed that he had met with administrators at New York University and Touro College to discuss taking teaching positions. He has spoken with executives at a local talk radio station, WOR, about becoming a substitute host. So far, though, he has not hammered out any contracts. In the meantime, he has filled out paperwork to begin collecting a state pension. (With 27 years, he can collect about $80,000 annually.) "I am worried about money, because I am not a billionaire, in case you hadn't heard," he said. His advisers - old friends, current aides and former chief executives - have encouraged him to think big. Mr. Clinton, for instance, asked him to consider running a foundation in Harlem that would employ youngsters and cut energy costs by painting the roofs of buildings white to reflect sunlight. "You want me to make all the roofs in Harlem white?" Mr. Paterson recalled asking Mr. Clinton inside the former president's office on 125th Street. Mr. Clinton nodded. "Don't you think Harlem has become white enough?" Mr. Paterson asked him. Over the last few weeks, he has conducted a distinctly Paterson-esque farewell tour across the state, much of it over local AM radio, dispensing frank and funny observations about himself and his colleagues. He has compared the news media in New York to the corruption-riddled Tammany Hall, and declared that the quality of lawmakers in Albany has plunged over the last two decades. "I am sorry to say this," he added, impishly. He even made light of his own multiple run-ins with state prosecutors and ethics investigators, telling the audience at a Bronx school the other night that when he saw all the people in their seats, he figured he had walked into a grand jury room. He had only good things to say about his predecessor and his successor. Asked how he planned to welcome Mr. Cuomo, he has said he had already swept one big obstacle out of the governor-elect's path: he made sure the faulty outlet above the sink in the master bedroom of the governor's mansion got fixed. "I said, 'This is important stuff, Andrew,' " he recalled. "'You don't know what it's like when you need to plug something in, like an electric razor, and you can't.' " He even weighed in on Mr. Spitzer's show on CNN, which has suffered in the ratings and has led to a debate about whether his co-host, Kathleen Parker, has been unduly sidelined by the ex-governor. If anything, Mr. Paterson opined, the show needs to revolve more around Mr. Spitzer to showcase his brilliance. He said he was looking forward to having a more normal family life, recounting the difficulties his wife and his son faced once he became governor. "I don't think anything about me being governor ever looked like it made him happy," he said about the boy, Alex, now 16. Asked how it made him feel as a father, he responded: "Very guilty." He and his wife, Michelle, grew so frustrated by tabloid photographers' trying to shoot pictures of them as they vacationed poolside at a friend's house in the Hamptons that they grabbed the family camera and took pictures of the paparazzi, who they said were trespassing. "While we found that funny, and it's a great story to tell," he said, "the reality is it was very hard to sit back and say, 'So how have you been?' Because you are both under this constant pressure."Reflecting on his tenure, he paused for several seconds. "Some things went well, some things went not so well," he said. "It was a privilege. It was an honor. I would serve. I would do it again." Still, he could not resist a joke, cheekily recalling the suddenness with which he landed in the governor's office. "I would like two weeks' notice next time," he said. United States no URL given

Comments by Stewart Hughes on Monday, January 03, 2011 at 06:34 IP Logged 12/21/10 NYTimes Science Desk What We're Not Looking After: Our Eyes. By JANE E. BRODY Joe Lovett was scared, really scared. Being able to see was critical to his work as a documentary filmmaker and, he thought, to his ability to live independently. But longstanding glaucoma threatened to rob him of this most important sense -- the sense that more than 80 percent of Americans worry most about losing, according to a recent survey. Partly to assuage his fears, partly to learn how to cope if he becomes blind, and partly to alert Americans to the importance of regular eye care, Mr. Lovett, 65, decided to do what he does best. He produced a documentary called 'Going Blind,' with the telling subtitle 'Coming Out of the Dark About Vision Loss. In addition to Mr. Lovett, the film features six people whose vision was destroyed or severely impaired by disease or injury: Jessica Jones, an artist who lost her sight to diabetic retinopathy at age 32, but now teaches art to blind and disabled children. Emmet Teran, a schoolboy whose vision is limited by albinism, a condition he inherited from his father, and who uses comedy to help him cope with bullies. Peter D'Elia, an architect in his 80s who has continued working despite vision lost to age-related macular degeneration. Ray Korman, blinded at age 40 by an incurable eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa, whose life was turned around by a guide dog and who now promotes this aid to others. Patricia Williams, a fiercely independent woman legally blind because of glaucoma and a traumatic injury, who continues to work as a program support assistant for the Veterans Administration. Steve Baskis, a soldier blinded at age 22 by a roadside bomb in Iraq, who now lives independently and offers encouragement to others injured at war. Sadly, the nationwide survey (conducted Sept. 8 through 12 by Harris Interactive) showed that only a small minority of those most at risk get the yearly eye exams that could detect a vision problem and prevent, delay or even reverse its progression. Fully 86 percent of those who already have an eye disease do not get routine exams, the telephone survey of 1,004 adults revealed. The survey was commissioned by Lighthouse International, the world-renowned nonprofit organization in New York that seeks to prevent vision loss and treats those affected. In an interview, Lighthouse's president, Mark G. Ackermann, emphasized that our rapidly aging population predicts a rising prevalence of sight-robbing diseases like age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy that will leave 'some 61 million Americans at high risk of serious vision loss. The Benefits of a Checkup Low vision and blindness are costly problems in more ways than you might think. In addition to the occupational and social consequences of vision loss, there are serious medical costs, not the least of them from injuries due to falls. Poor vision accounts for 18 percent of broken hips, Mr. Ackermann said. So, why, I asked, don't more of us get regular eye exams? For one thing, they are not covered by Medicare and many health insurers. Even the new health care law has yet to include basic eye exams and rehabilitation services for vision loss, though advocates like Mr. Ackermann are pushing hard for this coverage in regulations now being prepared. Lighthouse International is one of five regional low-vision centers participating in a Medicare demonstration project in which trained therapists teach patients how to use optical devices, how to make changes in their homes to facilitate independence and how to maintain mobility outside the home. Thus far, an interim analysis showed, the costs of providing these services are well below what had been anticipated. I can think of no good reason for excluding this coverage in the nation's health care overhaul, any more than there are good excuses for Medicare's failure to pay for hearing aids. A lack of coverage for such services will inevitably carry its own heavy costs in the long run. But even those who have insurance or can pay out of pocket are often reluctant to go for regular eye exams. Fear and depression are common impediments for those at risk of vision loss, said Dr. Bruce Rosenthal, low-vision specialist at Lighthouse. Patients worry that they could become totally blind and unable to work, read or drive a car, he said. Yet many people fail to realize that early detection can result in vision-preserving therapy. Those at risk include people with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or cardiovascular disease, as well as anyone who has been a smoker or has a family history of an eye disorder like macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy or glaucoma. Smoking raises the risk of macular degeneration two to six times, Dr. Rosenthal said. Furthermore, he said, the eyes are truly a window to the body, and a proper eye exam can often alert physicians to a serious underlying disease like diabetes, multiple sclerosis or even a brain tumor. Reasons Not to Wait He recommends that all children have 'a basic professional eye exam' before they start elementary school. Being able to read the eye chart, which tests distance vision, is not enough, since most learning occurs close up,' he said. One in three New York City schoolchildren has a vision deficit. Learning and behavior problems can result if a child does not receive adequate vision correction. Annual checkups are best done from age 20 on, and certainly by age 40, Dr. Rosenthal said. Waiting until you have symptoms is hardly ideal. For example, glaucoma in its early stages is a silent thief of sight. It could take 10 years to cause a noticeable problem, by which time the changes are irreversible. For those who already have serious vision loss, the range of visual aids now available is extraordinary -- and increasing almost daily. There are large-picture closed-circuit televisions, devices like the Kindle that can read books aloud, computers and readers that scan documents and read them out loud, Braille and large-print music, as well as the more familiar long canes and guide dogs. On Oct. 13, President Obama signed legislation requiring that every new technological advance be made accessible to people who are blind, visually impaired or deaf. Producing 'Going Blind' helped to reassure Mr. Lovett that he will be able to cope, whatever the future holds. Meanwhile, the regular checkups and treatments he has received have slowed progression of his glaucoma, allowing him to continue his professional work and ride his bicycle along the many new bike paths in New York City. This is the first of two columns on vision loss. United States no URL given

Comments by Amy Ricciardi on Monday, December 20, 2010 at 08:18 IP Logged Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome Network Holds 18th Annual Family Conference Oyster Bay, NY – The Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome Network (HPS Network) will be holding its 18th annual family conference for those affected by the HPS type of albinism, March 18 – 20, 2011 at the Uniondale Marriott on Long Island in New York. HPS is a specific type of albinism that, in addition to decreased visual acuity (most often legal blindness) also involves a bleeding disorder. Depending on the gene involved, patients may experience other health problems such as digestive problems very much like Crohn’s disease and/or pulmonary fibrosis, or a stiffening of the lungs. Attendees will have a chance to interact with the world’s leading experts on Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome, as well as plenty of opportunities to socialize with new and old friends alike. This year’s conference theme is Reach for the Stars: The HPS/CHS Academy Awards. The National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation (NOAH) will also be co-locating a NOAH Mini Conference for anyone affected by any type of albinism with the HPS Network event. Conference registration will open at 2:00 pm on Friday, March 18th. Attendees will be able to catch up with old friends, visit exhibitor booths offering products and services of interest to those with albinism, and then kick back with some popcorn to watch a collection of HPS-related films made by both professionals and our membership. The fun continues after dinner with a karaoke night. Saturday is full of psycho/social sessions designed to promote HPS knowledge and self-advocacy and positive coping skills as well as help those affected by the syndrome get to know each other better. NOAH will also offer a variety of sessions for adults and the parents of kids with albinism. Sunday will be chalked full of presentations about the latest developments in HPS research and care from the world’s leading experts, as well as information about the medical aspects of living with HPS. There will also be breakout sessions for families affected by Chediak-Higashi Syndrome (CHS), another syndrome involving albinism, a bleeding disorder and immunodeficiency. Conference registration is $65 and includes meals from Friday night to Sunday lunch as well as all conference materials and supplies. The Uniondale Marriott hotel room rate is $139.00 plus tax. To register for the conference contact the HPS Network at 1 (800) 789-9HPS or check for registration materials online after the first of the year at www.hpsnetwork.org. The HPS Network is a 501(c)3 organization that has served families with the HPS and CHS types of albinism since 1992. The HPS Network maintains a patient registry, promotes HPS and CHS research and provides information about HPS to the patient as well as the medical community. To learn more, go to www.hpsnetwork.org. Heather Kirkwood Director of Outreach, Vice President Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome Network One South Road Oyster Bay, NY 11771 1 (800) 789-9HPS www.hpsnetwork.org United States no URL given

Comments by Stewart on Tuesday, December 07, 2010 at 06:45 IP Logged The NJ Chapter of the Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) will be holding its annual conference in Princeton on May 9, 2011. The AER Newsletter, along with registration information, will be forwarded to professionals in the field of vision loss in advance of the conference. Organizations and agencies working in the field of vision loss who would like information to be considered for the newsletter are invited to submit articles (in 14 point font) no later than December 15th To: Karenm14@verizon.net . For further information, please contact Eileen Goff at: egoff.ber@hipcil.org United States no URL given

Comments by Tina Fiorentino on Tuesday, November 23, 2010 at 09:53 IP Logged New scanning product coming soon This should be available by January. The information comes from blind bargons: http://www.blindbargains.com/ Jamie We received a tip on what appears to be an upcoming press release from Serotek on their DocuScan Plus product. It will include modes to recognize pages using a tradditional scanner, USB camera, or a mobile device among others. An accessible PDF converter and reader will also be included. The entire release is after the jump. Introducing DocuScan Plus Affordable, portable and feature rich access to the printed word has long been a challenge for blind consumers. The ideal solution is one which is easy to use, has a number of compelling features, can be used at home or on the go, and doesn’t break the bank. There has never been a single product which fits each of these criteria, until now. Serotek’s DocuScan Plus is an OCR solution which provides quick and accurate results and can be used from anywhere with a wide variety of supported devices. You can use a traditional plug and play scanner, an automatic document feeder, a duplex scanner, an iPhone, or even a document camera to scan your materials. Best of all, you don’t even have to be at your own computer to use the product. As a cloud-based solution, docuScan Plus can be accessed from any computer, and as long as your scanning device has native Windows drivers, no additional software need be installed on the machine. Students and professionals need access to a wide variety of materials, ranging from one-page handouts to bills and other mail, to textbooks and other lengthy documents. DocuScan Plus has scanning modes to suit each of these needs. Simple scan allows the user to quickly scan a small amount of material, review it, and either save or discard it. Batch scan is perfect for materials like textbooks or product manuals. A user can scan a large number of pages and OCR is performed in the background. The recognized document can then be saved for later editing. The AutoRead mode is ideal for those who want to review materials as they are being scanned. The document will automatically begin reading the first recognized page, and the user can continue scanning pages even as the material which has already been recognized is read. A user can even create a profile with OCR settings which work best on a particular type of document, and save this profile to use each time that document type is encountered. Whether scanning a one-sided page with a single collumn, or a complex two-sided document with multiple collumns, DocuScan Plus returns fast and accurate results. The use of DocuScan Plus is not restricted to paper documents. The product also supports the reading of PDF files, whether they are resident on a hard drive or accessed from a browser. There’s no need to use Adobe Reader. Any of the material recognized by DocuScan Plus can be saved to online storage, emailed to yourself or someone else, and can even be converted to Daisy, MP3, or BRF format for reading from a portable device. In addition to supporting a wealth of Twwain-compliant scanners, DocuScan Plus can also be used with a portable document camera. This camera interfaces with a computer over USB, and it takes a snapshot of the material in focus. The camera can automatically detect that a page has been turned and capture the next image, and can even be used in Live Camera mode to magnify images on the page for low vision users. The camera is lightweight and can easily be carried in a small backpack. For those who don’t want to carry an extra device but still want to be able to read menus and the like, DocuScan Plus can be used with a phone on the Android or iOS platforms. The user simply snaps a picture from the phone, which is then sent to Serotek’s server to be processed. The text results are sent back to the user’s phone within a matter of seconds. As with other scanned material, the results can be stored online for later viewing by the user, or discarded if no longer needed. Given this impressive list of features, you might expect DocuScan Plus to cost upwards of $2000 which would be competitively priced with existing AT products of this type, but this is not the case. For just $299 for the DocuScan Plus software and $499 for the optional document camera, a student or professional can be equipped with a powerful OCR solution that can be used absolutely anywhere. This means that if a computer is available in a library, Internet café, classroom, boardroom, or anywhere else, it is appropriate for use with DocuScan Plus. This product can be purchased as a standalone, or in conjunction with other Serotek products. For more information about DocuScan Plus and other Serotek products, please visit: www.serotek.com , or call (866) 202-0520. United States no URL given

Comments by Tina Fiorentino on Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 05:42 IP Logged WGBH's Media Access Group, home to the Descriptive Video Service (DVS®) has debuted two new online resources today for fans of described movies. Both can be reached via a new, easy-to-remember Web site address: www.describedmovies.org United States no URL given

Comments by Pam Gaston on Tuesday, May 04, 2010 at 08:02 IP Logged NJ Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired Celebrating 100 Years of Service 1910 - 2010 Tickets Are Now Available! “Covering the Bases 2K10” The Fifth Annual Night-Out with the Trenton Thunder For Individuals Who are Blind and Visually Impaired, their Families and Friends Thursday, July 29th, 2010 at 6:30 PM Waterfront Park, 1 Thunder Road, Trenton, NJ (Gates open at 6 PM ) Hosted by: Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, NJ State Library Talking Book and Braille Center and The Trenton Thunder Baseball Team (Double “A” Affiliate of the NY Yankees) Tickets are $7.00 For further information or to acquire tickets, please contact CBVI at 973-648-3333; or e-mail: Pamela.Gaston@dhs.state.nj.us United States no URL given

Comments by Tina Fiorentino on Thursday, March 04, 2010 at 20:37 IP Logged Hello, Booklovers, As some of you know, The Free Library of Philadelphia has been hosting the Accessible Book Club (ABC) for several years. Originally known as the Book Club for Patrons Who Are Print-Impaired, its purpose was to make sure that all books discussed were accessible to people who could not read standard print. Now with a new name, the ABC wishes to invite people with any type of disability, as well as people who do not consider themselves as having a disability, to participate. I am writing to extend a personal invitation to you to try out the book club and see if it is something you would like to join. We usually discuss three or four books in the fall and another three or four in the spring. Members of the club choose the books, but we try to include a couple of books by authors who will be speaking and reading as part of the Parkway Central Library's Authors Series. We have two books remaining on this spring's schedule: The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, who will be coming to the Parkway Central Library (1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia), and Death of a Joyce Scholar, a murder mystery with a literary bent. Dates and times are listed below. Please RSVP if you are interested in coming, or contact me if you have questions. My phone number is (610) 622-3212, and my email is dansimpson@comcast.net. United States no URL given

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