On August 7, 1998, the President of the United States signed the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998 into law, significantly expanding and strengthening the technology access requirements in Section 508. On April 18, 2001, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) was amended to include these new requirements, as required by law. The revised FAR, which took effect on June 25, 2001, requires that all Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) developed, procured, maintained, or used by the federal government must be accessible to people with disabilities.

The Multiple Award Schedules (MAS) Program, which awards indefinite quantity contracts for use by all federal agencies, must provide accessibility information to federal agencies under the revised FAR. This information must specify which supplies and services comply with the new accessibility standards, as declared by the contractor, and document the locations where full details of compliance can be found, e.g. a contractor's website. When issuing orders against these contracts, agencies must make certain that supplies and services meet applicable accessibility standards, unless there is an applicable exemption.

Developed by the Access Board, the new accessibility standards and the definition of EIT can be found at www.section508.gov, along with requirement exceptions, the FAR rule, and a wealth of other information regarding the Federal IT Accessibility Initiative. The accessibility standards can be found at 36 CFR Part 1194, as well.

Before purchasing EIT, Agencies are required to conduct market research to determine the level of Section 508 compliance that exists in the commercial EIT marketplace.

HealthCare Resolution Services, Inc. (HCRS) will provide agencies with all information available regarding compliance with accessibility standards, including partial compliance and accessibility features offered on products and services provided by HCRS. HCRS is in the process of identifying each product and service that includes Section 508 information. When this process is complete, Section 508 information will be posted here. HCRS relies on many suppliers and product manufacturers for Section 508 information. Therefore, HCRS will refer inquiries to the appropriate supplier or manufacturer for the most current Section 508 information.

For more information, contact HCRS’ Director of Human Resources by phone at (301) 497-1187, toll-free at (866) 599-4277, or via email at hr@hcrs_inc.com.