Federal Disability Resources

Federal Executive Departments

Department of Education – Supports and legal protections for people with disabilities include:

• Protecting students with disabilities under Section 504
• Ensures education for all students through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
• Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS)

Department of Health & Human Services

• Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
  • Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB)
    • National Domestic Violence Hotline
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
  • National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD)
  • National Prevention Information Network (NPIN)
• Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS)
  • Health Insurance Marketplace – Healthcare.gov
• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
  • Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC)
  • Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)
• Indian Health Service (IHS)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
    • National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
  • National Library of Medicine (NLM) – MedLine Plus
  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
• National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR)
• Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH)
  • Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP)
    • Healthy People 2030
  • Office of Long COVID Research and Practice
  • Office of Minority Health
  • Office on Women’s Health
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

Department of Homeland Security

• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Department of Housing and Urban Development

• Housing Rights for People with Disabilities
• Rental Assistance – Housing Choice Voucher Program

Department of Labor

• Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP)

Department of Transportation

Department of Veterans Affairs

Department of Justice

 

Independent Federal Agencies

National Council on Disability (NCD) -NCD provides advice to the President, Congress, and executive branch agencies to advance policy that promotes the goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) – equality of opportunity, economic self-sufficiency, independent living, and full participation in all aspects of society – regardless of type or severity of disability. The Council is composed of nine members – four appointed by leadership in Congress and five appointed by the President. Since enactment of the ADA in 1990, NCD has continued to play a leading role in analyzing the needs of people with disabilities.

Social Security Administration (SSA) Administers the Social Security social insurance program, which includes benefits for Retirement, Disability, Survivors, and Families. They manage Supplemental Security Income (SSI), enroll people in Medicare, and issue Social Security numbers and cards. Manages the Ticket to Work program.

U.S. Access Board – Advances accessibility through leadership in accessible design and the development of accessibility guidelines and standards.  Created in 1973 to ensure access to federally funded facilities, the Access Board is now a leading source of information on accessible design.  They develop and maintains design criteria for the built environment, transit vehicles, public right-of-way, information and communication technology, and medical diagnostic equipment under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and other laws. It also provides technical assistance and training on these requirements and continues to enforce accessibility standards that apply to federally funded facilities under the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 (ABA).