Disability / Health News - July 12, 2025
Editor's Note: The disability community is increasingly preferring to use identity-first language (disabled person) in place of person-first language (person with a disability). This is because many in the community view disability as being a core component of identity, much like race and gender. Some members of the community, such as people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, still prefer person-first language. Both should be considered valid. Articles shared in this newsletter may contain one or the other (or both) depending on the author's preference, and if they themselves have a disability.
What Trump’s Anti-Environment One Big Beautiful Bill Act Means for Your Wallet, Health, and Safety by Lucero Marquez and Jasia Smith on July 7, 2025 at The Center for American Progress
"Not only will the OBBBA’s cuts to health care and food assistance programs increase poverty, hunger, and costs for millions of Americans, but the bill also kills clean energy incentives and further subsidizes the oil and gas industry, resulting in even higher costs and health burdens for American families. The OBBBA will gut pollution-reduction programs, worsening air quality and public health, while putting Americans at greater risk from a less reliable power grid as extreme weather rises. "
American Association of People with Disabilities Denounces Proposed Department of Labor Actions Hindering Disability Employment by Kyle Khachadurian on July 10, 2025 at the AAPD
"Between July 1 and 7, 2025, the US Department of Labor (DOL) announced a series of actions that, taken together, reveal an attempt to dismantle significant parts of the federal government’s disability employment infrastructure. AAPD is deeply concerned by and condemns these deliberate and dangerous efforts to roll back essential federal progress that ensures employment opportunities for people with disabilities.'
Kennedy's move to cancel preventive health panel meeting raises alarm by Berkeley Lovelace Jr. on July 11, 2025 at NBC News
"Task force members fear the health secretary may be gearing up to fire the panel members and install new ones, as he did with a separate vaccine advisory committee."
"A handful of leading medical organizations are suing Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over recent changes to federal COVID-19 vaccine recommendations — part of what they characterize as a larger effort to undermine trust in vaccines among the American public."
This Texas County Sought Disaster Resilience Help for Years. Now It’s Too Late - by Zoya Teirstein on July 10, 2025 at Mother Jones
"County records show that some Kerr County officials did see it coming and raised concerns about the county’s outdated flood warning system nearly a decade ago. Their first request for help updating the technology was denied in 2017, when Kerr County applied for roughly $1 million in federal Hazard Mitigation Grant Program aid from the Texas Department of Emergency Management. "
Trump Administration Squashes Plan To End Subminimum Wage Employment Of People With Disabilities by Michelle Diament on July 10, 2025 at Disability Scoop
"Federal officials are giving employers the green light to continue paying many workers with disabilities less than minimum wage. The Trump administration is withdrawing a proposed rule that sought to phase out what’s known as subminimum wage employment."