Amendment #5, as changed to H4879

Strengthening 911 Indicator Forms

Ms. Higgins of Leominster moves to amend the bill by inserting after section 8 the following section:-

SECTION 8A. Said chapter 6A is hereby further amended by inserting after section 18D the following section:-

Section 18D½. (a) The department shall, in consultation with organizations representing the mobility, hearing, speech and sight impaired communities, create and publish on its website a statewide disability indicator form which a person may complete and submit to the department to notify primary and regional PSAPs of certain disabilities as described in subsection (c). The disability indicator form shall be available to subscribers of a wireless carrier, a wireline carrier or a prepaid wireless telephone service.

(b) The disability indicator form shall be written in clear language that is comprehensible to a person proficient in English at the fifth grade level and accessible to persons with visual disabilities. In any area where at least 5 per cent of citizens speak a language other than English as determined by the most recent American Community Survey of the United States Census Bureau, the disability indicator form shall be translated into such language.

(c) The disability indicator form shall include space for the person to identify any mental health needs, intellectual and developmental disabilities, complex medical needs or neurological impairments, including, but not limited to, identification that the person: (i) uses equipment required to sustain the person’s life; (ii) is bedridden, a wheelchair user or has another mobility impairment; (iii) is legally blind; (iv) is deaf or hard of hearing; (v) may communicate on the telephone via teletypewriter; (vi) has a speech impairment; (vii) is cognitively impaired; (viii) has a service animal; (ix) requires translation services; or (x) has other potential triggers for which first responders should be aware. The disability indicator form shall also include an option for a person to remove or change any disability indicators.

(d) The department, in consultation with organizations representing the mobility, hearing, speech and sight impaired communities, shall annually review the contents of the disability indicator form and amend the disability indicator form as needed, as determined by the department.

Additional co-sponsor(s) added to Amendment #5, as changed to H4879

Strengthening 911 Indicator Forms