On January 18, 2017, the final rule of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act was published in the Federal Register. This rule requires all healthcare organizations who receive funds from the federal government to comply with WCAG 2.0 AA website accessibility standards by January 18, 2018.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Payment Program now also requires that Eligible Participants, or EPs, regularly update and enhance their practice website/tools to be Section 508 compliant.
About WCAG 2.0 AA Standards
WCAG 2.0 AA was developed by the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C), a private consortium of experts whose goal was to develop accessibility standards for the web. This international, vendor-neutral group developed a simplified checklist to use for those seeking compliance.
MIPS Documentation
Under MIPS, accessibility is a measure found under Improvement Activities for beneficiary engagement (IA_BE_5). Documentation of regular updates and Section 508 compliance for a clinician’s website and tools can include screenshots or hard copies of the practice’s website/tools showing enhancements and regular updates in compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Does your website comply
Test your website to see if it complies with WCAG 2.0 AA accessibility standards.
Need an evaluation done for your healthcare website?
Practis can help. We can review your site to determine what needs to be updated for accessibility compliance and provide you with a detailed written report.
