What is it about?
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed issues with government websites being accessible to people with disabilities. We looked at US state health agencies' COVID-19 related-websites in 2021 to see how the accessibility changed over time. We measured the website's level of accessibility at a basic level and at a best practices level.
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Why is it important?
Most of the websites struggled to reach best practice accessibility standards while some even struggled to meet the minimum requirements. This study is important because it identifies some factors that increase accessibility (specific state policies on accessible websites and the state's dominant political leanings). We also found that the longer a website is online, the less accessible it became.
Perspectives
This article helps quantify the challenges that the disability community faces to engage in daily life. Public service should be accessible to all community members, especially those who have a disability, during a public health crisis. As the largest subpopulation in the United States (1 in 4 people have a disability), we need to rethink what barriers we erect and what factors help us overcome these inaccessible practices in public service.
Michelle Allgood
University of New Mexico
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: U.S. state health agencies and organizational learning: An exploratory analysis of website accessibility during COVID-19, Information Polity, November 2023, IOS Press,
DOI: 10.3233/ip-220045.
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