Trump administration reverses stance on integration of people with disabilities

For nearly 50 years, the federal government has said people with disabilities should live, work and learn in the most integrated setting possible rather than be segregated in institutions like nursing homes.

The Trump administration just took its most concrete step yet to reverse that position.

Last week, a federal judge agreed to strip out mentions of “integration” from federal regulations tied to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, a landmark civil rights law that prohibits disability discrimination. The judge did so after the Justice Department declined to defend its own rules in a lawsuit brought by several states challenging the legality of those rules. Read More