By Scott Chesney
At least once, about every two weeks, I receive a phone call or an e-mail asking if I could reach out to an individual who has just become spinal cord injured or a family that has witnessed a loved one entering the world of paralysis.
While many people believe that I have […]

By Tom Scott

Adaptive sports gets a fuel injection.
What is the most heart-stomping, adrenaline-inducing adaptive sport in the world today? Some might say rugby, or maybe basketball or hockey, but times are changing fast. Strap yourself into a kart and rocket to speeds in excess of 60 mph with your backside about 2 inches […]

Have you been receiving a subsidy (extra money) to help pay for prescription drugs under Medicare? If you want to continue receiving this subsidy, you were supposed to have filed information with the Social Security Administration (SSA). If you did not do so, SSA should have recently sent you “SSA Medicare Prescription Drug […]

We received this via e-mail and want to bring it to the attention of the students among our readership. MIUSA is not affiliated with United Spinal Association, and this is presented for informational purposes only:
Mobility International USA (MIUSA) is currently recruiting for our Summer 2008 US/Costa Rica: Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Disability Rights Leadership Exchange […]

Last week the House and Senate members introduced legislation that would allow parents or guardians of people with disabilities to establish a trust fund that would be exempt from Medicaid law so they can still use Medicaid and have access to other money. The legislation also makes contributions tax free up to a certain […]

Research is key to traveling with a disability.
By Rob Ingraham
Despite the explosive growth in travel options, traveling with a disability can still be a complicated and frustrating experience. Stephanie Acosta, corporate travel manager for United Spinal Association’s ABLE to Travel unit, specializes in booking business and leisure trips for people with disabilities and […]

For many people with disabilities, accessible vans are the key to unlocking their independence on the road.

By Tom Scott
As more and more wheelchair-users take to the road in pursuit of adventure, many prefer the peace of mind that comes with being behind the controls of a vehicle modified to fit their needs and […]

A native of Sun Valley, Idaho, Muffy Davis (seen above balancing near the rim of the Fox River Gorge in Namibia) injured her spine while training at Olympic ski racing during high school.

Davis and husband Jeff ride
an elephant in Thailand.

After graduating valedictorian in her class and while continuing her studies at Stanford […]

People with disabilities will avoid some health care cuts if the House and Senate agree with what the House Budget Committee passed on March 6 for next year (FY 2009, beginning October 1, 2008). The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has recently passed some rules that cut off many people with disabilities from […]

Delay is the deadliest form of denial. Many people with severe disabilities apply for Social Security disability benefits, but they have to wait 2 to 3 years for a decision. During that time, without these benefits, people often lose their homes, go without needed medical care, and even die. About 750,000 people are on the […]

By Ed Lash
A short time ago I read an article about two major medical associations encouraging doctors to prescribe normal medication for a disease, plus the medicine that aids more ills than any other: exercise.
In my book Multiple Sclerosis…A Patient’s View, I said pretty much the same about multiple sclerosis (MS): “I […]

By Richard L. Bruno
The weather outside if frightful, and your toes are too frostbiteful. But, since you’ve no place to go…
Wait. Who says you’ve no place to go? It may warm your cold polio feet on this blustery March day to know about a Norwegian study of 88 subjects diagnosed with “post polio […]

By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD

The most recent survey of the National Gardening Association, conducted in 2005 finds that gardening is more popular than ever. The report shows that 91 million American households (83%) participated in some kind of do-it-yourself indoor and outdoor lawn and garden activities. This sets a new record, and an increase of […]

By Tamar Asedo Sherman
Fatigue and lack of transportation are the biggest barriers to employment for many people with disabilities. If that is the case for you, then working at home might seem like the perfect solution. You won’t need to get dressed up; you can go to work in your jammies, no need to […]

By Scott Chesney
How have you been doing with your New Year’s resolutions so far? Hopefully, you are staying focused and committed to your plans for 2008. If you are not and have fallen back into your old pattern of procrastinating, here is a sure way to revitalize your resolutions: associate pain with the situation […]

Compiled by Tom Scott
United Spinal Association has received a generous donation from Pontiac and General Motors Corporation of Motorati Island in the Second Life (SL), a Web-based virtual reality community. You can learn more about the newly-named Motorability Island at www.unitedspinal.org/motorability/.
Motorability Island in SL is a vast, complex with seven separate simulated environments […]

United Spinal Association, in partnership with Joe Hurley and the Bart J. Ruggiere Adaptive Sports Center of Peru, Vermont, took to the slopes of Bromley Mountain, Vermont on Saturday, February 23rd and Sunday, February 24th to host a skiing clinic for United Spinal members. Participants received two full days of lessons including extensive one-on-one […]