NCD #08–549
January 15, 2008
Contact: Mark S. Quigley
202-272-2004

National Council on Disability to Discuss Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities in New Orleans

WASHINGTON—The National Council on Disability (NCD) will hear presentations on emergency preparedness for people with disabilities at the New Orleans Marriott Convention Center, 859 Convention Center Boulevard, New Orleans, Louisiana, January 29, 2008, at 1:15 p.m. These presentations are open to the public and the media.

The primary focus of these presentations will be to gather information and listen to presentations from stakeholders and professionals as well as to receive public comment on emergency preparedness, homeland security, and other issues of importance to people with disabilities. Under the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill (H.R. 5441) signed by President Bush on October 4, 2006, NCD was assigned key responsibilities for disability-related issues in homeland security.

Speakers include:

Charles Tubre, Systems Advocacy Specialist, Advocacy Center, New Orleans, LA
Sandra Bookman, Executive Director, Houston Center for Independent Living, Houston, TX
Christy Dunaway, Executive Director, Living Independence For Everyone (LIFE) of Mississippi, Jackson, MS
Kay Wilkins, CEO, Southeast Louisiana Chapter, American Red Cross, Metairie, LA
Michael Hawley, Major and Area Commander, The Salvation Army, New Orleans, LA
Rebecca Floyd, Executive Director, Mississippi Protection and Advocacy System, Inc., Jackson, MS

The discussion will be followed by a question and answer session.

In 2003, NCD committed itself to evaluating the Federal Government’s role in the areas of homeland security, emergency preparedness and disaster relief, as they relate to people with disabilities. This commitment occurred, in large measure, as a result of the man-made terrorist events of September 11, 2001, and the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. NCD’s first evaluation findings were issued in April 2005 in the report, Saving Lives: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency Planning. (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2005/saving_lives.htm).

The emergency preparedness presentations will be part of NCD’s quarterly board meeting, which will begin January 28 at 11:00 a.m. and ends January 30 at 4:45 p.m. at the New Orleans Marriott Convention Center.

NCD is an independent federal agency and is composed of 15 members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. We provide advice to the President, Congress, and executive branch agencies to promote policies, programs, practices, and procedures that — (A) guarantee equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability; and (B) empower individuals with disabilities to achieve economic self-sufficiency, independent living, and inclusion and integration into all aspects of society.

For more information, please contact NCD’s director of external affairs Mark S. Quigley at mquigley@ncd.gov or by telephone at 202-272-2004.

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Mark S. Quigley
Director of External Affairs
National Council on Disability
1331 F Street, NW Suite 850
Washington, DC 20004