One of the ways that universal access to high-speed internet can benefit society even more is by reducing the restrictions on people with disabilities so that they can contribute more to society. With information from Speed Matters.org , here’s how broadband helps connect the differently-abled with the rest of the world.
According to the 2008 U.S. Census, 50 million Americans have some kind of disability. While these people can greatly benefit from universally accessible broadband, we all benefit from their increased participation.
Studies show that Americans with disabilities currently use the Internet approximately half as much as those without disabilities–in both urban and rural environments. 60% of working-age people with disabilities are unemployed or underemployed. Those without high speed Internet access at home are forced to use a public computer, which means contending with transportation challenges and being limited by inaccessible locations, so affordable, universal access to broadband at home is crucial.
High speed Internet empowers people with disabilities to become more independent. An Internet connection with enough speed to allow two-way voice, data and video transfer can remove barriers that keep people with disabilities from participating in everyday activities such as employment, education, civic responsibilities and social connection.
With good internet speed:
• people with physical disabilities can attend classes remotely, have online medical consultations with faraway specialists, or apply for and secure jobs, without unnecessary or difficult commutes or trips.
• visually impaired people can use programs that read text and describe visual contents aloud in a synthetic voice to search the Internet, understand videos, and communicate online.
• deaf and hard of hearing people can use video relay services (VRS), which require high speed Internet to run, allowing them to have phone conversations in their native sign language by means of an online interpreter.