New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[celluloid]

It’s not medical documentation but worth noting that in many cases, more testing and a longer evaluation goes into an IEP than a medical diagnosis, by qualified professionals. IEPs are constrained by law in a different way, so that an eligibility process has to happen first. A medical diagnosis could be the result of a team evaluation at a specialty center or it could be the result of a 2 minute chat with a doctor you barely know. I actually think in some ways the IEP is more consistently robust documentation because of the legal requirements.

Yes. Like many things in public education, are held to a higher standard than the compensation for responsibility
But most of the actual writing of the IEP is education based in goals Is written by the Special Education Teacher.

 

[Tigger&Pooh]

There are many free clinics -we have one in the town I live in, by law hospital emergency can't turn you away. My own GP signed the paperwork for my handicap placard --no charge.

You are talking about obtaining healthcare in general. I suppose it depends on the "type" of disability, but a quick visit to a free clinic or an unnecessary visit to the ER isn't likely to provide documentation of most disabilities. Not in my experience. Would an ER actually have done the paperwork for your handicapped placard if you walked in and requested that? Doubtful.

 

[Tigger&Pooh]

Um, I hate to point out the obvious, but if you can't afford the (theoretical) dr visit to get documentation, you can't afford a Disney trip.

True. However the ADA isn't just about theme parks and vacation spots. The law applies across the board. It's about not creating additional hurdles or hoops for the disabled that might prevent them from accessing the accommodations they need and thus could be used as a general barrier to inclusion.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Where is this evidence (other than hearsay on fb pages or from a friend)?

This thread and social media. As I said, "anecdotal evidence". I believe it's happening in some capacity. I've had conversations with Disney about this on behalf of my brother. The impression I get is that if an individual is able to initiate the call themselves while stating that they are autistic, Disney is going to look at that individual with more scrutiny.

My brother is in a group home, cannot provide for himself and has behavioral issues that make the previous and current DAS system very appropriate for him. Acquiring DAS has never been an issue for us, and I'd be shocked if he has issues in the future. The problem is, he is a case where it's pretty black and white. With autism, there is a tremendous amount of gray area and that's a problematic sticking point.

From my understanding the system Universal uses will accept an IEP as “documentation”. I agree it shouldn’t be used as others have stated previously, just because a child has an IEP that doesn’t mean they can’t wait in a line.

We went to Universal Hollywood with my brother this summer and we simply got a doctor's note. I think the IBCCES approach was far simpler than Disney's for our family.

With that being said, does anyone have experience with Lego Land and their usage of the system? My brother already has the accessibility card, is there any additional pre-registration required w/Lego Land? How many guests does it accommodate?

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

This was a few years ago, but the school tried to label my daughter with learning disabilities because she is bad at math. They wanted to test her and we said fine, she scored above average. Not everyone is good at everything and some of us just struggle with certain subjects. They were angry that we wouldn't allow them to put her in the system as someone with a learning disability, because she didn't have one. They get more money from the government for these kids.
Everyone learns in different ways, that doesn't mean that they have a learning disability.

This is complicated, but the designation could unlock more services for your child.

Many disabilities are VERY specific. Like a person might have trouble reading things that are written on a chalkboard, but they do fine if the information is written on paper.

I know a student who had trouble with handwriting. He was in middle school, and he still had trouble forming letters. The school was short on funding, so they only had a few computers, and this was the time-before everyone had a cellphone. One day, he was given a computer keyboard, and all of a sudden 5 pages of writing came pouring out in less than an hour.

I will never forget the look in his eyes when he turned around to say, "Typing is SO much easier for me!" He smiled for days. It was a major turnaround for his education, because typing enabled him to work at grade level. His life must have been so frustrating before that day.

Testing for disabilities doesn't catch every disability. A member of my family clearly has mild dyslexia, but always scored just out of range. They have long struggled with spelling, and other reversals, like swapping a plus for a minus sign in math. They have lifelong inability to discern thier right side from their left. PE class was a struggle. The teacher said go left, and they went right, while the whole class laughed at them. They came to hate PE and most sports.

In both cases, a small accommodation would have saved years of silent suffering.

 

[DryerLintFan]

From my understanding the system Universal uses will accept an IEP as “documentation”. I agree it shouldn’t be used as others have stated previously, just because a child has an IEP that doesn’t mean they can’t wait in a line.

It sounds from this thread that it’sa two part system. Like part A is that you register with IBCES or whatever it’s called as having a verified disability. Part B is that you go to guest service’s and explain how your disability that was already verified impacts your park day

 

[Chi84]

It sounds from this thread that it’sa two part system. Like part A is that you register with IBCES or whatever it’s called as having a verified disability. Part B is that you go to guest service’s and explain how your disability that was already verified impacts your park day

That may be why Disney is not using it. There are probably tons of people who have mobility-related disabilities that make standing in lines difficult, but Disney is no longer offering DAS to them.

 

[Angel Ariel]

That may be why Disney is not using it. There are probably tons of people who have mobility-related disabilities that make standing in lines difficult, but Disney is no longer offering DAS to them.

There's also no indication that the people reviewing IBCCES' applications are medical personnel in anyway. So, again, more theatre than true evaluation - and it's theatre that just adds barriers for those with disabilities.

 

[Splash4eva]

There's also no indication that the people reviewing IBCCES' applications are medical personnel in anyway. So, again, more theatre than true evaluation - and it's theatre that just adds barriers for those with disabilities.

You say that yet had no issues Disney has never used anyone with any medical experience at all when approving DAS… and from my understanding the new process altho “partnered” they are doing the same thing.

 

[NotTheOne]

There are many free clinics -we have one in the town I live in, by law hospital emergency can't turn you away. My own GP signed the paperwork for my handicap placard --no charge.

Hospitals can't turn away people for emergencies...getting a letter to skip a line at a theme park is not really an emergency.

 

[NotTheOne]

But only those with neurological "most of the time" it seems. People are being denied for their physical limitations and that is not right.

Because the physical limitations can be met by other accommodations.

It really seems that Disney is focusing, as they should IMO, on guests who have issues caused by the long lines and excluding people who have issues that might manifest in the line. It's a subtle but real difference.

 

[Angel Ariel]

You say that yet had no issues Disney has never used anyone with any medical experience at all when approving DAS… and from my understanding the new process altho “partnered” they are doing the same thing.

Until this latest iteration, Disney made no bones about the fact that they weren't asking for documentation or proof. No medical experience needed when you're setting that as the expectation. I don't love their use of "medical professionals" now any more than I do Universal's.

 

[NotTheOne]

This is complicated, but the designation could unlock more services for your child.

True, but not all parents are looking for more services for their child, and no parent should feel pressured into accepting services they don't want for their child.

Not all kids are good at math, but that doesn't mean that those kids need some kind of special service from the school.

 

[NotTheOne]

Until this latest iteration, Disney made no bones about the fact that they weren't asking for documentation or proof. No medical experience needed when you're setting that as the expectation. I don't love their use of "medical professionals" now any more than I do Universal's.

Is Universal claiming that they are using medical professionals to review the documentation (either Universal employees or the third party)? Because Disney does seem to have hired actual medical professionals that are brought on to some of the calls.

 

[Angel Ariel]

True, but not all parents are looking for more services for their child, and no parent should feel pressured into accepting services they don't want for their child.

Not all kids are good at math, but that doesn't mean that those kids need some kind of special service from the school.

Of course no parent should be pressured, and of course all kids who struggle with a certain topic don't all qualify for services. The point being made was that services aren't just offered because a child is struggling with something.
There's pretty rigorous evaluations you have to go through to even find out if you're eligible for those additional services. A student who is just bad at math and whose evaluations don't show a need for an IEP isnt' going to be given an IEP just because. There has to be a data-based reason to even give the offer of services.

Of course it's always a family's right to turn those down, or refuse to do evaluations. There's evals we've refused because they aren't normed for our child's needs and won't be an accurate reflection - so while the school may dislike it, we refuse because they aren't necessary for her to qualify for services (there's plenty of other data that supports the need).

 

[Angel Ariel]

Is Universal claiming that they are using medical professionals to review the documentation (either Universal employees or the third party)? Because Disney does seem to have hired actual medical professionals that are brought on to some of the calls.

Universal doesn't make the claim, I don't believe, but I have seen many people mis-interpret IBCCES as being medical professionals quite frequently. They are not.

 

[NotTheOne]

Of course no parent should be pressured, and of course all kids who struggle with a certain topic don't all qualify for services. The point being made was that services aren't just offered because a child is struggling with something.
There's pretty rigorous evaluations you have to go through to even find out if you're eligible for those additional services. A student who is just bad at math and whose evaluations don't show a need for an IEP isnt' going to be given an IEP just because. There has to be a data-based reason to even give the offer of services.

Of course it's always a family's right to turn those down, or refuse to do evaluations. There's evals we've refused because they aren't normed for our child's needs and won't be an accurate reflection - so while the school may dislike it, we refuse because they aren't necessary for her to qualify for services (there's plenty of other data that supports the need).

I was replying to a post implying that the poster should have perhaps continued with the evaluations in an effort to get services, but thanks for the lecture.

 

[Chi84]

Is Universal claiming that they are using medical professionals to review the documentation (either Universal employees or the third party)? Because Disney does seem to have hired actual medical professionals that are brought on to some of the calls.

What’s wrong with medical professionals again?

 

[NotTheOne]

I think that you are completely taking what I said the wrong way.

It's a feature, not a bug.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I was replying to a post implying that the poster should have perhaps continued with the evaluations in an effort to get services, but thanks for the lecture.

wasn't intended as a lecture, sorry!