The Disability Policy Consortium, Inc. filed lawsuit in Superior Court on April 6, 2007 against the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency over the Agency’s unwillingness to make emergency management information available to the public. 

The DPC requested lists of emergency shelters from MEMA in October, 2006.  MEMA denied that request and directing the Plaintiff to the American Red Cross which is the agency delegate with maintaining shelter lists under Massachusetts Emergency Support Function 6, MASS CARE.  The Red Cross also refused to provide emergency shelter lists.  MEMA also refused to turn the documents over to the Commonwealth’s Supervisor of Public Records (Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth) claiming they were exempt from public document law and refusing his request to review them in camera because they were too numerous.

The Plaintiffs allege

It is a perversion of the mandate for state and local government to protect the lives and well-being of all of its citizens in times of natural and manmade disasters to not ensure that individuals with disabilities are as adequately protected as non-disabled individuals.  Similarly, it is a perversion of the policy behind the enactment of exemption (n) to allow the state and local governments to use that statute to prevent individuals with disabilities from overcoming their justifiable insecurity that in the event of an emergency or catastrophe the necessary and accessible services and accommodations for their health and well-being will not be in place.

People with disabilities are extremely concerned about the readiness of the State and Local emergency preparedness agencies to meet the needs of people with disabilities.  “Hurricanes Katrina and Rita demonstrated that it is the most vulnerable in our society, people who are poor, elderly and/or have a disability who pay with their lives.”  said John Winske, President of the DPC