Universal now requiring documentation be sent to a third party for accessibility

[OurBigTrip]

I see this was posted on June 20th. I wonder if they would still grant her the gold or orange AAP with the new system.

I don’t understand why even after providing medical documentation and the tiered accommodations, they can’t grant an AAP to those with bathroom issues.

Because the accommodation they offer for bathroom issues is to leave the line. They’re obviously trying to cut back on AAPs

 

[DLgal]

I see this was posted on June 20th. I wonder if they would still grant her the gold or orange AAP with the new system.

I don’t understand why even after providing medical documentation and the tiered accommodations, they can’t grant an AAP to those with bathroom issues.

They CAN. But it seems like they have chosen not to. Their choice. If they stopped providing accommodations for other issues, that would also be their choice. It's a goodwill gesture at the end of the day. They can be selective about what specific issues they choose to accommodate in this way.

 

[HavendishSquare]

Because the accommodation they offer for bathroom issues is to leave the line. They’re obviously trying to cut back on AAPs

I just wish there was more room for nuance, as bathroom issues are a spectrum like many other issues. But I also understand it can get hard to determine where to draw the line on what qualifies as “severe” enough to warrant an AAP and is subjective, whereas they seem to want to keep it as objective as possible going forward.

 

[Evita_W]

Because the accommodation they offer for bathroom issues is to leave the line. They’re obviously trying to cut back on AAPs

Ok, but how does that work for someone with a mobility device? And what about all the people in line yelling at you when you come back?

Now let's look at someone like DH:
He uses a mobility scooter, which can't be taken into most queues, so he will be pushing a wheelchair since I can't push him due to my own issues. This will wear him out faster already, now he has to get back to where his scooter is parked, then get to the restroom, then get back to rejoin me in line somehow, all while pushing a wheelchair around people. This doesn't work.

 

[AnneK]

If they deny me a pass because my disability is based off of bathroom issues they are going to have a fight on their hands. An adult trying to re-join a line never ends well with how nasty people have gotten with line jumpers.

Edit: Have confirmed they are no longer accommodating bathroom issues which is unfortunate.

 

[OurBigTrip]

If they deny me a pass because my disability is based off of bathroom issues they are going to have a fight on their hands. An adult trying to re-join a line never ends well with how nasty people have gotten with line jumpers.

They have to provide an accommodation; it doesn’t have to be the preferred accommodation.

 

[AnneK]

I ended up calling this morning and was thankfully approved, and even received the upgraded pass with an escort (Gold Pass). It is true they are no longer issuing the pass if bathroom problems are your only issue. I qualified due to additional medical concerns.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Received approval this morning. My letter was dated, signed by my PCP and included a very brief description of my issues. It did not include a diagnosis as the Dr said they try not to write the diagnosis on these types of letters. I was not charged by my Dr’s office for the letter as of this point, I guess they could send a bill later but no charge was mentioned. The bill for seeing my Dr is still TBD, I expect it to be $35.

My trip is not until Oct so I won’t be dealing with the phone call part until then.

 

[HavendishSquare]

I ended up calling this morning and was thankfully approved, and even received the upgraded pass with an escort (Gold Pass). It is true they are no longer issuing the pass if bathroom problems are your only issue. I qualified due to additional medical concerns.

Good to know. It definitely sounds like they are more willing to give out the gold AAP now, which is great and I’m glad you were able to get the accommodation!

I was wondering if Universal is still offering the accommodation for other medical issues or if they are strictly using it for cognitive disabilities. The person I saw with a gold pass over the weekend was using a wheelchair, but of course they could have a cognitive disability as well.

Is Disney this strict on bathroom issues, as in an automatic no? I know they are cracking down, but based on what I’ve read online, It seems to be a mixed bag right now of getting approved or not depending on the cast member and how well you explain your issue.
If not, I wonder how long before Disney becomes this strict.

 

[Mirabell Rose]

Universal has to offer ‘reasonable accommodation’ for those with a disability as defined by the ADA. (They can also offer to those with conditions not defined by ADA, but that is optional)

To have a disability under ADA, the ADA defines a person with a disability as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity. This includes people who have a record of such an impairment, even if they do not currently have a disability.

So there are many challenges people may have that, while they are quite real (like having to stand in line for a long time when you have bathroom issues), they are not considered a disability and thus businesses are not required to offer an accommodation.

I’m glad you found a way to be able to enjoy the parks. I miss at Disney the old fast passes. With my 3 I could minimize long wait issues for some of the longest lines.

 

[EveDallas]

I talked to Universal GS today about my son's accomodations. I had selected "can't stand in lines with other people" because I thought that best fit him, but the very nice lady I spoke to said that they took that as needing a wheelchair and couldn't issue a pass. She sounded very apologetic and talked to me more about his actual issues. She told me without actually saying it that I needed to go back into his IBCCES account and select all the accommodations for sensory disabilities. Just a heads up for anyone who needs to know that they are being quite strict with what they read on the card.

 

[ArielRae]

I talked to Universal GS today about my son's accomodations. I had selected "can't stand in lines with other people" because I thought that best fit him, but the very nice lady I spoke to said that they took that as needing a wheelchair and couldn't issue a pass. She sounded very apologetic and talked to me more about his actual issues. She told me without actually saying it that I needed to go back into his IBCCES account and select all the accommodations for sensory disabilities. Just a heads up for anyone who needs to know that they are being quite strict with what they read on the card.

Same thing happened to us. They took it as literally just needing a wheel chair and not an autism issue with standing in line. It irritates me they only had limited choices to pick in the beginning and now added more choices that fit better. I now wonder how they know it is changed and then issue his pass. They didn’t mention calling them back or they calling us once we update his information. Please update us if you learn anything about this yourself.

 

[EveDallas]

Same thing happened to us. They took it as literally just needing a wheel chair and not an autism issue with standing in line. It irritates me they only had limited choices to pick in the beginning and now added more choices that fit better. I now wonder how they know it is changed and then issue his pass. They didn’t mention calling them back or they calling us once we update his information. Please update us if you learn anything about this yourself.

She told me to give it 48 hours to update on their system and I could call back, or they will call me within 48 hours of our trip.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I talked to Universal GS today about my son's accomodations. I had selected "can't stand in lines with other people" because I thought that best fit him, but the very nice lady I spoke to said that they took that as needing a wheelchair and couldn't issue a pass. She sounded very apologetic and talked to me more about his actual issues. She told me without actually saying it that I needed to go back into his IBCCES account and select all the accommodations for sensory disabilities. Just a heads up for anyone who needs to know that they are being quite strict with what they read on the card.

On the side of the card where it says helpful accommodations was Standing/Queuing the only thing listed?

 

[SueM in MN]

I talked to Universal GS today about my son's accomodations. I had selected "can't stand in lines with other people" because I thought that best fit him, but the very nice lady I spoke to said that they took that as needing a wheelchair and couldn't issue a pass. She sounded very apologetic and talked to me more about his actual issues. She told me without actually saying it that I needed to go back into his IBCCES account and select all the accommodations for sensory disabilities. Just a heads up for anyone who needs to know that they are being quite strict with what they read on the card.

It doesn’t sound like they are actually very well trained.
”can’t stand in lines with other people” is not at all the same as needing a wheelchair because you can’t stand in line.
It also sounds like the IBCCES process/application was not very well thought out and has a lot of opportunity for error both on the side of under and over accommodation

 

[kps7795]

She told me to give it 48 hours to update on their system and I could call back, or they will call me within 48 hours of our trip.

There's nothing like unnecessary stress to make one look forward to a vacation.

 

[ArielRae]

On the side of the card where it says helpful accommodations was Standing/Queuing the only thing listed?

When I filled out for DS at the beginning of all this they only had difficulty Standing/Queuing (which Universal takes literally as needing a wheelchair) as an option for his autism needs. He is good with sounds and lights. They didn’t have some of the other sensitivity options they have now. They didn’t have the leave the line suddenly for a respite or issues with crowds. Also if you filled out the form on their website vs their app you got different option that weren’t on the other. They have since fixed this.

 

[AnneK]

On the flip side, once you are approved and have a case number, you never have to worry about whether or not you will qualify ever again as long as your IBCCES card is active.

 

[ArielRae]

On the flip side, once you are approved and have a case number, you never have to worry about whether or not you will qualify ever again as long as your IBCCES card is active.

As I understand it is good for only one year. Then you have to go thru the whole process again but hopefully it will be easier since you can show that you had it granted already under this new system.

 

[EveDallas]

On the side of the card where it says helpful accommodations was Standing/Queuing the only thing listed?

Yes, but like Sue said, standing in line with other people has a completely different connotation than standing in line at all. I don't know why the two things are considered the same.