lol I was gonna respond since I'm also
from Canada but I live in BC
On 7/25/18, Brian's Mail list account via Groups.Io
<bglists@...> wrote:
> Did you post this to the wrong list?
> Its a bit Canadian... ahem.
> Not nvda either.
> cough.
> :-)
>
> Brian
>
>
bglists@...
> Sent via blueyonder.
> Please address personal E-mail to:-
>
briang1@..., putting 'Brian Gaff'
> in the display name field.
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Brian K. Lingard"
<bkl@...>
> To:
<nvda@nvda.groups.io>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2018 8:31 AM
> Subject: [nvda] Getting Off of SSDI, ongoing cost of
access technology
>
>
> Dear Glenn & List:
>
> Here in Canada, at least Ontario, you are considered
successfully placed in
>
> gainful employment if the job is expected to last at
least six months.
> Friends receiving ODSP [Ontario Disability Support
Program] payments who
> have many medical conditions, each with at least one
prescription medicine,
>
> have told me time and again they are capable of gainful
work, however, as a
>
> part-time employee, they will not have a Prescription
Medicine Plan. ODSP
> provides each recipient with a Prescription Drug Benefit
that covers most,
> however, not all, prescriptions.
>
> However, if you require a prescription not on the
formulary, you may request
>
> it be covered for you as your doctor has prescribed it,
it is expensive, and
>
> often the only medicine licensed in Canada to treat your
condition. If this
>
> does not work, you may apply to The Trillium Plan for
coverage of the drug
> in your particular case.
>
> Friend of mine's spouse was diagnosed with gallstones.
The doctor wanted to
>
> dissolve them with an expensive medicine. Their ODSP
monthly income was
> maybe, $1,000 combined for the two of them. Friend takes
the prescription to
>
> his usual pharmacy, asks what it costs, answer was $300
for a month's
> supply. He contacts his doctor, who writes an appeal
letter to the Min of
> Health, after a few weeks went by, they approved it.
Unfortunately, the
> medicine did not dissolve the stones.
>
> His wife was diabetic, had heart issues and for these
reasons was a bad
> candidate for surgery.
>
> At the time, Lithotripsy, busting the stones into fine
powder, was not
> available in Ottawa. It was in Montreal, province just
across the Ottawa
> River, and with its own Min of Health, friend of mine
called around various
>
> hospitals there, found one that did this treatment, gave
the info to his
> wife's doctor, who said I heard they no longer do this!
Meanwhile, about a
> day before, the hospital had told my friend they did do
it, have the doctor
>
> in Ottawa send them a referral. Therefore, my friend said
why run up his
> phone bill if the doctor will say he heard they no longer
do it.
>
> I do not know of a laparoscopic procedure, where they
operate through a
> small hole to the scene of the procedure was an option.
Have heard these
> procedures are much less stressful on the body, compared
to a traditional
> open procedure.
>
> One friend of mine, in Toronto, is blind, diabetic, with
MS and probably
> other issues. Between her various doctors, she is on 32
prescriptions, with
>
> the Ontario Drug Benefit, pharmacies may charge a $2
co-pay per
> prescription. That is $64/month. Many pharmacies will
waive the $2 co-pay,
> others do not. The nursing home she resided at dealt with
one pharmacy did
> would not waive the co-pay. Her entire ODSP cheque of
around $700/month went
>
> to pay the daily fee for staying the home, except for her
$100/month comfort
>
> allowance, which was to cover replacement clothes,
feminine hygiene
> products, toothpaste, phone & cable tv if any, she
also smoked. After trying
>
> to explain to the home the $64 co-pay would be the
largest item in her
> budget, she cannot afford it, and getting the story they
only wanted to deal
>
> with the single pharmacy as it simplified ordering, she
decided the home
> could bill her all they wanted for the co-pay, however,
she refused to pay
> it. Her prescription medicines kept arriving and she had
more spending
> money.
>
> Having the Soc. Security Admin. Pay for access
technology, with scripting
> and training, to get someone into the workforce, earning
more than the
> prevailing SGA is fine. However, access tech wears out,
requires maintenance
>
> and can become unusable due to advances in computer
technology. Many
> perfectly good braille displays and synthesizers became
obsolete when their
>
> makers decided not to make drivers available for them
when a Windows upgrade
>
> required new drivers, or computers no longer had parallel
& serial ports,
> just USB ones.
>
> The braille displays were well built, however the firm
that took over the
> equipment when TSI went bust, chose to not prolong their
working life as
> they competed directly with the Braille displays the firm
designed & built
> themselves. Freedom Scientific, now VFO Group was one
firm that did this. In
>
> addition, manufacturers of access tech can go bust,
making well-designed
> displays, however, not with enough market share to make
the units and
> especially the r and d to design newer ones.
>
>
> There is also the issue of funding equipment maintenance,
replacement and
> scripting updated or new applications. If you work for
Government, your
> department or agency is expected to pay for this. Fine.
The scripter says it
>
> will cost $75,000 to script the soon to be released
update to the main app
> you use. The department has perhaps one or two blind
employees who need the
>
> update. If updates are released semi-annually, that is
$1590, 000 for the
> updates or $75,000 per blind employee. If the employee is
a Quad or amputee,
>
> using a sip & puff system to control their telephone,
terminal printers etc.
>
> the cost of reprogramming their sit & puff system can
approach the Public
> Debt of the United States of America. This is because sip
& puff systems are
>
> almost custom-made, as is their programming.
>
> When my employer was concerned over the cost of a PC for
me, offered, well,
>
> I earn my hourly wage whether I am doing productive work
or waiting for the
>
> PC to compute. I prefer doing productive work. The boss
accepted this line
> of reasoning and purchased the faster PC with enough RAM
and hard drive to
> handle newer program versions, which seem to require more
disk storage,
> faster CPU and much more RAM.
> Brian
>
>
> From:
nvda@nvda.groups.io [
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io]
On Behalf Of Ervin,
> Glenn
> Sent: Monday, July 23, 2018 10:35 AM
> To:
nvda@nvda.groups.io
> Subject: Re: [NVDA] VFO not complimentary about NVDA
>
> In VR with state agencies, we are reimbursed by Social
Security if we place
>
> someone in a job that is above SGA, that is, enough for
the client to get
> off SSDI.
> So usually, cost is not an issue for things like adaptive
equipment and
> scripting.
> Glenn
>
>
> From:
nvda@nvda.groups.io <
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io>
<
nvda@nvda.groups.io
>
> <
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io>
> On Behalf of Brian K. Lingard
> Sent: Friday, July 20, 2018 1:31 AM
> To:
nvda@nvda.groups.io <
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io>
> Subject: Re: [NVDA] VFO not complimentary about NVDA
>
> Dear Brian & List:
>
> I thought VFO Group would do JAWS scripting or put you in
contact with a
> certified Jaws Scripter.
>
> Perhaps not.
>
> I do know that someone wanted a proprietary application
for a car rental
> firm scripted to work with JAWS and was quoted thousands
of dollars for the
>
> work and advised that every timed the firm rolled out a
new version the work
>
> would have to be completely redone.
>
> I believe the would- be scripting contractor was the
Smith-Kettlewell
> Foundation of San Francisco.
>
> I can see changes being required for a new version of the
App, but a
> complete rewrite. That seems like someone trying to make
a large company pay
>
> and pay to support only a few employees.
> Brian
>
> It may have been a proprietary telemarketing program.
However, I think the
> employer to be was misquoted for the job.
> Brian
> From:
nvda@nvda.groups.io <
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io>
> [
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io] On
Behalf of Brian Vogel
> Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2018 12:34 PM
> To:
nvda@nvda.groups.io <
mailto:nvda@nvda.groups.io>
> Subject: Re: [NVDA] VFO not complimentary about NVDA
>
> On Thu, Jul 19, 2018 at 12:21 PM, Steve Nutt wrote:
> Again, if I want a program scripted in NVDA, who does it?
> If you contact NV Access, I feel certain they could point
you to someone.
> Alternatively, even ask here. Most JAWS scripters are
self-taught, or were
>
> at one time anyway. I believe NVDA scripts are done in
Python (though I
> could be wrong) and there are plenty of Python
programmers out there.
>
> I had to dig long and hard to find JAWS scriptwriters
when they were needed
>
> about 2 years ago. It is a real niche market.
>
> --
> Brian - Windows 10 Home, 64-Bit, Version 1803, Build
17134
> A little kindness from person to person is better
than a vast love for
> all humankind.
> ~ Richard Dohme
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
