Baltimore, Maryland (July 28, 2021): The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), home of the Center for Excellence in Nonvisual Access, has reached an agreement with Curative Inc., under which Curative will make its technology accessible to blind screen-reader users. The company will also donate to the National Federation of the Blind. The agreement will remain in effect for four years, during which the NFB will monitor the accessibility of Curative’s services. Curative’s technology is used by California and other states to allow users to schedule diagnostic screening and testing for the COVID-19 virus or to set up appointments to receive a vaccination against the illness. The inaccessibility of online tools to conduct these tasks has been a significant barrier encountered by blind people seeking to protect themselves and their families from the disease.

“As with other healthcare inequities, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the inaccessibility of online health technology to blind patients,” said Mark Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind. “Although it should not have taken this global pandemic to rectify this problem, we are pleased that Curative has agreed to work expeditiously to remediate its technology so that blind people can navigate their testing, vaccination, and other health needs.”