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How to Order Walmart Talking Prescription Containers

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On June 8, Walmart announced that it is now providing ScripTalk Talking Prescription Containers free of charge to persons with visual impairments as part of a pilot program. The ScripTalk Talking Prescription program is being offered to customers across the country through Walmart mail order, and also at three Walmart stores.

Information you need to order Talking Prescription Containers from Walmart
To listen to the talking label provided by Walmart, you will need to first get a reading device from Envision America, the company that makes ScripTalk. The device is called the ScripTalk reader (or the ScripTalk machine) and is available free of charge to Walmart customers who are blind. You only need to order the device once: it will work with the Talking Prescription labels you receive repeatedly from Walmart. Contact En-Vision America at 800-890-1180 to order your free ScripTalk talking prescription  reader. Envision America will also be able to answer many questions regarding insurance coverage and costs and discounts for Walmart prescriptions.

After you talk to Envision America, you will need to call Walmart to order your prescription medication. The phone number for the Walmart Mail Order pharmacy is 1-800-273-3455 (1-800-2-REFILL). When you order your prescription tell them you want the Talking Prescription label (also known as the ScripTalk label). There is no extra charge for the label.

For those in the states of Alabama, Mississippi or Colorado, Walmart is currently also offering the Talking Prescription labels in the following three stores. As with mail order, you will need to contact both the Walmart store (for the prescription medication) and Envision America (for the ScripTalk reader (also called the ScripTalk machine)).

*214 Haynes St., Talladega, AL 35160 (256) 761-1681
*2270 W. Main St., Tupelo, MS 38801 (662) 844-4011
*601 Englewood Pkwy., Englewood, CO 80110 (303) 789-7209

If you have feedback about the Walmart Talking Prescription Container pilot, please write to the Law Office of Lainey Feingold at prescription.access@gdblegal.com or call 1-800-822-5000, the number for Linda Dardarian of the Oakland civil rights firm Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen and Dardarian.

LightHouse News

Speaking Out for the Blind

On “Speaking Out for the Blind” host Brian McCallen interviews blind and visually impaired news makers and experts about the curious happenings, factoids, and topics that affect the community. It airs on ACB Radio Mainstream Wednesday’s at 7:30 PM Pacific Time. Visit acbradio.org, click on the MainStream link, then select the appropriate link to listen with the media player of your choice.

  • About Thunder Dog – airs June 20
    Michael Hingson talks about his new book Thunder Dog and how he and his former guide dog Roselle made the courageous escape from one of the Twin Towers during the 9/11 attack. He also gives some important advice to the blind and (their guide dogs) for how to survive major catastrophic emergencies.
  • Audio Reading Services – airs June 27
    Want to read your favorite books and newspapers, but can’t read them in print? Do you want listen to your favorite radio dramas, but have no access to an old time radio station? Well look no further than to your audio reading service. Joseph Hamilton of the Society for the Blind in Sacramento tells about how AccessNews and other services provide the content that informs and entertains the community every day.
  • LightHouse Audio-Tactile Maps – Airs July 4
    Maps are essential to participating fully in society, showing people how to get where they need to go. Greg Kehret, Director of Access to Information Services at the LightHouse for the Blind in San Francisco tells how the agency’s new audio-tactile maps for the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) do just that.
  • Scott MacIntyre – Airs July 11
    Scott MacIntyre is a famous singer and songwriter. You may remember him from Season 8 on American Idol. Scott sings a little from his new album Heartstrings and gives insight into his ‘undiagnosed’ blindness for the very first time.

More episodes are coming this summer. So keep listening!

LightHouse News

Secretary Bowen Launches Survey to Assess Needs of Voters with Disabilities

As Californians prepare to vote in the June 5 Presidential Primary Election, California Secretary of State Debra Bowen launched the state’s first online survey to help elections officials assess and address the needs of voters with disabilities.

“Voting is our most sacred right in a democracy and everyone should be able to exercise that right independently and privately,” said Secretary Bowen, the state’s chief elections officer. “While California elections officials offer many resources to voters with disabilities, I want to know if these voters are aware of all the options and services available to them, as well as whether they are encountering unnecessary challenges when voting.”

The Secretary of State’s office established the eight-member Statewide Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee (VAAC) in 2005 to provide guidance to elections officials serving voters with disabilities. Since then, the Secretary of State’s office updated 10-year-old polling place accessibility guidelines and provided training to county elections staff on the federal and state requirements for accessible polling places, all in collaboration with the VAAC and the California Department of Rehabilitation. Now the Secretary of State is asking voters with disabilities to participate in a
brief confidential survey
available through June 29. Survey results will help identify whether there is a need for more training, modified services, or enhanced outreach programs for voters with disabilities.

LightHouse News

Calling All Seniors and People with Disabilities!

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is having an important hearing on your needs.
Monday May 21 at 10:00 a.m.
San Francisco City Hall Board of Supervisors Chambers

Come hear a presentation on the 2010 census that explains the needs of our seniors and people with disabilities in San Francisco. Hear the City discuss why the need is increasing more rapidly than ever. Find out what the City’s plan is to address the growing number of people who want to age in the community. Come testify to the impact of the budget cuts we have endured over the last 5 years.
This is your time to let the legislators hear from you.

For more information, call James Chionsini (415) 703-0188 ext 304

LightHouse News

Beta Testers Needed

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Blindsight is looking for Beta Testers to test our iPhone text detection app, on course to hit the Apple App-store in May!

What’s this app all about?
Blindsight, a small R&D firm in Berkeley, is developing an iPhone application that can detect and speak out text – be it a sign around you, a handout or a product you need to identify. The application uses the built in camera to capture the area the phone is pointed at. Our patented text detection algorithm analyzes the video stream and tells you whether there is text or not. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and VoiceOver will do the rest and speak the text that was detected – all within seconds.

What you’ll get
Be the first to use text detection and recognition in your day-to-day life before anyone else!

What we’ll ask you to do
Be honest! – provide us feedback on functions, ease of use and the way you are using it in your life and you’ll be a part of making this app a useful tool and a delightful experience.

Interested?
Sign up for Beta Testing.

If you have further questions, please contact us at info@blindsight.com.

LightHouse News

Blind Parents: Be Empowered!

Join the National Federation of the Blind of California blind parents group for their first-ever seminar. This seminar promises to be informative and interactive. You will:

  • Learn about your rights as a blind parent
  • Find out about exciting work from home opportunities
  • Discover how blind parents read with their children
  • Trade tips and techniques for traveling independently with your children
  • Discuss issues important to parents of children of all age groups
  • Mix and mingle with other blind parents

When: Saturday June 9, 2012 from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Where: California School for the Blind Theater, 500 Walnut Avenue, Fremont, CA 94536

For more information or to RSVP please contact Angela Fowler via email at: fowlers@syix.com or call 530-902-0987. Lunch will be provided. Childcare will not be provided.

For more information about the National Federation of the Blind of California please visit: www.nfbcal.org.

LightHouse News

NASA Seeks Amateur Radio Operators

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In 2013, NASA is launching a probe to study the moon’s atmosphere. Amateur radio operators can help by tuning in and listening to the sounds particles make as they are colliding with earth’s atmosphere. For more information and to learn how to participate please contact Brian Day at the below contact information.

Brian H. Day
NASA LCROSS Mission E/PO Lead
Planners Collaborative
Mailstop 226-4
NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000
650-604-2605
Brian.H.Day@nasa.gov