The week from June 27 to July 3, 2021, is being commemorated as Helen Keller Deafblind Awareness Week.
This year, the Week is celebrating the achievements of persons who suffer from deafblindness, and the way in which they are changing the perceptions of people with such disabilities in the workforce. The Helen Keller National Centre for Deafblind Youths and Adults is commemorating the week under the theme Deaf Blind Employees can Help Businesses Grow with Unique Insights and Perspectives.
To support persons who suffer from deafblindness – a condition that results in little to zero vision and hearing – in your community, ask your local legislator to mark the days between June 27 and July 3 as Helen Keller Deafblind Awareness Week. If there are people in your community who suffer from deafblindness and are employed in any capacity, you can ask your local newspaper to feature these persons. Employers of deafblind persons can also be featured in order to encourage more businesses to hire persons with deafblindness.
If your loved one suffers from deafblindness, he or she may be eligible for Social Security disability benefits for the condition. In order to be eligible for benefits, the disability should have lasted for at least a year or should be expected to last for at least one year. Persons with certain types of vision loss may qualify for quicker processing of benefits and may also be eligible for other concessions. Similar conditions apply for disability benefits for blindness. Your eligibility for cochlear implants could impact your disability benefits for deafness.