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Accessibility @ FDA

Accessibility Statement

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is committed to providing accessible Information and Communication Technology (ICT), including third-party content published on FDA's intranet and internet websites or contained within FDA's software and web applications, to individuals with disabilities, including members of the public and federal employees, by meeting or exceeding the requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794d).

Section 508 requires agencies, during the procurement, development, maintenance, or use of ICT, to make sure that individuals with disabilities have access to and use of ICT information and data comparable to the access and use afforded to individuals without disabilities (i.e., “ICT accessibility”), unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. The Section 508 standards are the technical requirements and criteria that are used to measure conformance with the law and incorporates the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. More information on Section 508 and the technical standards can be found on Section508.gov and HHS.gov.

Third-Party Content Policy

According to the U.S. Access Board, E205.2 Public Facing section, under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (as amended), Federal agencies have responsibility for all content that they develop, procure, maintain, or use. 29 U.S.C. 794d. Federal agencies are therefore responsible for third-party content added to and maintained on their sites and will need to develop policies and practices to ensure the accessibility of that third-party content. If an agency invokes an exception and uses inaccessible ICT to provide information and data to the public, the statute requires that the agency provide the same information and data to individuals with disabilities by an alternative means. For additional information, refer to E205.2 Public Facing.



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