Accessibility Disclaimer

Last updated: July 9, 2024

Tahoe Forest Health System is dedicated to providing a fully accessible website experience for all users, including those who rely on assistive technologies like screen readers, screen enlargement software, and alternative input devices. Our goal is to ensure that everyone, regardless of their abilities, can navigate and interact with our website effectively and efficiently.

We are committed to following the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1 as our guiding principle for ensuring web accessibility. These internationally recognized guidelines encompass a comprehensive set of best practices for making web content accessible and usable for a wide range of users. Our commitment includes:

• Inclusive Design and Development: As we introduce new pages and features, we rigorously review all designs, code, and content against WCAG 2.1 standards to ensure they are accessible from the outset.
• Continuous Testing and Improvement: Accessibility is an ongoing effort. We regularly test our website content and functionalities for compliance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA criteria and strive to exceed these standards where possible. Our team uses industry-standard tools such as MS Insights to capture accessibility HTML code violations, screen reader testing using NVDA in windows/Chrome and Voiceover in Mac/Safari, ZoomText magnifier testing, color contrast analyzers to help determine the legibility of text and the contrast of visual elements, such as graphical controls and visual indicators for low vision population, keyboard-only navigation techniques, and cognitive accessibility testing for people with cognition and learning disabilities.

We have incorporated several features to enhance the accessibility of our website, including:

• Responsive Design: Our website is mobile-friendly and ensures that tap targets are appropriately sized for users on touchscreens.
• High Contrast Colors: Our color scheme is designed to meet WCAG’s highest contrast standards, ensuring readability for users with low vision or color blindness.
• Navigation Aids: We provide skip navigation links on every page to facilitate easier access to primary content, main navigation, and the footer.
• Language Declaration: Our website declares its language in the HTML header to assist screen readers in delivering content accurately.
• Alternative Text for Non-Text Elements: All images and multimedia elements include descriptive alt text to convey their content to users who cannot see them (so if you can’t see the image, you can still read the text).
• Semantic HTML: We use proper structural markup for headings, lists, and buttons, making content easier to navigate and understand for all users.
• Accessible Forms: Forms are clearly labeled with instructions and error messages, ensuring users can input data correctly.
• ARIA Landmarks: We use Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) landmarks and attributes to provide additional context for users of assistive technologies.

We are actively working on the following areas to enhance our website’s accessibility:

• Improving Keyboard Navigation: Ensuring that all interactive elements are fully navigable via keyboard without requiring a mouse.
• Enhancing Video Accessibility: Adding captions and transcripts for all video content to make it accessible to users who are deaf or hard of hearing.
• Updating PDF Content: Converting existing PDF documents to accessible formats or providing alternative accessible versions.
  This effort is part of our broader mission to ensure that every user’s experience with Tahoe Forest Health System is welcoming, inclusive, and enjoyable. While we strive to provide fully accessible content, please be aware that we cannot guarantee the accessibility of third-party websites linked from our site.

We value your feedback and are here to assist you. If you are using assistive technologies and encounter any difficulties while using our website, please reach out to us and, if possible, provide the URL (web address) of the material you tried to access, the problem you experienced, and your contact information. We’ll attempt to provide the information you’re seeking and remediate the issue. We are committed to resolving any issues and improving your experience.

Email us: [email protected]

Call us: (530) 587-6011