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September 17, 2019

The Letter to Sen. Duckworth was endorsed by 29 organizations. This included seven organizations representing purpose persons with a mobility disability, five organizations representing persons with a visual impairment, four organizations representing persons within intellectual challenges and six organizations that protect the civil rights of disabled persons. In addition, several organizations are professionals who work with disabled persons such as the American Physical Therapy Association and the National Recreation and Parks Association. AARP is also a supporting organization. Read more.

Published on

July 22, 2019

Mobility Fitness is thrilled to announce the newest member of our Advisory Committee, Andrew Imparato. He will join a growing list of disability rights leaders to advise Mobility Fitness strategically in the coming years.

Imparato has served as executive director of the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) since 2013. As a disability rights lawyer and policy professional with more than 25 years of experience in government and advocacy roles, Imparato has worked with bipartisan policymakers to advance disability policy at the national level in the areas of civil rights, workforce development, and disability benefits. Prior to coming to AUCD, he was senior counsel and disability policy director for Chairman Tom Harkin on the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Before that, he spent 11 years as President and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities, a national organization working to grow the political and economic power of the disability community. Imparato's perspective is informed by his personal experience with bipolar disorder.

Published on

April 30, 2019

Almost 30 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Senators Tammy Duckworth, Bob Casey, and Richard Blumenthal have introduced a new civil rights bill that will guarantee equal access to fitness facilities for people with disabilities.

Mobility Fitness Press Release April 30 2019

April 13, 2018

Mobility Fitness welcomes Senator Tom Harkin to our growing Board of Advisors. Sen. Harkin represented Iowa in the United States Congress for more than four decades. Among his many accomplishments was his role as the primary advocate in the Senate for disability rights. Sen. Harkin’s understanding of disability rights issues began at an early age, witnessing the challenges faced by his brother, who was deaf.

An early pioneer of legislation to recognize the rights of people with disabilities, Sen. Harkin was tapped by Sen. Ted Kennedy to help craft the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). He went on to champion the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) which ensured public schools provide “free and appropriate public education” and individualized education programs (IEPs) for students with disabilities. In 2008, following several court rulings that weakened the ADA’s standards Sen. Harkin worked with Sen. Orrin Hatch to introduce the ADA Amendments Act and that same year, the Higher Education Opportunity Act. In 2014, Senator Harkin introduced the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which established vocational education services to ensure the success of people with disabilities in the competitive, integrated job market.

Senator Harkin continues his disability work today, calling for moving more people with disabilities into the workforce, eliminating sub-minimum wages for the disabled and reforming government health programs that force them into nursing homes and institutions.

Harkin’s experience and enthusiasm will be of great value to Mobility Fitness as we move forward with the Fitness and Education for All Act this year.

Published on

April 13, 2018

Mobility Fitness welcomes Senator Tom Harkin to our growing Board of Advisors. Sen. Harkin represented Iowa in the United States Congress for more than four decades. Among his many accomplishments was his role as the primary advocate in the Senate for disability rights. Sen. Harkin’s understanding of disability rights issues began at an early age, witnessing the challenges faced by his brother, who was deaf.

An early pioneer of legislation to recognize the rights of people with disabilities, Sen. Harkin was tapped by Sen. Ted Kennedy to help craft the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). He went on to champion the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) which ensured public schools provide “free and appropriate public education” and individualized education programs (IEPs) for students with disabilities. In 2008, following several court rulings that weakened the ADA’s standards Sen. Harkin worked with Sen. Orrin Hatch to introduce the ADA Amendments Act and that same year, the Higher Education Opportunity Act. In 2014, Senator Harkin introduced the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which established vocational education services to ensure the success of people with disabilities in the competitive, integrated job market.

Senator Harkin continues his disability work today, calling for moving more people with disabilities into the workforce, eliminating sub-minimum wages for the disabled and reforming government health programs that force them into nursing homes and institutions.

Harkin’s experience and enthusiasm will be of great value to Mobility Fitness as we move forward with the Fitness and Education for All Act this year.

October 30, 2018
While previous research has found that physical exercise decreases fall risk and improves mobility, researchers at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM) in Spain wondered whether physical activity could reduce frailty-associated mortality risk. In their study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, authors found that physical activity decreased mortality rates for healthy, prefrail, and frail adults over age 60.

Published on

October 30, 2018
While previous research has found that physical exercise decreases fall risk and improves mobility, researchers at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM) in Spain wondered whether physical activity could reduce frailty-associated mortality risk. In their study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, authors found that physical activity decreased mortality rates for healthy, prefrail, and frail adults over age 60.

September 3, 2018
Sarcopenia, a decline in skeletal muscle in older people, contributes to loss of independence but can be slowed down by exercise.

Sarcopenia is a medical condition where there is a loss of skeletal muscle as one ages similar to osteoporosis where there is bone loss associated with aging. As it progresses, sarcopenia results in a loss of independence in seniors. Studies have shown that the muscle loss associated with sarcopenia can be significantly reduced by exercise.

Published on

September 3, 2018
Sarcopenia, a decline in skeletal muscle in older people, contributes to loss of independence but can be slowed down by exercise.

Sarcopenia is a medical condition where there is a loss of skeletal muscle as one ages similar to osteoporosis where there is bone loss associated with aging. As it progresses, sarcopenia results in a loss of independence in seniors. Studies have shown that the muscle loss associated with sarcopenia can be significantly reduced by exercise.