by InTrieste
Friuli Venezia Giulia has long positioned itself as a leader in policies addressing disability, regional officials said Thursday at a conference in Trieste dedicated to accessibility and the rights of the deaf community.
Speaking at the opening of the two-day event, titled “Deafness and Accessibility: Rights, Communication, Inclusion” and organized by the National Deaf Association of Italy, Riccardo Riccardi, the region’s Councillor for Health and Social Policies, underscored the area’s longstanding commitment. He noted that recognition of disability as part of essential levels of care in Friuli Venezia Giulia preceded national measures, and pointed to recently approved legislation regulating challenges in the sector.
The conference coincides with the annual International Day of the Deaf, observed worldwide at the end of September.
Riccardi described the new law as one of the most significant nationwide, framing it as a shift toward a broader cultural approach to disability. “Our administration will always be ready to respond to the needs of those facing these conditions,” he said, adding that the health system often remains too focused on acute illnesses while giving insufficient attention to chronic conditions, including disability, which persists throughout life.
The councillor emphasized the importance of integrating health and social services as a means of promoting inclusion, independence, and greater autonomy for people with disabilities. “Only through this paradigm shift,” Riccardi said, “can we advance the processes of inclusion, freedom, and autonomy for deaf people.”
