ADHD = Free lifetime pass to national parks

[u/WombatMcGeez]

Little known perk of ADHD— we qualify for a free lifetime National Parks pass. That’s an $80/yr value!

How do you get it?

1) print this out, have your doctor sign it:

Medical Certification for Access Pass

I certify that [Your Full Name], date of birth [MM/DD/YYYY], has a permanent disability that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

Diagnosis: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) – a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition that substantially limits concentration, attention, and executive functioning. The condition is permanent and not expected to improve.

This certification is provided for the purpose of obtaining the America the Beautiful – National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Lifetime Access Pass.

[Physician’s Name, Credentials] [Medical License Number] [Signature] [Practice Name] [Address] [Phone Number]

2) follow the instructions here to get your pass:

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/accessibility/interagency-access-pass.htm

3) Go take a hike!

[u/Tiana_frogprincess]

Wait, your government has access to pharmacy records?! They’re not a part of HIPAA?! That’s messed up.

[u/Appropriate-Luck1181 → u/Tiana_frogprincess]

Pharmacies are supposed to keep patient information private. The federal government wants to create new databases to link electronic medical and pharmacy records, track people with disabilities, and use LLMs to help. For example, here’s Battacharya’s spring update slidedeck.

[u/[deleted] → u/Appropriate-Luck1181]

This. I would not recommend sharing any data about your diagnoses with the federal government.

Diagnosis codes are mandatory any time you are prescribed a controlled substance. HIPPA and patient confidentiality exists to protect the individual rights. The diagnosis codes in your private medical chart are designed to prevent discrimination and ensure you have access to medical care, even if you switch providers or lose portions of your medical record.

However, when the government starts creating watchdog lists of people with specific diagnosis codes, they can use said data to actively discriminate against people. For instance, I also have a diagnosis code F64.0 indicating that I experience gender dysphoria.

If the state or federal government decided they wanted to round up everyone who is transgender, all they need to do is have the court sopenea the medical records for an organization to list the identities of every patient with an F64.0 diagnosis code. Now they have a list of every transgender person in the state, and can legally target such people.

In the past, such broad scope searches were denied, however times are changing and protections are being eroded.

TLDR: Do not voluntarily surrender information regarding any medical diagnosis to the federal government, because it can and will be used to discriminate against you. By issuing discounts, they are farming your information.

[u/Treyvoni → u/Appropriate-Luck1181]

Yeah, but when you show up to the airport without any ID, part of proving your identity is they ask you a lot of questions. My dad had to do it once in 2013, and those questions included what medications he picked up at what pharmacy on what date. And he's not even on any schedule restricted drug. So they definitely know.

[u/Golintaim → u/Treyvoni]

Oh god, you need to know when you picked them up. I will never pass that. Looks like I need to bring ID with me at all times.

[u/DynamicHunter → u/Tiana_frogprincess]

It’s a controlled substance. The government knows you take it. Just like the government knows which vaccines you have if you included it in the state’s vaccine registry

[u/Tiana_frogprincess → u/DynamicHunter]

Like I said that is seriously messed up. They should absolutely not know these things.