Once upon a time, I never really paid much attention to the handicap parking spaces. Sure, I grumbled like many other people. “Why should they get the best spaces!”, “They already have wheelchairs, why do they need the CLOSEST parking places?” and so on. Of course it didn’t mean anything to me, because it never hit close to home for me.

Then the unimaginable happened. At the age of 44, my husband had a stroke. Oh, he was lucky! Compared to the vast majority of those who have a stroke, he got off easy. Instead of complete paralysis, loss of speech, memory loss, speech problem, inability to swallow or any of the other dire symptoms that regularly accompany a stroke, his was mild by comparison. His stroke (a hemorrhagic stroke -- meaning a brain bleed rather than a blockage of the blood vessel) happened in the right frontal lobe of his brain. His primary symptoms included very mild aphasia (forgetting or mixing up words), balance problems and loss of up to 60% use on his left side (remember, right brain controls left side of the body and vice versa).

Thankfully, by incorporating our business last year, we actually have health insurance. It was a convoluted process -- completely unnecessary if not for our screwed up health care system, but that’s an entirely different rant. But thankfully, we WERE insured, so his hospitalization and followup therapy was covered. of course, the greedy bastards at Anthem Blue Cross of California decided on October 1st to start charging PPO copay/coinsurance rates on an HMO plan -- but again, that’s a different rate -- so now where Physical Therapy was free, we know have to pay $25 per visit twice a week and even more for “specialist” visits to doctors who are part of the very HMO group that we belong to, who don’t even bill the insurance company. Greed fucks.

The point of all this griping and background -- even with the stroke, while Chris is able to get around on his own now, his prognosis is such that he will never be able to walk without an supportive device (e.g., cane) probably for the rest of his life. On a good day, the most he can walk without the can is 1/2 a block. On a bad day -- he’s lucky to make it across the apartment without falling down. So, obviously, we petitioned the state for a Handicap Placard for our car.

NOW I pay attention to what’s going on in the real world with regard to handicap parking places.

Let me point out, so there is no confusion: The placard is Chris’. At no point and no time do *I* use the placard to park in ANY handicap parking space if Chris is not in the car with me!!! Certainly it has been tempting on more than one occasion! However, I do not roll that way. #1, it’s not my placard and I don’t need it. I can walk the extra 20-3o yards. #2, I’m scared. Have you SEEN the penalties for misusing a Handicap Placard lately? I don’t have that kind of money laying around. Do you?

First off, California needs some serious review of their procedures for issuing these placards. I mean, really, does someone need a handicap placard because of a MENTAL diagnosis? Really? These spaces are supposed to make it easier for people with PHYSICAL handicaps to get where they are going. When I can’t park where I need to for Chris to get where he’s going, and the person in the spot gets out with no clear or obvious physical handicap, it’s like a slap in the face. Are they cheating and using the space with a placard that belongs to someone else? Did they lie on their application? Did their doctor lie? According to the LA Times:

California, which has 24 million licensed drivers, will issue 2.1 million permanent placards this year, up from 1.2 million a decade ago. In Los Angeles County, about 621,000 of nearly 6 million licensed drivers have placards.^[1]

To what do we owe such a drastic increase in disabled placards in California, in particular in LA County? Do we really have do many disabled people? I am highly suspicious of that. Instead, I attribute it to high health care costs and the proliferation of low-cost health clinics run as businesses, where anyone with any complaint can stop by for little to no money, see a doctor for 2-3 minutes and shove some paperwork in front of them with any sob story. The doctor signs it without reading it, and voila -- instant handicap placard. Since the state doesn’t actually VERIFY any of this paperwork, every Tom, Dick and Mary now has a placard to use with impunity.

We got a temporary placard at first, because his original prognosis was “full recovery in 6 months” according to the doctors. After  4 months, they changed their minds and said he’d probably be using a cane for the rest of his life. So we amended our application and requested a permanent placard. Neither time did the State investigate our claims or follow up with the doctor -- they simply took the claims at face value and processed the application.

Now we all know that doctors can be bought. If they couldn’t, there wouldn’t be a zillion drug addicts on the street zoning out on legal pharmaceuticals. Yeah, times are tough and budgets cuts affect everyone. For something THIS important, though, could they not at least afford a phone call?

Next comes the ones who don’t even HAVE a placard. You know the ones. Perhaps you even are one. “I’m just stopping for a moment.” “I only had to run into the store for a second.” “Nobody was using it and it was right here.” “Why should they get all the best spots?” The excuses are endless. End the end, that’s all they are though -- excuses. The plain and simple fact is IF YOU DON’T HAVE A HANDICAP PLACARD, DON’T PARK IN THE HANDICAP PARKING SPACE!!!!

So the next time you see that conveniently place handicap spot -- just keep driving. Unless you have a proper, valid placard/license plate from the state, avoid the urge. Not only are you risking monetary fines from the state, but you are SERIOUSLY inconveniencing peoples’ lives. I’m not talking about just making them walk a little bit further -- I’m talking about causing them pain, making them choose between shopping or not shopping, having an independent life or being stuck at home. Your choices seriously have an impact on others.

Next time, just think about it.

^[1] http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/22/local/la-me-disabled-parking-20110522