Hello. We are the CMS Section 508 program team.
We have put together a series of videos
that will provide useful information and instruction
on making CMS information technology products and services
accessible to all who seek them.
Section 508 is important for everyone at CMS,
and it's a federal law.
The title of this videocast is
"Important Steps in the CMS Software Application Testing Process",
An instructional video for business owners
and software application developers.
If you are developing software for use
by CMS beneficiaries and employees
that software must be Section 508 compliant.
CMS conducts testing for Section 508 compliance
because we want all CMS customers
as well as our CMS co-workers
to have equal access to information
and applications needed to utilize
CMS services or to conduct CMS-related business.
For software applications,
CMS section 508 compliance applies to
any new software or web-based application being developed,
as well as to any commercial off-the-shelf product
and any existing application with new user interface changes.
If you are a business owner
and you have a new software application,
you will first send a request through the CMS IT Service Desk.
From there it moves to both functional testing
and Section 508 testing.
For functional testing,
the software or application is tested
for its functionality to see if it meets
the desired technical specifications and
and system requirements at CMS.
For Section 508 testing,
the requester will receive an email
from the CMS 508 Accessibility Validation Testing Team.
This email will include a test plan
and a link to Voluntary Product Accessibility Tempate,
also known as the VPAT.
The VPAT can be found on the
Information Technology Industry Council website at ITIC.org,
or by visiting the CMS XLC Artifacts and Templates section
on CMS.gov.
The VPAT template, shown here, includes
instructions and must be completed in full
Incomplete forms will delay the testing and approval process.
What is testing?
Testing concists of a 2-hour WebEx call,
and it is important that everyone on your team is invited to the call,
especially the software developers
and any other technical stakeholders.
If no one is able to answer questions about coding
or other technical issues during this call,
this will result in a delay in the testing and approval process.
How do we test for CMS Section 508 compliance?
Along with some automated testing tools,
We use a manual deskside testing methodology.
An important part of the testing will determine
if your application can be utilized
by someone who is visually impaired.
After testing is complete, your software application will receive a score.
if your score is 100%, CMS considers the application
to be Section 508 compliant and needs no further review.
If your score is 99% or below,
then remediation is required.
For scores of 76 to 99%,
the application is ready to go live,
but some remediation and remediation plan
is required for any outstanding issues.
However if the score is 75% or below,
the application cannot go live,
and an approved remediation plan is required
before the application can move forward.
If your software is being developed using agile methdology,
or if you have other special development details,
the CMS section 508 team will work with you
to determine an appropriate remediation schedule to fit your plan.
Let's summarize the details of
the CMS Software Application Testing Process
Section 508 compliance makes your application accessible
to CMS beneficiaries and employees.
The Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (or VPAT)
must be completed in full.
follow the vpad instructions and leave no sections blank
Please include your developers on the testing call
to answer any technical questions
your application will be scored,
and remediation is needed
if the score is less than 100%.
If your application is scored between 76% and 99%
it may be allowed to go live.
However, an approved remediation plan is required
and remediation activities must be completed.
If your score is 75% or less,
the application cannot go live without remediation.
Thank you for taking the time to view and/or listen to this video.
For more details about CMS Section 508 compliance
for software applications and the VPAT,
please use this resource list:
On the web, go to the CMS.gov website.
www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-
Data-and-Systems/
CMS-Information-Technology/
Section508/Accessibility_Validation.html
You may may also email us at CMS_Section508@CMS.hhs.gov.
Or continue to view other videos in this Section 508 videocast series.