Survey of amputees shows most are dissatisfied with how they are treated at airport security screenings

From WUSA-TV:

GAINESVILLE, Va. -- The Amputee Coalition of America is calling for the Transportation Security Administration to clean up its act.

Its recent survey reveals out of the 7,300 amputees surveyed, 75% were dissatisfied by their TSA experience and many have been disrespected.

An airport security screening is anything but routine for Peggy Chenoweth, who is a leg amputee. She says it was particularly humiliating on a recent trip home to Gainesville, Virginia.

Last month, Chenoweth was at the Orange County Airport, in California, traveling with her four-year-old son for the first time.

Chenoweth says, "He began to cry. He was upset because things were happening to mommy, and he didn't know what they were doing."

But Chenoweth knew exactly what was going on. She says a TSA member was about to get her very upset.

She says TSA agents not only told her to remove her prosthetic leg and run it through the detector, but also the sanitary lining that covers her limb.

Chenoweth says, "I don't think the general public realizes how personal an amputee residual limb is. It's similar to asking a regular person to go bear breasted through the metal detector, or expose their genitals. It's that private of an area."

Chenoweth and countless other amputees understand and expect to go through extra screening, but they say, unfortunately, they've also grown accustomed to inconsistencies. Chenoweth says Dulles International Airport has always been a positive experience and wonders why other airports can be humiliating. She says TSA officers at BWI have even come up to her asking how to screen her leg.

The TSA says their officers receive extensive training on how to respectfully screen all passengers including persons with disabilities. They say under no circumstances is it TSA's policy to ask a passenger to remove his/her prosthetic during screening.

For Chenoweth, she says, that's not good enough.

She says, "It's disturbing that this happens to amputees all over the country ever single day. You never know what to expect."

TSA Response Statement:

While TSA's number one priority is security, we also strive to treat all passengers with dignity and respect. TSA officers receive extensive training on how to respectfully screen all passengers including persons with disabilities. We work extensively with many disability groups as part of the TSA Disability Coalition, of which the Amputee Coalition of America is a member. This partnership is used as a forum to provide education on TSA screening procedures as well as solicit feedback used when developing and implementing security procedures.

TSA developed specific guidance and procedures for the screening of persons with disabilities and investigates every claim that an officer did not follow the proper procedures, taking appropriate action, when necessary. Under no circumstances is it TSA's policy to ask a passenger to remove his/her prosthetic during screening. TSA officers offer a private area to passengers who require additional screening. Officers are trained to thoroughly explain the procedure before it is performed,
including where they will touch and how. Passengers can always request a private screening at any time.

Additionally, TSA is currently working with Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other similar organizations to further our understanding of prosthetics in the context of advanced imaging technology.