Healthcare Website Accessibility in 2026: What WCAG 2.1 AA Means and How to Prepare

WCAG 2.1 AA Is No Longer Optional for Healthcare Websites

Healthcare website accessibility is no longer a “nice to have.” As of May 2026, healthcare organizations that accept federal funding or federal insurance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid will be legally required to comply with WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards.

For healthcare marketers, this shift has major implications. Your website is often the front door to care—used for appointment scheduling, patient education, and critical health information. Accessibility compliance now sits at the intersection of marketing, patient experience, risk management, and regulatory compliance.

In this guide, we’ll break down what WCAG 2.1 AA means for healthcare organizations, why accessibility overlays alone are not sufficient, and how E-dreamz Healthcare Solutions partners with Level Access to provide a complete testing and remediation solution for healthcare websites.

Why Accessibility Compliance Now Matters for Healthcare

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has clarified that healthcare organizations receiving federal funding must ensure their digital properties are accessible to individuals with disabilities. This requirement aligns with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and is enforced through WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards.

For healthcare organizations, this means:

• Public-facing websites must be accessible to patients with visual, auditory, motor, and cognitive disabilities
• Patient forms, PDFs, portals, and educational resources must meet accessibility guidelines
• Non-compliant websites increase exposure to complaints, investigations, and lawsuits

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has made it clear: accessibility is a civil rights issue—and healthcare websites are firmly in scope.

What Is WCAG 2.1 Level AA (in Plain English)?

WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.1 Level AA defines how digital content should be designed and built so it is accessible to people with disabilities. The standards are organized around four core principles: content must be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust (POUR).

In practical terms for healthcare websites, WCAG 2.1 AA affects:

• Navigation & structure: Logical headings, readable menus, and keyboard-accessible navigation
• Color & contrast: Sufficient contrast for text, buttons, and form fields
• Forms & scheduling: Accessible labels, error handling, and instructions
• Images & media: Alt text for images and captions for videos
• Documents: Accessible PDFs and downloadable patient materials
• Assistive technology compatibility: Screen readers, keyboard navigation, and voice tools

Healthcare websites are particularly complex because they combine marketing content with functional tools like scheduling, forms, and patient education—each of which must be accessible to meet compliance requirements.

Why Accessibility Overlays Alone Are Not Enough

Many healthcare organizations have attempted to address accessibility by installing an overlay—a third-party widget that sits on top of a website and offers accessibility controls.

While overlays can provide limited benefits, they do not make a website fully WCAG 2.1 AA compliant.

Overlays cannot:

• Fix underlying HTML or semantic code issues
• Correct improper heading structures
• Resolve keyboard navigation traps
• Ensure accurate screen reader interpretation
• Address inaccessible PDFs or embedded third-party tools

Several overlay providers, including accessiBe, have faced ongoing litigation for claims that their products alone provide full ADA or WCAG compliance. Courts and accessibility experts consistently reinforce the same conclusion: true accessibility requires addressing issues in the source code of the website itself.

An overlay may help with surface-level usability, but it is not a substitute for testing, auditing, and remediation.

Accessibility Interfaces vs. True WCAG Compliance

Many healthcare organizations are understandably drawn to accessibility interfaces—tools that allow users to adjust visual settings such as font size, contrast, or color schemes. These tools can meaningfully improve usability for patients with visual impairments and other accessibility needs.

However, it’s critical to understand an important distinction:

Accessibility interfaces improve usability—but they do not, on their own, make a website WCAG 2.1 AA compliant.

True compliance depends not only on how a site looks to users, but on how it is structured, coded, and maintained behind the scenes.

Built-In Accessibility Tools in Remedy CMS

The latest versions of Remedy CMS, E-dreamz Healthcare Solutions’ proprietary healthcare content management platform, include built-in Accessibility Tools designed in alignment with WCAG requirements.

These tools provide website visitors with:

• Font size and spacing adjustments
• Color contrast and visual preference controls
• Improved on-page readability and navigation options

For many patients—especially those with visual impairments—these tools significantly enhance the browsing experience and make healthcare content easier to consume.

However, just like third-party overlays, no accessibility interface alone can satisfy all WCAG 2.1 AA requirements.

Why? Because WCAG compliance also depends on:

• Proper semantic HTML and heading structure
• Keyboard navigation and focus management
• Accessible forms and error handling
• Screen reader compatibility
• How content is authored and published within the CMS

Accessibility is as much about how content is built and structured as it is about how users can adjust its appearance.

How Remedy CMS Accessibility Tools Fit Into a Compliance Strategy

At EHS, we position Remedy CMS Accessibility Tools as an important part of a broader accessibility strategy, not a standalone compliance solution.

They:

• Improve day-to-day usability for patients
• Provide immediate accessibility controls for visitors
• Support WCAG-aligned design principles

But they do not eliminate the need for:

• Manual accessibility testing
• Code-level remediation
• Ongoing compliance monitoring

This is an important distinction we emphasize with every healthcare client:
accessibility tools and interfaces are helpful—but compliance requires deeper work.

Overlays, UserWay, and Remedy CMS: Where Each Fits

To clarify how these tools compare:

• Third-party overlays (such as UserWay or accessiBe) attempt to “fix” accessibility at the surface level and have faced legal scrutiny for overpromising compliance.
• UserWay, owned by Level Access, is a more responsibly positioned overlay that functions best as a supporting tool, not a complete solution. 
• Remedy CMS Accessibility Tools are built directly into the CMS experience and enhance usability, but—like all interfaces—cannot address every WCAG requirement on their own.

In every case, manual testing and remediation are still required to achieve and maintain WCAG 2.1 AA compliance.

UserWay: A Better Overlay—But Still Only Part of the Solution

Level Access owns UserWay, an accessibility widget designed to complement broader accessibility efforts. Compared to other overlays, UserWay benefits from being part of an enterprise-grade accessibility ecosystem and is positioned as a supporting tool, not a silver bullet.

At EHS, we view overlays like UserWay as:

• A supplement to accessibility efforts
• Helpful for user-controlled adjustments
• Useful as part of a broader compliance strategy

In the past, we recommended accessiBe as an accessibility overlay option for healthcare websites. However, increased legal scrutiny and a deeper understanding of WCAG requirements have shown that overlays alone do not provide comprehensive accessibility compliance.

For organizations that include an overlay as part of a broader accessibility effort, we now recommend UserWay in place of accessiBe. Even so, overlays—regardless of provider—only address a portion of WCAG 2.1 AA requirements. Manual testing and custom remediation are still essential for true compliance.

The Only Defensible Path to WCAG 2.1 AA Compliance: Testing + Remediation

True accessibility compliance requires two essential components:

1. Enterprise-Grade Accessibility Testing & Auditing

This is where Level Access excels.

Level Access provides:

• Automated and manual accessibility testing
• Testing with assistive technologies such as screen readers
• Clear documentation of issues and severity
• Compliance roadmaps aligned to WCAG 2.1 AA
• Ongoing monitoring and reporting

This level of testing is critical for healthcare organizations that need confidence, accuracy, and defensibility in their compliance efforts.

Learn more about Level Access’s platform and services here.

2. Healthcare-Specific Remediation & Implementation

Testing alone does not solve accessibility issues—it identifies them.

That’s where E-dreamz Healthcare Solutions comes in.

As a healthcare-focused web development partner, EHS:

• Implements accessibility fixes directly in website code
• Remediates templates, components, and CMS structures
• Fixes forms, navigation, content, and custom functionality
• Works within complex healthcare environments and integrations
• Provides ongoing support through SLA-based services

By pairing Level Access’s auditing with EHS’s remediation expertise, healthcare organizations get a complete, end-to-end accessibility solution—not just a report.

A Practical Accessibility Solution for Healthcare Organizations

Through our partnership with Level Access, EHS offers healthcare clients a clear path to compliance:

1. Accessibility audit & testing conducted by Level Access
2. Detailed findings and prioritized remediation roadmap
3. Custom remediation implemented by EHS’s healthcare development team
4. Optional overlay support (UserWay) for enhanced usability
5. Ongoing monitoring and support to maintain compliance over time

This approach recognizes a key reality: accessibility is not a one-time project—it’s an ongoing responsibility, especially for healthcare organizations.

What Healthcare Marketers Should Do Now

If your organization accepts Medicare, Medicaid, or other federal funding, now is the time to act:

• Audit your current website for WCAG 2.1 AA compliance
• Do not rely solely on accessibility overlays
• Plan for remediation, not just reporting
• Work with partners who understand both healthcare and accessibility

Accessibility compliance is about more than avoiding risk—it’s about ensuring every patient can access care, information, and services without barriers.

Ready to Prepare Your Website for WCAG 2.1 AA?

E-dreamz Healthcare Solutions works alongside Level Access to help healthcare organizations navigate accessibility requirements with confidence.

If you’d like to discuss accessibility testing, remediation, or ongoing compliance support, contact our team to start the conversation.