Like many state agencies, Oregon Health Authority maintains a high volume of digital documents, particularly PDFs. Under federal rules and agency policies, all our digital documents must be accessible.
At OHA, we have adopted an “HTML-preferred” digital strategy (see policy ODHSOHA 010-029). This is because HTML websites, when properly designed and coded, are accessible to assistive technology users. PDFs are not. They must almost always be remediated for accessibility. When remediated, PDFs can be very accessible. But the process is time-consuming and ultimately costly.
That means that when creating content for public consumption, always ask yourself, “Could this be a webpage, or part of an existing webpage?” In some cases, the answer may be, “No, this needs to be a document.” We must produce fewer documents, particularly PDFs. However, that doesn’t mean that we are likely to get rid of document formats entirely.
So, in addition to adopting an “HTML-preferred” digital strategy, all agency employees must work to ensure that the documents we produce are accessible.
The following Document Quick Guides are intended to guide document creators in accessible practices. Whenever possible, use Publications and Creative Services (PCS) templates for your documents and refer to the Document Quick Guides for additional help.
Document Quick Guides
Word Quick Guide
PowerPoint Quick Guide
Excel Quick Guide - coming soon!