www.cms.gov: Accessibility — week 2026-W29

Automated Accessibility Conformance Report (OpenACR): Download ACR. Machine-readable; compatible with GSA OpenACR tooling. Automated tools find ~⅓ of real barriers — supplement with manual AT testing.

Training priorities

Top WCAG success criteria by pages affected this week. Use these to focus team training on the highest-impact issues.

SC	Criterion	Pages	Rules	Notes
1.4.8	WCAG 1.4.8	5019	4	Component inconsistency
2.5.5	WCAG 2.5.5	3686	1
1.4.6	WCAG 1.4.6	1224	1
2.5.3	WCAG 2.5.3	1219	1
1.3.1	Info and Relationships (semantic structure)	1060	9

Next 10 actions

Clusters are fingerprinted by normalized selector path + rule id + snippet shape. Rank score = (severity weight × pages affected) / distinct components for the rule. This supersedes the template threshold heuristic while still surfacing it as a validation signal.

Design-system alignment (cms-ds / default). ds-c-field: 100% of sampled rule findings · ds-c-pagination: 10% of sampled rule findings 11 possible lookalike cluster(s) without system prefixes.

Top 10 clustered component fixes for this week.
Cluster	Severity	Pages	Who it affects	How to fix	Evidence	Decision
Form field label is visible · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~3646 finding(s) on 3646 page(s). XPath / selector: `{"type":"document","children":[{"type":"type","name":"html","publicId":null,"sys`	Moderate	3646	Requires manual testing.	See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r61	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Scrolling content can be accessed by keyboard · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~1652 finding(s) on 1652 page(s). XPath / selector: `text: "Feedback"`	Moderate	1652	Requires manual testing.	See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r57	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
<html> element must have a lang attribute · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~76 finding(s) on 76 page(s). XPath / selector: `html` `<html>`	Serious	76	Without vision, Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability	Add a lang attribute to <html> (e.g. lang="en").	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Images must have alternative text · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~40 finding(s) on 40 page(s). XPath / selector: `img[src$="cms-site-logo.png"]` `<img src="cms-site-logo.png">`	Critical	40	Without vision, Limited vision, Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability	Give every <img> a meaningful alt attribute. Use alt="" only for decorative images so screen readers skip them.	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Accessible name of link or button matches visible label · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~1217 finding(s) on 1217 page(s). XPath / selector: `<a id="aBasketManuButton" class="basket-icon log-click " title="View documents in your Basket" data-page-action="Clicked the Basket navbar link.">`	Moderate	1217	Without vision, Without speech	See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r14	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Document should have one main landmark · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~76 finding(s) on 76 page(s). XPath / selector: `html` `<html>`	Moderate	76	Requires manual testing.	Each page should have exactly one <main> landmark.	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Form elements must have labels · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~36 finding(s) on 36 page(s). XPath / selector: `#q` `<input type="text" name="q" id="q" value="Search now" size="10" maxlength="50" class="srchbox" onfocus="this.value='';">`	Critical	36	Without vision, Limited vision, Limited manipulation/strength	Associate every form control with a <label> (via for/id) or an aria-label/aria-labelledby.	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Accessible name of link or button matches visible label · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~1109 finding(s) on 1109 page(s). XPath / selector: `<a href="#" data-bs-toggle="collapse" id="aCollapseNavigation" aria-label="Collapse Document Navigation">`	Moderate	1109	Without vision, Without speech	See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r14	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Element has required aria-owns · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~275 finding(s) on 163 page(s). XPath / selector: `<th scope="col">`	Moderate	163	Without vision, Limited vision, Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability	See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r46	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes
Page should contain a level-one heading · unattributed component Fix one place, resolve ~65 finding(s) on 65 page(s). XPath / selector: `html` `<html>`	Moderate	65	Requires manual testing.	See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/page-has-heading-one?application=axeAPI	pages (CSV)	Decision Assigned to Notes

Bug reports

13 issue type(s) are shown by default out of 42 total. Prioritized by severity, key pages, WCAG level, and prevalence; use the toggle to show everything.

Overall severity mix: 5 critical, 5 serious, 30 moderate, 2 minor. By WCAG category: 19 WCAG 2.0 A, 3 WCAG 2.0 AA, 1 WCAG 2.2 AA, 2 WCAG 2.x AAA, 8 Best Practice, 9 Undetermined. Ordered by severity, key-page impact, WCAG level, and prevalence. Following accessibility bug-reporting best practices. Download: Markdown · JSON (full archive) · JSON (AI diagnostic) · CSV (all findings) · Priority pages CSV · Priority pages JSON.

Automated testing does not establish full WCAG conformance. Findings in the verification lane require manual testing before they are treated as confirmed failures.

Default view shows 13 prioritized issue type(s); 29 more are available if you switch to "Show everything".

7 finding(s) marked "possible duplicate" — Alfa and axe-core both flagged the same WCAG SC on overlapping pages. If they target the same element, the axe-core report is authoritative. Filter the CSV by possible_duplicate_of to see these. Two engines flagging the same barrier reduces the chance of a false positive.

Findings needing review

These findings need manual verification before they can be treated as confirmed failures. Obligation remains visible for each finding.

Serious axe html-has-lang WCAG 2.0 A <html> element must have a lang attribute (WCAG 3.1.1) 76/8600 pages · 76 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-464d31ed
Pattern ID: VS-c126b6a6
Combined ID: VS-464d31ed (pattern VS-c126b6a6) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 3.1.1 Language of Page (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — <html> element must have a lang attribute [html-has-lang]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html
XPath / selector: html
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<html>

Description

<html> element must have a lang attribute. Detected by axe-core rule html-has-lang on 76 of 8600 scanned pages (76 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html.
Locate the element: html
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule html-has-lang against WCAG 3.1.1 Language of Page.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

…and more — all 76 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Add a lang attribute to <html> (e.g. lang="en").

Drupal tip: Drupal sets the page lang attribute from Admin › Configuration › Regional and Language › Languages. Ensure the default language is configured.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/html-has-lang?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Critical axe image-alt WCAG 2.0 A Images must have alternative text (WCAG 1.1.1) 40/8600 pages · 40 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-ad201d5b
Pattern ID: VS-9074b4dd
Combined ID: VS-ad201d5b (pattern VS-9074b4dd) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Images must have alternative text [image-alt]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html
XPath / selector: img[src$="cms-site-logo.png"]
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<img src="cms-site-logo.png">

Description

Images must have alternative text. Detected by axe-core rule image-alt on 40 of 8600 scanned pages (40 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html.
Locate the element: img[src$="cms-site-logo.png"]
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule image-alt against WCAG 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

…and more — all 40 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Give every <img> a meaningful alt attribute. Use alt="" only for decorative images so screen readers skip them.

Drupal tip: In Drupal's Media Library, fill the "Alternative text" field when uploading or editing an image. For images in body fields, the CKEditor "Image Properties" dialog includes an Alt Text field.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/image-alt?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Critical axe label WCAG 2.0 A Form elements must have labels (WCAG 4.1.2) 36/8600 pages · 36 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-f4e76906
Pattern ID: VS-fafffee0
Combined ID: VS-f4e76906 (pattern VS-fafffee0) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Form elements must have labels [label]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html
XPath / selector: #q
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (4 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<input type="text" name="q" id="q" value="Search now" size="10" maxlength="50" class="srchbox" onfocus="this.value='';">

Description

Form elements must have labels. Detected by axe-core rule label on 36 of 8600 scanned pages (36 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html.
Locate the element: #q
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule label against WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited manipulation/strength (13.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited manipulation/strength — 13.0% of population

Affected pages

…and more — all 36 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Associate every form control with a <label> (via for/id) or an aria-label/aria-labelledby.

Drupal tip: Use Drupal's form element "Label" setting. In Webform, every element has a Label field — ensure it's not empty or hidden. Check that twig templates don't strip <label> elements from form fields.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/label?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Serious axe list WCAG 2.0 A <ul> and <ol> must only directly contain <li>, <script> or <template> elements (WCAG 1.3.1) 8/8600 pages · 689 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-ff7aada4
Pattern ID: VS-a0bdbdf6
Combined ID: VS-ff7aada4 (pattern VS-a0bdbdf6) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — <ul> and <ol> must only directly contain <li>, <script> or <template> elements [list]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/search?f%5B0%5D=newsroom_article_type%3A29586&f%5B1%5D=topic%3A41&items_per_page=10&sort_by=search_api_relevance&sort_order=DESC
XPath / selector: .pager__items
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<ul class="pager__items js-pager__items cms-evo-unstyled-list ds-u-display--flex ds-u-justify-content--center">

Description

<ul> and <ol> must only directly contain <li>, <script> or <template> elements. Detected by axe-core rule list on 608 of 8600 scanned pages (2152 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/search?f%5B0%5D=newsroom_article_type%3A29586&f%5B1%5D=topic%3A41&items_per_page=10&sort_by=search_api_relevance&sort_order=DESC.
Locate the element: .pager__items
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule list against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Use <ul>/<ol> with only <li> children for lists; don't fake lists with <div>s.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/list?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Serious axe td-headers-attr WCAG 2.0 A Table cell headers attributes must refer to other <th> elements in the same tabl (WCAG 1.3.1) 7/8600 pages · 7 instances

Bug ID: VS-711f2857
Pattern ID: VS-07ba3b17
Combined ID: VS-711f2857 (pattern VS-07ba3b17) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Table cell headers attributes must refer to other <th> elements in the same tabl [td-headers-attr]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_pe_number&page=7&sort=asc
XPath / selector: .MsoTableGrid
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<table class="MsoTableGrid">

Description

Table cell headers attributes must refer to other <th> elements in the same tabl. Detected by axe-core rule td-headers-attr on 7 of 8600 scanned pages (7 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_pe_number&page=7&sort=asc.
Locate the element: .MsoTableGrid
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule td-headers-attr against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Associate data cells with their headers correctly using headers/id or scope.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/td-headers-attr?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Serious axe link-name WCAG 2.0 A Links must have discernible text (WCAG 2.4.4) 4/8600 pages · 5 instances

Bug ID: VS-45cff60e
Pattern ID: VS-e9fe47ac
Combined ID: VS-45cff60e (pattern VS-e9fe47ac) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Links must have discernible text [link-name]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx?ncaid=317&proposed=N
XPath / selector: ol[type="I"] > a[href$="#3I6"]
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<a href="#3I6">

<strong></strong></a>

Description

Links must have discernible text. Detected by axe-core rule link-name on 7 of 8600 scanned pages (9 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx?ncaid=317&proposed=N.
Locate the element: ol[type="I"] > a[href$="#3I6"]
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule link-name against WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context).

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Give the link discernible text. Avoid empty links and icon-only links without an aria-label.

Drupal tip: "Read more" links from Drupal Views should use the "Link text" rewrite field to add context, or add aria-label via the Views rewrite output.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/link-name?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Critical axe select-name WCAG 2.0 A Select element must have an accessible name (WCAG 4.1.2) 2/8600 pages · 2 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-62d736b5
Pattern ID: VS-fab92378
Combined ID: VS-62d736b5 (pattern VS-fab92378) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Select element must have an accessible name [select-name]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/priorities/innovation/innovation-models/map
XPath / selector: #state-code-select
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (3 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<select id="state-code-select" class="form-select ds-c-field">

Description

Select element must have an accessible name. Detected by axe-core rule select-name on 2 of 8600 scanned pages (2 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/priorities/innovation/innovation-models/map.
Locate the element: #state-code-select
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule select-name against WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited manipulation/strength (13.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited manipulation/strength — 13.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Give the <select> an accessible name via a <label> or aria-label.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/select-name?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Serious axe valid-lang WCAG 2.0 AA lang attribute must have a valid value (WCAG 3.1.2) 2/8600 pages · 2 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-5c1f6bbb
Pattern ID: VS-dd1c019f
Combined ID: VS-5c1f6bbb (pattern VS-dd1c019f) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 AA
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 3.1.2 Language of Parts (Level AA, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — lang attribute must have a valid value [valid-lang]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p
XPath / selector: span[lang="X-NONE"]
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<span lang="X-NONE">HHVBP</span>

Description

lang attribute must have a valid value. Detected by axe-core rule valid-lang on 2 of 8600 scanned pages (2 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p.
Locate the element: span[lang="X-NONE"]
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule valid-lang against WCAG 3.1.2 Language of Parts.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/valid-lang?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Critical axe aria-required-children WCAG 2.0 A Certain ARIA roles must contain particular children (WCAG 1.3.1) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-b7b8a7e9
Pattern ID: VS-9429bb8d
Combined ID: VS-b7b8a7e9 (pattern VS-9429bb8d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Certain ARIA roles must contain particular children [aria-required-children]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/medicare/prevention/prevntiongeninfo/medicare-preventive-services/mps-quickreferencechart-1.html
XPath / selector: #SERVICES
History: first seen 2026-W28, last seen 2026-W29 (2 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<ul id="SERVICES" class="closed openMenu" role="menu" tabindex="-1" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin-bottom: 60px;">

Description

Certain ARIA roles must contain particular children. Detected by axe-core rule aria-required-children on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (1 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/medicare/prevention/prevntiongeninfo/medicare-preventive-services/mps-quickreferencechart-1.html.
Locate the element: #SERVICES
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule aria-required-children against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

/medicare/prevention/prevntiongeninfo/medicare-preventive-services/mps-quickreferencechart-1.html

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Add the child roles this container role requires (e.g. a list needs listitem children).

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/aria-required-children?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Critical axe aria-allowed-attr WCAG 2.0 A Elements must only use supported ARIA attributes (WCAG 4.1.2) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-f4939545
Pattern ID: VS-1467ea8a
Combined ID: VS-f4939545 (pattern VS-1467ea8a) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: axe-core — Elements must only use supported ARIA attributes [aria-allowed-attr]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/health-drug-plans/provider-complaints-form
XPath / selector: .choices__placeholder
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (4 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<div class="choices__item choices__placeholder choices__item--selectable" data-item="" data-id="1" data-value="" data-custom-properties="[object Object]" aria-selected="true">Start typing to filter li

Description

Elements must only use supported ARIA attributes. Detected by axe-core rule aria-allowed-attr on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (1 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/health-drug-plans/provider-complaints-form.
Locate the element: .choices__placeholder
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule aria-allowed-attr against WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited manipulation/strength (13.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited manipulation/strength — 13.0% of population

Affected pages

/medicare/health-drug-plans/provider-complaints-form

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Remove ARIA attributes that aren't allowed on this role/element.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/aria-allowed-attr?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r4 WCAG 2.0 A Document has a valid lang attribute (WCAG 3.1.1) 39/8600 pages · 39 instances · possible duplicate Likely template

Bug ID: VS-843f0c6b
Pattern ID: VS-7a0e5645
Combined ID: VS-843f0c6b (pattern VS-7a0e5645) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 3.1.1 Language of Page (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Document has a valid lang attribute [sia-r4]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html
XPath / selector: <html>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-464d31ed (pattern VS-c126b6a6). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Document has a valid lang attribute. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r4 on 39 of 8600 scanned pages (39 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html.
Locate the element: <html>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r4 against WCAG 3.1.1 Language of Page.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

…and more — all 39 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Add a valid lang attribute to <html>.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r4

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r2 WCAG 2.0 A Image has accessible name (WCAG 1.1.1) 24/8600 pages · 24 instances · possible duplicate Likely template

Bug ID: VS-15b564c9
Pattern ID: VS-a24eaa8c
Combined ID: VS-15b564c9 (pattern VS-a24eaa8c) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Image has accessible name [sia-r2]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html
XPath / selector: <img src="cms-site-logo.png">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-ad201d5b (pattern VS-9074b4dd). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Image has accessible name. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r2 on 24 of 8600 scanned pages (24 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html.
Locate the element: <img src="cms-site-logo.png">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r2 against WCAG 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Give every <img> an accessible name (alt text), or alt="" if purely decorative.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r2

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r64 WCAG 2.0 A Element has required owned roles (WCAG 1.3.1) 23/8600 pages · 26 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-e58339f8
Pattern ID: VS-3c632d31
Combined ID: VS-e58339f8 (pattern VS-3c632d31) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Element has required owned roles [sia-r64]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html
XPath / selector: <h1>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Element has required owned roles. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r64 on 28 of 8600 scanned pages (28 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html.
Locate the element: <h1>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r64 against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r64

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r57 Undetermined Scrolling content can be accessed by keyboard (WCAG criterion undetermined) 1652/8600 pages · 1652 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-d0cd8ea3
Pattern ID: VS-c18be945
Combined ID: VS-d0cd8ea3 (pattern VS-c18be945) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Scrolling content can be accessed by keyboard [sia-r57]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc
XPath / selector: text: "Feedback"
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Scrolling content can be accessed by keyboard. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r57 on 1652 of 8600 scanned pages (1652 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc.
Locate the element: text: "Feedback"
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r57.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

…and more — all 1652 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r57

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe region Best Practice All page content should be contained by landmarks (WCAG criterion undetermined) 76/8600 pages · 1404 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-cdf9845d
Pattern ID: VS-f18df681
Combined ID: VS-cdf9845d (pattern VS-f18df681) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — All page content should be contained by landmarks [region]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html
XPath / selector: .arrows > tbody > tr:nth-child(1)
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<tr>
		<td><img src="cms-site-logo.png"></td>
		<td style="text-align:center;"><h1>ICD-10-CM/PCS MS-DRG v39.0 Definitions Manual</h1><h1></h1></td>
		<td></td>
		<td></td>
		<td></td>
	</tr>

Description

All page content should be contained by landmarks. Detected by axe-core rule region on 76 of 8600 scanned pages (1404 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html.
Locate the element: .arrows > tbody > tr:nth-child(1)
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule region.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

…and more — all 76 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Wrap all page content in landmarks (header, nav, main, footer) so users can navigate by region.

Drupal tip: Use Drupal's region system (header, navigation, main, sidebar, footer) and map each to an HTML5 landmark element in your theme's page.html.twig.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/region?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe landmark-one-main Best Practice Document should have one main landmark (WCAG criterion undetermined) 76/8600 pages · 76 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-9259d965
Pattern ID: VS-d5d82446
Combined ID: VS-9259d965 (pattern VS-d5d82446) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Document should have one main landmark [landmark-one-main]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html
XPath / selector: html
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<html>

Description

Document should have one main landmark. Detected by axe-core rule landmark-one-main on 76 of 8600 scanned pages (76 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html.
Locate the element: html
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule landmark-one-main.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

…and more — all 76 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Each page should have exactly one <main> landmark.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/landmark-one-main?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe page-has-heading-one Best Practice Page should contain a level-one heading (WCAG criterion undetermined) 65/8600 pages · 65 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-302dafd5
Pattern ID: VS-fa44f293
Combined ID: VS-302dafd5 (pattern VS-fa44f293) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Page should contain a level-one heading [page-has-heading-one]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html
XPath / selector: html
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<html>

Description

Page should contain a level-one heading. Detected by axe-core rule page-has-heading-one on 65 of 8600 scanned pages (65 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html.
Locate the element: html
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule page-has-heading-one.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

…and more — all 65 pages (CSV).

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/page-has-heading-one?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Minor axe empty-heading Best Practice Headings should not be empty (WCAG criterion undetermined) 23/8600 pages · 44 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-d86c817e
Pattern ID: VS-0066c67d
Combined ID: VS-d86c817e (pattern VS-0066c67d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Headings should not be empty [empty-heading]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html
XPath / selector: h1:nth-child(2)
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<h1></h1>

Description

Headings should not be empty. Detected by axe-core rule empty-heading on 48 of 8600 scanned pages (48 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html.
Locate the element: h1:nth-child(2)
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule empty-heading.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Remove empty headings or give them text. Don't use heading tags for spacing.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/empty-heading?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r111 WCAG 2.x AAA Target size is at least 44×44 CSS pixels (Enhanced) (WCAG 2.5.5) 17/8600 pages · 91708 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-97d08a8f
Pattern ID: VS-cb53cc4d
Combined ID: VS-97d08a8f (pattern VS-cb53cc4d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.x AAA
Obligation: aspirational
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 2.5.5 Target Size (Enhanced) (Level AAA, WCAG 2.1)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Target size is at least 44×44 CSS pixels (Enhanced) [sia-r111]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc
XPath / selector: <a href="/about-cms" class="menu-item-link" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/132926" data-once="navigationLinkMatch">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Target size is at least 44×44 CSS pixels (Enhanced). Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r111 on 3686 of 8600 scanned pages (134864 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc.
Locate the element: <a href="/about-cms" class="menu-item-link" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/132926" data-once="navigationLinkMatch">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r111 against WCAG 2.5.5 Target Size (Enhanced).

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r111

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r73 WCAG 2.x AAA Text has minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 (WCAG 1.4.8) 17/8600 pages · 27146 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-fadd2eaf
Pattern ID: VS-2208081b
Combined ID: VS-fadd2eaf (pattern VS-2208081b) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.x AAA
Obligation: aspirational
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.4.8 Visual Presentation (Level AAA, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Text has minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 [sia-r73]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc
XPath / selector: <p class="ds-c-usa-banner__header-text">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Text has minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r73 on 3674 of 8600 scanned pages (39920 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc.
Locate the element: <p class="ds-c-usa-banner__header-text">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r73 against WCAG 1.4.8 Visual Presentation.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r73

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r61 Undetermined Form field label is visible (WCAG criterion undetermined) 17/8600 pages · 2479 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-493d75bf
Pattern ID: VS-7118fead
Combined ID: VS-493d75bf (pattern VS-7118fead) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Form field label is visible [sia-r61]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc
XPath / selector: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"type","name":"html","publicId":null,"sys
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Form field label is visible. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r61 on 3646 of 8600 scanned pages (3646 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_issue_date&page=9&sort=asc.
Locate the element: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"type","name":"html","publicId":null,"sys
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r61.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r61

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe heading-order Best Practice Heading levels should only increase by one (WCAG criterion undetermined) 17/8600 pages · 571 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-34b03321
Pattern ID: VS-d25f622d
Combined ID: VS-34b03321 (pattern VS-d25f622d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Heading levels should only increase by one [heading-order]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all
XPath / selector: h4:nth-child(16)
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<h4><a name="preamble">Preamble</a></h4>

Description

Heading levels should only increase by one. Detected by axe-core rule heading-order on 810 of 8600 scanned pages (839 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all.
Locate the element: h4:nth-child(16)
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule heading-order.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Use heading levels in order (h1 → h2 → h3) without skipping; structure, not size.

Drupal tip: Drupal Views and blocks can insert headings at arbitrary levels. In the Views UI, set "Title tag" for each display. For block titles, configure the heading level in the block's layout settings.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/heading-order?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r75 Undetermined Form field error is identified and described (WCAG criterion undetermined) 15/8600 pages · 30 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-2aa9bafb
Pattern ID: VS-e43903a1
Combined ID: VS-2aa9bafb (pattern VS-e43903a1) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Form field error is identified and described [sia-r75]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html
XPath / selector: <ul id="globar">
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (4 wk)

Description

Form field error is identified and described. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r75 on 15 of 8600 scanned pages (30 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html.
Locate the element: <ul id="globar">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r75.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r75

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r59 Undetermined Element with orientation is not locked (WCAG criterion undetermined) 15/8600 pages · 15 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-ceac3d33
Pattern ID: VS-7fbb8b20
Combined ID: VS-ceac3d33 (pattern VS-7fbb8b20) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Element with orientation is not locked [sia-r59]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html
XPath / selector: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"element","children":[{"type":"element","
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (4 wk)

Description

Element with orientation is not locked. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r59 on 15 of 8600 scanned pages (15 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html.
Locate the element: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"element","children":[{"type":"element","
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r59.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r59

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe landmark-unique Best Practice Landmarks should have a unique role or role/label/title (i.e. accessible name) c (WCAG criterion undetermined) 10/8600 pages · 10 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-e684a6a8
Pattern ID: VS-8806389c
Combined ID: VS-e684a6a8 (pattern VS-8806389c) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Landmarks should have a unique role or role/label/title (i.e. accessible name) c [landmark-unique]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/about-cms/contact/newsroom?page=3
XPath / selector: .views-field-field-topic[aria-label="Related search topics"][role="region"]:nth-child(1)
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<span class="views-field views-field-field-topic" role="region" aria-label="Related search topics">
<a href="/newsroom/search?sort_by=search_api_relevance&amp;sort_order=DESC&amp;items_per_page=10&amp

Description

Landmarks should have a unique role or role/label/title (i.e. accessible name) c. Detected by axe-core rule landmark-unique on 10 of 8600 scanned pages (10 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/about-cms/contact/newsroom?page=3.
Locate the element: .views-field-field-topic[aria-label="Related search topics"][role="region"]:nth-child(1)
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule landmark-unique.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: When a landmark role/type repeats (e.g. two <nav>s), give each a distinct accessible name with aria-label or aria-labelledby (e.g. "Primary" and "Footer" navigation) so screen-reader users can tell them apart.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/landmark-unique?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r53 Undetermined Headings are structured hierarchically (WCAG criterion undetermined) 7/8600 pages · 396 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-f32b8b18
Pattern ID: VS-f054f4a4
Combined ID: VS-f32b8b18 (pattern VS-f054f4a4) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Headings are structured hierarchically [sia-r53]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all
XPath / selector: <h4>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Headings are structured hierarchically. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r53 on 1397 of 8600 scanned pages (1416 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all.
Locate the element: <h4>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r53.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Use headings in a logical, non-skipping order.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r53

Triage status Notes

Moderate deprecated-html presentational-attr Undetermined Presentational attribute (use CSS) (WCAG criterion undetermined) 7/8600 pages · 70 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-a0050faf
Pattern ID: VS-04a9d28c
Combined ID: VS-a0050faf (pattern VS-04a9d28c) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: deprecated-html — Presentational attribute (use CSS) [presentational-attr]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all
XPath / selector: p
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<p class="MsoTitle" align="center" style="text-align:center">Proposed Guidance Document:<br>Study Protocols That Use Real-world Data<br>January 17, 2025</p>

Description

Presentational attribute (use CSS). Detected by deprecated-html rule presentational-attr on 29 of 8600 scanned pages (250 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx?bc=16&docTypeId=-1&mcdid=39&sortBy=title&status=all.
Locate the element: p
Confirm the deprecated-html finding for rule presentational-attr.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: deprecated-html, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r69 WCAG 2.0 AA Text has sufficient color contrast (Enhanced) (WCAG 1.4.3) 5/8600 pages · 33 instances · possible duplicate Likely template

Bug ID: VS-28e3ed59
Pattern ID: VS-f7e99f4b
Combined ID: VS-28e3ed59 (pattern VS-f7e99f4b) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 AA
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) (Level AA, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Text has sufficient color contrast (Enhanced) [sia-r69]
Example URL: http://cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx?bc=7&contractorName=all&contractorNumber=all&lcdid=33828&lcdStatus=all&sortBy=title&ver=27
XPath / selector: text: "Code"
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-f8fd4311 (pattern VS-be8d563e). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Text has sufficient color contrast (Enhanced). Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r69 on 25 of 8600 scanned pages (164 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open http://cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx?bc=7&contractorName=all&contractorNumber=all&lcdid=33828&lcdStatus=all&sortBy=title&ver=27.
Locate the element: text: "Code"
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r69 against WCAG 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

Impact

Affects Limited vision (2.4%), Without color perception (4.5%).

Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Without color perception — 4.5% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Increase text contrast to meet WCAG AA (4.5:1, or 3:1 for large text).

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r69

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r113 WCAG 2.2 AA Target size is at least 24×24 CSS pixels or has spacing (Minimum) (WCAG 2.5.8) 4/8600 pages · 115 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-05c10a41
Pattern ID: VS-179ad9b3
Combined ID: VS-05c10a41 (pattern VS-179ad9b3) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.2 AA
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum) (Level AA, WCAG 2.2)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Target size is at least 24×24 CSS pixels or has spacing (Minimum) [sia-r113]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleId=60191&ver=6
XPath / selector: <a href="#lblRelatedNationalSubheader" data-href="lblRelatedNationalSubheader" class="nav-link toc-link no-link log-click" title="Jump to Related National Coverage Documents">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Target size is at least 24×24 CSS pixels or has spacing (Minimum). Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r113 on 443 of 8600 scanned pages (718 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleId=60191&ver=6.
Locate the element: <a href="#lblRelatedNationalSubheader" data-href="lblRelatedNationalSubheader" class="nav-link toc-link no-link log-click" title="Jump to Related National Coverage Documents">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r113 against WCAG 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum).

Impact

Affects Limited manipulation/strength (13.0%), Limited reach (2.0%), Limited vision (2.4%).

Limited manipulation/strength — 13.0% of population
Limited reach — 2.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r113

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r78 Undetermined Table header has scope (WCAG criterion undetermined) 3/8600 pages · 91 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-d6f931f8
Pattern ID: VS-2cd767ca
Combined ID: VS-d6f931f8 (pattern VS-2cd767ca) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Table header has scope [sia-r78]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleId=57878&ver=26
XPath / selector: <h4>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Table header has scope. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r78 on 483 of 8600 scanned pages (759 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleId=57878&ver=26.
Locate the element: <h4>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r78.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r78

Triage status Notes

Minor axe empty-table-header Best Practice Table header text should not be empty (WCAG criterion undetermined) 3/8600 pages · 7 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-e5c53932
Pattern ID: VS-d69fc059
Combined ID: VS-e5c53932 (pattern VS-d69fc059) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Table header text should not be empty [empty-table-header]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx?fromTracking=Y&ncaid=309&proposed=Y
XPath / selector: li:nth-child(287) > table > tbody > tr:nth-child(1) > th:nth-child(1)
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<th></th>

Description

Table header text should not be empty. Detected by axe-core rule empty-table-header on 12 of 8600 scanned pages (28 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx?fromTracking=Y&ncaid=309&proposed=Y.
Locate the element: li:nth-child(287) > table > tbody > tr:nth-child(1) > th:nth-child(1)
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule empty-table-header.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/empty-table-header?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r45 WCAG 2.0 A aria-hidden element is not exposed to assistive technology (WCAG 1.3.1) 2/8600 pages · 290 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-38861985
Pattern ID: VS-9207ed51
Combined ID: VS-38861985 (pattern VS-9207ed51) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — aria-hidden element is not exposed to assistive technology [sia-r45]
Example URL: https://cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_transmittal_number&page=0&sort=desc
XPath / selector: @headers="view-field-dyna-release-date-table-column"
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (3 wk)

Description

aria-hidden element is not exposed to assistive technology. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r45 on 2 of 8600 scanned pages (290 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals?items_per_page=25&order=field_dyna_transmittal_number&page=0&sort=desc.
Locate the element: @headers="view-field-dyna-release-date-table-column"
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r45 against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r45

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r68 WCAG 2.0 A Presentational children of an element are not focusable (WCAG 1.3.1) 2/8600 pages · 67 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-e3442ee9
Pattern ID: VS-d6097011
Combined ID: VS-e3442ee9 (pattern VS-d6097011) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Presentational children of an element are not focusable [sia-r68]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/reports/local-coverage-final-lcds-state-report.aspx?contractorNumber=all&lcdid=38684&lcdStatus=all&sortBy=title&stateRegion=all
XPath / selector: <tfoot>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Presentational children of an element are not focusable. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r68 on 235 of 8600 scanned pages (839 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/reports/local-coverage-final-lcds-state-report.aspx?contractorNumber=all&lcdid=38684&lcdStatus=all&sortBy=title&stateRegion=all.
Locate the element: <tfoot>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r68 against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r68

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r11 WCAG 2.0 A Link has accessible name (WCAG 2.4.4) 2/8600 pages · 3 instances · possible duplicate

Bug ID: VS-a27f10b2
Pattern ID: VS-28ebd979
Combined ID: VS-a27f10b2 (pattern VS-28ebd979) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Link has accessible name [sia-r11]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/cms-updates-nursing-home-guidance-revised-visitation-recommendations
XPath / selector: <a href="#_bookmark0" data-once="linkMatch">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-45cff60e (pattern VS-e9fe47ac). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Link has accessible name. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r11 on 4 of 8600 scanned pages (5 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/cms-updates-nursing-home-guidance-revised-visitation-recommendations.
Locate the element: <a href="#_bookmark0" data-once="linkMatch">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r11 against WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context).

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Give the link an accessible name via text content or aria-label.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r11

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r7 WCAG 2.0 AA Element with lang attribute has correct language (WCAG 3.1.2) 2/8600 pages · 2 instances · possible duplicate Likely content

Bug ID: VS-b6b9637c
Pattern ID: VS-400f3a18
Combined ID: VS-b6b9637c (pattern VS-400f3a18) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 AA
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 3.1.2 Language of Parts (Level AA, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Element with lang attribute has correct language [sia-r7]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p
XPath / selector: @lang="X-NONE"
History: first seen 2026-W26, last seen 2026-W29 (3 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-5c1f6bbb (pattern VS-dd1c019f). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Element with lang attribute has correct language. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r7 on 2 of 8600 scanned pages (2 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p.
Locate the element: @lang="X-NONE"
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r7 against WCAG 3.1.2 Language of Parts.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r7

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r46 WCAG 2.0 A Element has required aria-owns (WCAG 1.3.1) 1/8600 pages · 11 instances Likely template

Bug ID: VS-ed12f5a7
Pattern ID: VS-4408605e
Combined ID: VS-ed12f5a7 (pattern VS-4408605e) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Element has required aria-owns [sia-r46]
Example URL: http://cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleid=57678&articleStatus=all&bc=5&contractorNumber=all&sortBy=title&stateRegion=all&ver=11
XPath / selector: <th scope="col">
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

Description

Element has required aria-owns. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r46 on 165 of 8600 scanned pages (281 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open http://cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleid=57678&articleStatus=all&bc=5&contractorNumber=all&sortBy=title&stateRegion=all&ver=11.
Locate the element: <th scope="col">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r46 against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

/about-cms/work-us/cms-grants-cooperative-agreements/how-apply-cms-grants/cms-guidance-preparing-budget-request-narrative

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r46

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r77 WCAG 2.0 A Table cell has header (WCAG 1.3.1) 1/8600 pages · 7 instances · possible duplicate

Bug ID: VS-4207d3ce
Pattern ID: VS-3f067795
Combined ID: VS-4207d3ce (pattern VS-3f067795) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Table cell has header [sia-r77]
Example URL: http://cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/proposed-pathways-success-medicare-shared-savings-program
XPath / selector: <td>
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-711f2857 (pattern VS-07ba3b17). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Table cell has header. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r77 on 6 of 8600 scanned pages (43 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open http://cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/proposed-pathways-success-medicare-shared-savings-program.
Locate the element: <td>
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r77 against WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability (11.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited cognitive, language, or learning ability — 11.0% of population

Affected pages

/newsroom/fact-sheets/proposed-pathways-success-medicare-shared-savings-program

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r77

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r18 Undetermined aria attribute is permitted for element role (WCAG criterion undetermined) 1/8600 pages · 3 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-7c656026
Pattern ID: VS-e05344b9
Combined ID: VS-7c656026 (pattern VS-e05344b9) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — aria attribute is permitted for element role [sia-r18]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation
XPath / selector: @aria-label="Open Medicare Advantage Geographic Variation - National & State"
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

Description

aria attribute is permitted for element role. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r18 on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (3 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation.
Locate the element: @aria-label="Open Medicare Advantage Geographic Variation - National & State"
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r18.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Only use ARIA states/properties that are allowed on this element/role.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r18

Triage status Notes

Moderate axe landmark-banner-is-top-level Best Practice Banner landmark should not be contained in another landmark (WCAG criterion undetermined) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-73aab097
Pattern ID: VS-30db094d
Combined ID: VS-73aab097 (pattern VS-30db094d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Best Practice
Obligation: advisory
Handling: review
WCAG SC: Best Practice — not a WCAG requirement
Rule: axe-core — Banner landmark should not be contained in another landmark [landmark-banner-is-top-level]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation
XPath / selector: .Header
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

HTML snippet — use this to validate the finding without re-running the tool

<header class="Header" style="position: sticky;">

Description

Banner landmark should not be contained in another landmark. Detected by axe-core rule landmark-banner-is-top-level on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (1 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation.
Locate the element: .Header
Confirm the axe-core finding for rule landmark-banner-is-top-level.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation

Testing environment

Automated: axe-core, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Put the banner landmark (<header>) at the top level, not nested inside another landmark.

See remediation guidance: https://dequeuniversity.com/rules/axe/4.12/landmark-banner-is-top-level?application=axeAPI

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r87 Undetermined First focusable element is link to main content (WCAG criterion undetermined) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances Likely content

Bug ID: VS-9a6b0c3e
Pattern ID: VS-aa242c2d
Combined ID: VS-9a6b0c3e (pattern VS-aa242c2d) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: Undetermined
Obligation: unmapped
Handling: review
WCAG SC: undetermined
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — First focusable element is link to main content [sia-r87]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation
XPath / selector: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"type","name":"html","publicId":null,"sys
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)

Description

First focusable element is link to main content. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r87 on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (1 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation.
Locate the element: {"type":"document","children":[{"type":"type","name":"html","publicId":null,"sys
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r87.

Impact

Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Affected pages

/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r87

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r8 WCAG 2.0 A Form field has accessible name (WCAG 4.1.2) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances · possible duplicate Likely content

Bug ID: VS-02be4c2a
Pattern ID: VS-a48e6078
Combined ID: VS-02be4c2a (pattern VS-a48e6078) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Form field has accessible name [sia-r8]
Example URL: http://cms.gov/priorities/innovation/where-innovation-happening
XPath / selector: <select id="state-code-select" class="form-select ds-c-field">
History: first seen 2026-W25, last seen 2026-W29 (5 wk)
Possible duplicate: Same WCAG SC covered by axe report VS-f4939545 (pattern VS-1467ea8a). If axe and this engine flag the same element, the axe report takes precedence — mark this as duplicate in JIRA.

Description

Form field has accessible name. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r8 on 1 of 8600 scanned pages (1 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open http://cms.gov/priorities/innovation/where-innovation-happening.
Locate the element: <select id="state-code-select" class="form-select ds-c-field">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r8 against WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

Impact

Affects Without vision (1.0%), Limited vision (2.4%), Limited manipulation/strength (13.0%).

Without vision — 1.0% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population
Limited manipulation/strength — 13.0% of population

Affected pages

/priorities/innovation/where-innovation-happening

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Associate the form field with a label.

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r8

Triage status Notes

Moderate alfa sia-r62 WCAG 2.0 A Link in text block is visually distinguishable without color (WCAG 1.4.1) 1/8600 pages · 1 instances

Bug ID: VS-61645127
Pattern ID: VS-efd91fdd
Combined ID: VS-61645127 (pattern VS-efd91fdd) — use this format in JIRA/spreadsheets to filter by instance or pattern
WCAG category: WCAG 2.0 A
Obligation: required
Handling: review
WCAG SC: 1.4.1 Use of Color (Level A, WCAG 2.0)
Rule: Siteimprove Alfa — Link in text block is visually distinguishable without color [sia-r62]
Example URL: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleid=55909&ver=39
XPath / selector: <a href="#" data-bs-toggle="modal" data-bs-target="#MCDNoticeBoadModal" id="aBoardItemLink_2">
History: first seen 2026-W24, last seen 2026-W29 (6 wk)

Description

Link in text block is visually distinguishable without color. Detected by Siteimprove Alfa rule sia-r62 on 7 of 8600 scanned pages (7 instances).

Steps to reproduce

Open https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx?articleid=55909&ver=39.
Locate the element: <a href="#" data-bs-toggle="modal" data-bs-target="#MCDNoticeBoadModal" id="aBoardItemLink_2">
Confirm the Siteimprove Alfa finding for rule sia-r62 against WCAG 1.4.1 Use of Color.

Impact

Affects Without color perception (4.5%), Limited vision (2.4%).

Without color perception — 4.5% of population
Limited vision — 2.4% of population

Affected pages

/newsroom/press-kit

Testing environment

Automated: Siteimprove Alfa, headless Chromium (Playwright). Manual AT verification: Not captured by automated scan — requires manual testing.

Suggested fix

How to fix: Make links visually distinguishable from surrounding text (not by color alone).

See remediation guidance: https://alfa.siteimprove.com/rules/sia-r62

Triage status Notes

Deque axe-core findings

Rule-level axe-core summary (23 rule type(s))

Each failing rule links out to the axe-core documentation. For full element-level detail including HTML snippets and XPaths, see the bug reports above.

axe-core rules failing in 2026-W29, by pages affected
Rule	Impact	Pages affected	Instances	Example pages	All affected
Heading levels should only increase by one [heading-order]	moderate	810	839	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /newsroom/search /apps/ama/license.asp	all 810 pages (CSV)
Links must be distinguishable without relying on color [link-in-text-block]	serious	751	1802	/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx	all 751 pages (CSV)
<ul> and <ol> must only directly contain <li>, <script> or <template> elements [list]	serious	608	2152	/newsroom/search /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 608 pages (CSV)
All page content should be contained by landmarks [region]	moderate	76	1404	/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html	all 76 pages (CSV)
<html> element must have a lang attribute [html-has-lang]	serious	76	76	/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html	all 76 pages (CSV)
Document should have one main landmark [landmark-one-main]	moderate	76	76	/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html	all 76 pages (CSV)
Page should contain a level-one heading [page-has-heading-one]	moderate	65	65	/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html /derechos-facturas-medicas/ayuda/guias/que-tipo-de-seguro	all 65 pages (CSV)
Headings should not be empty [empty-heading]	minor	48	48	/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html /icd10m/version38-0-R1-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0238.html	all 48 pages (CSV)
Elements must meet minimum color contrast ratio thresholds [color-contrast]	serious	47	380	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx	all 47 pages (CSV)
Images must have alternative text [image-alt]	critical	40	40	/icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0032.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html /icd10m/version38-0-R1-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0238.html	all 40 pages (CSV)
Form elements must have labels [label]	critical	36	36	/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0389.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1900.html	all 36 pages (CSV)
scope attribute should be used correctly [scope-attr-valid]	moderate	24	467	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/medcac-meeting.aspx	all 24 pages (CSV)
Table header text should not be empty [empty-table-header]	minor	12	28	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare/medicare-fee-for-service-payment/sharedsavingsprogram/application-information /medicare-coverage-database/view/medcac-meeting.aspx	all 12 pages (CSV)
Landmarks should have a unique role or role/label/title (i.e. accessible name) combination [landmark-unique]	moderate	10	10	/about-cms/contact/newsroom /priorities/innovation/evaluation-research-reports /about-cms/contact/newsroom	all 10 pages (CSV)
<li> elements must be contained in a <ul> or <ol> [listitem]	serious	8	174	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx	all 8 pages (CSV)
Links must have discernible text [link-name]	serious	7	9	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /newsroom/fact-sheets/cms-updates-nursing-home-guidance-revised-visitation-recommendations /medicare/quality/clinical-laboratory-improvement-amendments	all 7 pages (CSV)
Table cell headers attributes must refer to other <th> elements in the same table [td-headers-attr]	serious	7	7	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals /medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals /medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals	all 7 pages (CSV)
Select element must have an accessible name [select-name]	critical	2	2	/priorities/innovation/innovation-models/map /priorities/innovation/where-innovation-happening	all 2 pages (CSV)
lang attribute must have a valid value [valid-lang]	serious	2	2	/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p /data-research/monitoring-programs/improper-payment-measurement-programs/exchange-improper-payment-measurement-eipm/improper-payment-findings	all 2 pages (CSV)
Banner landmark should not be contained in another landmark [landmark-banner-is-top-level]	moderate	1	1	/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation	all 1 pages (CSV)
Elements must only use supported ARIA attributes [aria-allowed-attr]	critical	1	1	/medicare/health-drug-plans/provider-complaints-form	all 1 pages (CSV)
Scrollable region must have keyboard access [scrollable-region-focusable]	serious	1	1	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx	all 1 pages (CSV)
Certain ARIA roles must contain particular children [aria-required-children]	critical	1	1	/medicare/prevention/prevntiongeninfo/medicare-preventive-services/mps-quickreferencechart-1.html	all 1 pages (CSV)

Siteimprove Alfa findings

Rule-level Alfa summary (31 rule type(s))

Rule-level summary from Siteimprove Alfa (W3C ACT-based). Findings that overlap with axe-core on the same WCAG success criterion are noted as possible duplicates in the bug reports above.

Alfa rules failing in 2026-W29, by pages affected
Rule	Impact	Pages affected	Instances	Example pages	All affected
Target size is at least 44×44 CSS pixels (Enhanced) [sia-r111]	n/a	3686	134864	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals /medicare/coding-billing/skilled-nursing-facility-snf-consolidated-billing/2020-part-b-mac-update /medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx	all 3686 pages (CSV)
Text has minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 [sia-r73]	n/a	3674	39920	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals /medicare/coding-billing/skilled-nursing-facility-snf-consolidated-billing/2020-part-b-mac-update /medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx	all 3674 pages (CSV)
Form field label is visible [sia-r61]	n/a	3646	3646	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals /medicare/coding-billing/skilled-nursing-facility-snf-consolidated-billing/2020-part-b-mac-update /medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx	all 3646 pages (CSV)
Scrolling content can be accessed by keyboard [sia-r57]	n/a	1652	1652	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2015-transmittals /medicare/coding-billing/skilled-nursing-facility-snf-consolidated-billing/2020-part-b-mac-update /newsroom/press-releases/600000-north-carolinians-now-have-access-medicaid-expansion-coverage	all 1652 pages (CSV)
Headings are structured hierarchically [sia-r53]	n/a	1397	1416	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /apps/ama/license.asp	all 1397 pages (CSV)
Text has enhanced contrast [sia-r66]	n/a	1224	6564	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 1224 pages (CSV)
Link is distinguishable without relying on color [sia-r74]	n/a	1223	92167	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 1223 pages (CSV)
Accessible name of link or button matches visible label [sia-r14]	n/a	1219	3109	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 1219 pages (CSV)
Table header has scope [sia-r78]	n/a	483	759	/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /priorities/health-equity/minority-health/resource-center/language /medicare-coverage-database/reports/local-coverage-final-lcds-state-report.aspx	all 483 pages (CSV)
Target size is at least 24×24 CSS pixels or has spacing (Minimum) [sia-r113]	n/a	443	718	/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html	all 443 pages (CSV)
Presentational children of an element are not focusable [sia-r68]	n/a	235	839	/medicare-coverage-database/reports/local-coverage-final-lcds-state-report.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/nca.aspx /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html	all 235 pages (CSV)
Element has required aria-owns [sia-r46]	n/a	165	281	/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 165 pages (CSV)
Scrollable element is keyboard accessible [sia-r80]	n/a	75	1137	/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx	all 75 pages (CSV)
iframe element is not empty [sia-r71]	n/a	47	710	/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 47 pages (CSV)
Document has a valid lang attribute [sia-r4]	n/a	39	39	/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html /icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0025.html	all 39 pages (CSV)
Element has required owned roles [sia-r64]	n/a	28	28	/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html /icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0025.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0361.html	all 28 pages (CSV)
Text has sufficient color contrast (Enhanced) [sia-r69]	n/a	25	164	/medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 25 pages (CSV)
Image has accessible name [sia-r2]	n/a	24	24	/icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0027.html /icd10m/version39.0-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0025.html /icd10m/FY2023-version40-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0361.html	all 24 pages (CSV)
Form field error is identified and described [sia-r75]	n/a	15	30	/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0006.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0084.html	all 15 pages (CSV)
Element with orientation is not locked [sia-r59]	n/a	15	15	/icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P1511.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0006.html /icd10m/version33-fullcode-cms/fullcode_cms/P0084.html	all 15 pages (CSV)
Duplicate role landmark is labeled [sia-r79]	n/a	9	9	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/details/medicare-coverage-document-details.aspx	all 9 pages (CSV)
No obsolete or deprecated elements are used [sia-r70]	n/a	8	8	/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/medcac-meeting.aspx	all 8 pages (CSV)
Link in text block is visually distinguishable without color [sia-r62]	n/a	7	7	/medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/lcd.aspx /newsroom/press-kit	all 7 pages (CSV)
Table cell has header [sia-r77]	n/a	6	43	/newsroom/fact-sheets/proposed-pathways-success-medicare-shared-savings-program /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/article.aspx	all 6 pages (CSV)
Keyboard trap does not exist [sia-r85]	n/a	5	15	/medicare-coverage-database/view/medicare-coverage-document.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/medcac-meeting.aspx /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx	all 5 pages (CSV)
Link has accessible name [sia-r11]	n/a	4	5	/newsroom/fact-sheets/cms-updates-nursing-home-guidance-revised-visitation-recommendations /medicare/quality/clinical-laboratory-improvement-amendments /medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-decision-memo.aspx	all 4 pages (CSV)
aria-hidden element is not exposed to assistive technology [sia-r45]	n/a	2	290	/medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals /medicare/regulations-guidance/transmittals/2022-transmittals	all 2 pages (CSV)
Element with lang attribute has correct language [sia-r7]	n/a	2	2	/newsroom/fact-sheets/calendar-year-cy-2026-home-health-prospective-payment-system-proposed-rule-fact-sheet-cms-1828-p /data-research/monitoring-programs/improper-payment-measurement-programs/exchange-improper-payment-measurement-eipm/improper-payment-findings	all 2 pages (CSV)
aria attribute is permitted for element role [sia-r18]	n/a	1	3	/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation	all 1 pages (CSV)
First focusable element is link to main content [sia-r87]	n/a	1	1	/research-statistics-data-and-systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-geographic-variation	all 1 pages (CSV)
Form field has accessible name [sia-r8]	n/a	1	1	/priorities/innovation/where-innovation-happening	all 1 pages (CSV)

Unique accessibility issues (axe + Alfa consolidated)

axe and Alfa both implement W3C ACT rules, so the same issue is often caught by both. These are deduplicated by ACT rule and page, so a shared finding counts once (22070 raw engine findings → 21970 unique).

Unique issues (rule × page): 21970
Caught by both engines: 100 highest confidence
axe only: 2609
Alfa only: 19261

8 rule type(s) caught by both engines — highest confidence

Two independent ACT-rule implementations (Deque axe-core and Siteimprove Alfa) flagged the same issue on the same pages. Agreement between separate engines is strong evidence the barrier is real, not a single-tool false positive — the best place to start.

Rules flagged by both axe-core and Alfa in 2026-W29, by pages affected.
Issue	Pages	Rule references
<html> element must have a lang attribute	76	axe html-has-lang · Alfa sia-r4 · ACT b5c3f8
Headings should not be empty	48	axe empty-heading · Alfa sia-r64 · ACT ffd0e9
Images must have alternative text	40	axe image-alt · Alfa sia-r2 · ACT 23a2a8
Form elements must have labels	38	axe label · Alfa sia-r8 · ACT e086e5
Table cell headers attributes must refer to other <th> elements in the same table	7	axe td-headers-attr · Alfa sia-r45 · ACT a25f45
Links must have discernible text	7	axe link-name · Alfa sia-r11 · ACT c487ae
lang attribute must have a valid value	2	axe valid-lang · Alfa sia-r7 · ACT de46e4
Elements must only use supported ARIA attributes	2	axe aria-allowed-attr · Alfa sia-r18 · ACT 5c01ea