EEOC Issues Final Regulations Interpreting the ADA Amendments Act

Effective May 24, final regulations published by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) protect many more employees from disability discrimination in the workplace than had previously been the case under the courts’ narrow interpretations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA).

According to an EEOC press release, “The ADAAA and the final regulations keep the ADA’s definition of the term ‘disability’ as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; a record (or past history) of such an impairment; or being regarded as having a disability. But the law made significant changes in how those terms are interpreted, and the regulations implement those changes.”

The regulations provide a list of principles to guide the determination of whether a person has a disability, including that an “impairment need not prevent or severely or significantly restrict performance of a major life activity to be considered a disability.” Whether an impairment is a disability should be construed broadly, to the maximum extent allowable under the law. And, with one exception (ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses), “mitigating measures,” such as medication and assistive devices like hearing aids, cannot be considered when determining whether someone has a disability. Impairments that are episodic (such as epilepsy) or in remission (such as cancer) are disabilities if they would be substantially limiting when active.

The regulations also clarify that the term “major life activities” includes “major bodily functions,” such as functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, and brain, neurological and endocrine functions. And, not every impairment will constitute a disability. Examples of impairments that should easily be concluded to be disabilities, such as HIV infection, diabetes, epilepsy and bipolar disorder, are provided.

Last, the regulations make it easier for individuals to establish coverage under the “regarded as” part of the definition of “disability.” Establishing such coverage used to pose significant hurdles, but under the new law, the focus is on how the person was treated rather than on what an employer believes about the nature of the person’s impairment.

Two question-and-answer documents about the regulations are available to the public and employers to help them understand the law and new regulations at www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/adaaa_info.cfm. For a complete list of the final regulations, go to www.federalregister.gov/articles/2011/03/25/2011-6056/regulations-to-implement-the-equal-employment-provisions-of-the-americans-with-disabilities-act-as.