ADA Amendments Act of 2008
September 30, 2008
On September 25, 2008, the President signed the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 ("ADA Amendments Act"). Over the past years, Supreme Court decisions eroded some of the protections the ADA originally was intended to govern. The ADA Amendment Act significantly changes the legal landscape for employees with disabilities in a positive way. The ADA Amendments Act retains the ADA's basic definition of "disability" as an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment. However, it changes the way that these statutory terms should be interpreted by the courts. Most significantly, the Act:
expands the definition of "major life activities" by including two non-exhaustive lists:
the first list includes many activities that the EEOC has recognized (e.g., walking) as well as activities that EEOC has not specifically recognized (e.g., reading, bending, and communicating);
the second list includes major bodily functions (e.g., "functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions);
states that mitigating measures other than "ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses" shall not be considered in assessing whether an individual has a disability";
clarifies that an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active;
provides that an individual subjected to an action prohibited by the ADA (e.g., failure to hire) because of an actual or perceived impairment will meet the "regarded as" definition of disability, unless the impairment is transitory and minor;
provides that individuals covered only under the "regarded as" prong are not entitled to reasonable accommodation; and
emphasizes that the definition of "disability" should be interpreted broadly.
The ADA Amendments Act is effective as of January 1, 2009.
Gibbons Jones P.C. in an Indiana employment law firm that represents employees who have disputes with employers. We anticipate that the ADA Amendments Act will provide significant protection for Indiana employees who have disabilities.
