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President George W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Amendments
Act Thursday, Sept. 25, 2008, in the Oval Office of the White House. |
On September 25, 2008, President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008. The Act makes important changes to the definition of the term "disability" by rejecting the holdings in several Supreme Court decisions and portions of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's ADA regulations.
The Act retains the ADA's basic definition of "disability" as an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. However, it changes the way that these statutory terms should be interpreted in several ways. Most significantly, the Act:
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Directs EEOC to revise that portion of its regulations defining the term "substantially limits"
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Expands the definition of "major life activities"
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States that mitigating measures other than "ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses" shall not be considered in assessing whether an individual has a disability"
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Clarifies that an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active;
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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
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Emphasizes that the definition of "disability" should be interpreted broadly
The ADA Amendments Act becomes effective January 1, 2009. |
