Americans with Disabilities Act
Classes:
Introduction to the ADA > Employment > Government / Public Transportation > Public Accommodation
Public Accommodations > Take the Test > Definitions > Title III Requirements > Existing Barriers / New Construction
Definitions
Individuals with Disabilities
The ADA provides comprehensive civil rights protections for individuals with disabilities. An individual with a disability is a person who:
- Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities;
- Has a record of such an impairment; or
- Is regarded as having such an impairment.
Examples of Impairments
Examples of physical or mental impairments include, but are not limited to, contagious and noncontagious diseases and conditions such as orthopedic, visual, speech and hearing impairments, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cancer heart disease, diabetes, mental retardation, emotional illness, specific learning disabilities, HIV disease, tuberculosis, drug addiction and alcoholism.
Homosexuality and bisexuality are not physical or mental impairments under the ADA
People who currently use illegal drugs are not protected by the ADA when the action is taken on the basis of their current drug use.
Major Life Activities
Major life activities include caring for one self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working. They are activities that a person in the general population can easily perform.
Eligibility for Goods and Services Under Title III of the ADA
In providing goods and services, a public accommodation may not use eligibility requirements that exclude or segregate people with disabilities, unless the requirements are necessary for the operation of the public accommodation. For example, a movie theater cannot exclude people with cerebral palsy. A restaurant cannot refuse to serve people with mental retardation.
Requirements that tend to screen out people with disabilities are prohibited. For example, a mall shop cannot require a blind person to produce a driver's license as the only means of identification when the blind person is paying by check.
Safety requirements may be put in place only if they are necessary for the safe operation of a public accommodation. The safety requirements must be based on actual risk and not on speculation, stereotypes or myths about people with disabilities. For example, an amusement park can impose height requirements for certain rides for safety.
Extra charges may not be imposed on people with disabilities to cover the cost of measures taken to ensure against discrimination. For example, a public accommodation cannot charge a person with a disability for removing barriers in a restaurant or providing a sign language interpreter at a theater performance.
Next: Public Accommodations.
