Amendments broaden protection from disability bias

For the past 20 years, the key question in litigating under the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 has been: Is the individual disabled? With the passage of the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) on Jan. 1, 2009, the question is shifting to: Did the employer comply with obligations regarding the individual’s disability? Employers should be aware of the ADAAA’s practical implications — what has changed and new legal interpretations. Most important, employers should recognize the need to be proactive and adapt in order to avoid disability discrimination claims under a new era of sweeping coverage.

Several key terms and concepts have changed under the ADAAA with the intent of significantly broadening disability discrimination protection under the law. The most profound changes to the law include expanding the definition of a disability, listing conditions and major life activities that will always be covered without any further analysis and negating the use of corrective measures or the need to consider whether impairments are episodic or in remission.