Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability just as other civil rights laws prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age and religion.
The ADA guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to enjoy employment opportunities, purchase goods and services, participate in state and local government programs and more.
The ADA At-A-Glance
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, along with the subsequent ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), is an “equal opportunity” law for people with disabilities. The law is designed to prevent discrimination against people with disabilities and defines the requirements for a variety of entities to comply with the law.
The ADA is considered to be a natural follow-on to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, “finally affording people with disabilities the same protections the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had provided on the basis of race, color, religion and national origin.”
The ADA and its subsequent amendments grew out of the larger push for equality across a broad range of categories and is broken up into five different sections, called Titles, that define the requirements for different kinds of organizations. The ADA’s five Titles address Employment, Public Services, Public Accommodations, Telecommunications and Miscellaneous Provisions. Each Title sets out rules and responsibilities for these distinct entities.
While the ADA does not provide an exhaustive list of covered disabilities, the following are among the conditions that would likely qualify:
- Autism
- Deafness
- Blindness
- Diabetes
- Cancer
- Intellectual disabilities
- Bipolar disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Schizophrenia
- Cerebral palsy
- HIV infection
- Multiple sclerosis
- Muscular dystrophy
- Major depressive disorder
- Epilepsy
- Partial or completely missing limbs
- Mobility impairments requiring use of a wheelchair
Reliance Matrix assists hundreds of organizations employing millions of individuals, helping them operate with compliance and compassion under the requirements of the ADA.
