Electric Mobility Scooters

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is the most comprehensive law ever passed to protect the civil rights of individuals with disabilities. The ADA will enable people with disabilities to participate more fully in their communities, compete more effectively for jobs, travel more easily in their hometowns and across the nation, and gain more complete access to the goods and services that most Americans take for granted. United Spinal Association is proud to have played a role in the passage of this landmark law. While many Americans have heard about the ADA, few know what this important law requires. The following are answers to some commonly asked questions about the ADA.

Some 54 million Americans have a disability covered by the ADA. While the ADA does not offer a laundry list of disabilities, some well-established examples covered by the law include (to name only a few) spinal cord injury, blindness, hearing impairment, epilepsy, HIV infection and AIDS, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, emphysema, cancer, dyslexia, organic brain disorder, cognitive impairment, and depression. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that disabilities should be considered in their corrected states. Conditions such as low vision, for example, if correctable, might not be covered by the ADA.

The ADA does not cover temporary, nonchronic impairments with no lasting impact, such as sprains, simple fractures, colds, and influenza; homosexuality and bisexuality, which are not impairments; or sexual and behavioral disorders, including transvestism, transsexualism, compulsive gambling, klepto-mania, and pyromania. The ADA also does not protect individuals who are currently abusing controlled substances.

The ADA affects any business or institution, public or private, that employs 15 or more people or offers goods or services to the public. That means virtually every public or private entity in the US must make some accommodations for the people with disabilities whom they serve or employ.

Executive agencies of the U.S. government are exempt from the provisions of the ADA but are covered by similar regulations promulgated by other disability nondiscrimination laws. Also not covered are corporations fully owned by the U.S. government, Indian tribes, and bona fide private clubs that are exempt from taxation under the Internal Revenue Code. Private clubs and religious organizations are exempt from the Title III (public accommodations) provisions.

The source of this information is the United Spinal Association, a not-for-profit organization. All of their services, from benefits counseling to wheelchair sports are made possible through donations.