Page "Disability" Paragraph 78

The US Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires all organizations that receive government funding to provide accessibility programs and services.

A more recent law, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ( ADA ), which came into effect in 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, or in the terms, conditions and privileges of employment.

This includes organizations like retail businesses, movie theaters, and restaurants.

They must make " reasonable accommodation " to people with different needs.

Protection is extended to anyone with ( A ) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of an individual, ( B ) a record of such an impairment, or ( C ) being regarded as having such an impairment.

The second and third criteria are seen as ensuring protection from unjust discrimination based on a perception of risk, just because someone has a record of impairment or appears to have a disability or illness ( e. g. features which may be erroneously taken as signs of an illness ).