I’m a bestselling wellness author and so I created this comprehensive guide to disability law with info about your rights and protections.
Approximately 61 million U.S. citizens live with at least one form of disability, including mental and physical impairments. They face enormous difficulties in their daily lives, from walking, and talking, to even hearing. This makes them vulnerable to exploitation and discrimination in public and private places.
Worse still, some are denied SSDI, SSI, ERISA, and other forms of disability benefits by unscrupulous insurance companies.
No worries. I’m here to help.
As you might know, I am a bestselling wellness author with about 2 million books sold globally.
Plus I founded a groundbreaking video course called The Anxiety Cure.
I love sharing tools to help people live their happiest and and healthiest lives.
With this mind, I created this comprehensive guide to disability law with info about your rights and protections, so you feel calm and safe.
First things first. Don’t worry if you find yourself in such a situation. Just get yourself the best long term disability lawyer, and they will champion your rights as spelled out by the Americans with Disability Act (ADA).
Right to Equal Employment Opportunities
The ADA protects people living with disability from discrimination while seeking employment opportunities. It demands employers with over 15 employees to offer qualified people with disabilities employment opportunities. Discrimination is prohibited in training, pay, hiring, recruitment, social activities, and other employment-related opportunities.
Furthermore, employers should make reasonable adjustments to accommodate employees with known mental or physical limitations.
Access to State and Local Government Services
The law requires state and local governments, no matter the size or amount of federal funding, to allow individuals with a disability to benefit from the activities, programs, and services. Disabled people can access employment, recreation, public education, social services, and healthcare services alongside those without disabilities.
A good example of achieving this is ensuring government buildings are modified or built according to architectural standards that make them accessible to those with disabilities. If they cannot modify and relocate some programs, they should effectively relay the information to those with speech, vision, and hearing impairments.
Public Transportation Law
Individuals with a disability have a right to commute to their desired destinations using public transportation means such as public rail or city buses. Public transportation authorities shouldn’t discriminate against impaired individuals in providing transport services. While they have special needs, efforts should be made to accommodate those needs.
For example, public vehicles should be modified to allow access to crutches and wheelchairs. The authorities should ensure newly purchased vehicles are accessible to those who need them. Paratransit should be provided in fixed-route rail and bus systems to drop off or pick up disabled people at specified convenient destinations.
Public Accommodations Law
The public accommodation law affects nonprofit service providers and businesses that offer hospitality to the public. These include:
- Retail stores
- Homeless shelters
- Daycare facilities
- Funeral homes
- Zoos
- Fitness clubs
- Convention centers
- Hotels
- Restaurants
- Movie theaters
- Doctor’s offices
- Sports stadiums
Please note the above list is not comprehensive.
Public accommodations must adhere to basic nondiscriminatory requirements. The establishments should prohibit segregation, unequal treatment, and exclusion based on disability. Public accommodation should be easily accessible by eliminating existent barriers to access. Individuals with disabilities are also protected from discrimination in commercial facilities like warehouses and factories under ADA’s architectural standards.
Protection of the Right to Communication
People with disabilities have a right to receive or send communication despite speech or hearing disabilities. To protect this right, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires telephone companies to establish telecommunication relays in and outside the states 24 hrs every day of the week. This enables callers to communicate with each other using voice telephones.
According to sections 255 and 251(a)(2) of the Communications Act (1996), telecommunications equipment manufacturers and telecommunications service providers should ensure that telephones, mobile phones, and other such equipment are accessible and can be used by people with disabilities. Previously, a wide range of products like cell phones, pagers, and telephones were not user-friendly to people with special needs.
Fair Housing Act
The Fair Housing Act of 1988 bans any discrimination based on disability, color, race, nationality, or religion regarding housing. The coverage includes federally funded housing and private housing. No one should be denied rental residence because of their disability.
Reasonable exceptions in operations and policies shall also be made available to individuals with disabilities, along with providing equal housing opportunities. For example, a residence with a no-pets policy may allow blind individuals to keep guide dogs within the residence for easier movement. Under the Fair Housing Act, the houses should be accessible with doorways wide enough for wheelchairs and special kitchens and bathrooms to accommodate those with special needs.
Final Word on Disability Law
The Americans with Disability Act (ADA) summarizes all the rights and protections of people living with disability. In a nutshell, the law protects them from exploitation in all sectors, including private or commercial.
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