The ADA: Titles II and III

Doctors, Dentists and Medical Providers: The Next Wave of ADA Litigation?

Texas attorney Richard Hunt posted about the next wave of ADA focus and litigation, medical providers and people with disabilities.  While his expert analysis focused more on people with hearing impairments, it prompted my recent thought about people with physical impairments who use wheelchairs, or who are otherwise unable to stand or walk.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires medical providers to provide accomodations to patients with disabilities.  For people who are deaf, a doctor or dentist may be required to provide an interpreter (see Richard's post on Accessibility Defense via the link above).  For a patient in a wheelchair, what accommodations might be needed? 

If exam tables cannot be lowered to allow for transfer from a wheelchair to a table, staff might be required to lift the patient up to the exam table.  If the table can be lowered but the patient is unable to transfer, lifting might still be necessary. 

One obvious issue becomes the safety of staff required to lift a patient.  Another issue is tort liability--what if staff dropped the patient and caused an injury?  What if a doctor's staff consisted only of a nurse and receptionist--would "undue hardship" be a viable defense?  Would an adjustible exam table, or overhead lift, be cost prohibitive?

Requiring staff to lift or move a person with a mobility disability presents numerous concerns of safety and liability.  Yet, people with mobility impairments routinely lack good health care due to limitations of getting onto an exam table, into an x-ray or MRI machine, or into a dentist's chair.  It will be interesting to see how litigation affects these conflicting issues.

Misconception Series, #5: What The ADA Requires...or Doesn't

There are a few things that are routinely mentioned as being required by the ADA that are actually not required. 

• Automatic/Electric doors.  While it is true that the force necessary to open a door has a set limit under the ADA's Standards, electric or automatic doors are not required.  They make good business sense for parents with strollers, delivery people, shoppers with their arms full of shopping bags, and people using walkers or crutches, in addition to people in wheelchairs.

• Elevators.  It is a common assumption that elevators are required in any building with more than one floor.  The ADA includes an elevator exemption that does not require the owner to install an elevator in a facility that is being altered if it is less than three (3) stories, or less than 3,000 square feet per story. Buildings not covered by this exemption are a shopping center or mall, the professional office of a health care provider, a terminal, depot or other station used for specified public transportation, or an airport passenger terminal.

• Braille is required on menus.  Braille is not required on menus if a waiter or waitress is made available to read the menu to a blind customer.

• Sign language interpreters are always required.  If an effective means of communication with a person who is deaf includes writing on a notepad, then that would suffice.  Sign language interpreters are not always required, particularly if the cost to arrange such a service creates an undue hardship or burden.

Although features such as automatic doors are not required, and elevators are not required in certain circumstances, their existence often makes good business sense because of the benefit it provides to people with disabilities as well as other groups such as parents and families, and the aging population.