Questions About ADA Amendments Act

Two blogs I regularly check out are Execupundit and Eclecticity. Both commented on my post last week about the recently enacted ADA Amendments Act (which becomes effective on January 1, 2009).

Execupundit wondered whether, given Congress’ mandate that the new law be interpreted broadly, the exception for eyeglasses and contact lenses might be ultimately nixed or changed by the courts when they begin to decide disability discrimination cases under the new law. I was at a conference recently where one of the members of the panel I was moderating predicted exactly that. I’m inclined to believe that the exception will survive, since I think a lot of courts used to the older, more conservative interpretations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) will freak out once the new law begins to sink in. Time will tell.

Eclecticity, having some experience in trying to train about the original ADA, wondered how in the world employers can train for something as broad as the ADA Amendments Act. It will be difficult, but you can start with my original post on this new law from last week. Then you need to pay careful attention to what the courts do once they begin interpreting the law. As I said earlier, hold on to your hats.