Disability (ADA Definition)

What Is a Disability Under the ADA?

The Americans with Disabilities Act defines disability using a three-pronged approach that is intentionally broad. Under the ADA, a person has a disability if they meet any one of three criteria:

1. Actual disability. A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as seeing, hearing, walking, breathing, learning, thinking, communicating, or working.

2. Record of disability. A history or record of having had such an impairment, even if the person no longer has it. This protects people with a history of conditions like cancer that is in remission.

3. Regarded as having a disability. Being treated by others as if they have a disability, whether or not they actually do. This protects people from discrimination based on perceived disabilities.

Major life activities include, but are not limited to: caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working. Major life activities also include the operation of major bodily functions such as the immune system, cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions.

The ADA Amendments Act of 2008

The original ADA (1990) left the definition of disability open to interpretation by courts, which over time narrowed it significantly. Several Supreme Court decisions in the early 2000s set a high bar for proving that an impairment "substantially limits" a major life activity, excluding many people Congress intended to protect.

In response, Congress passed the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) in 2008, which:

• Broadened the definition by stating it should be construed in favor of broad coverage.
• Rejected restrictive court interpretations that required severe limitations to qualify.
• Expanded major life activities to explicitly include major bodily functions.
• Covered episodic conditions such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and bipolar disorder, even when symptoms are controlled or in remission.
• Strengthened "regarded as" protection so that it no longer requires proving the perceived impairment is substantially limiting.
• Prohibited considering mitigating measures (like medication, hearing aids, or prosthetics) when determining whether an impairment substantially limits a major life activity, with the exception of ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Why It Matters for Digital Accessibility

The broad definition of disability under the ADA has direct implications for web and digital accessibility:

Wide range of users. Because the ADA covers physical, sensory, cognitive, and mental health conditions, accessible websites must work for people with diverse needs: screen reader users who are blind, keyboard-only users with motor disabilities, users with cognitive disabilities who need clear navigation, users who are deaf and need captions, and many more.

Growing coverage. As the population ages and chronic conditions become more prevalent, the number of people who meet the ADA's definition of disability grows. The World Health Organization estimates that 1.3 billion people globally experience significant disability, roughly 16% of the world population.

Legal exposure. Because the definition is so broad, nearly any business with a website may serve customers who have a disability under the ADA. This makes the argument that "our customers don't have disabilities" virtually impossible to sustain.