President Signs ADA Amendments Act of 2008

President Bush signed S 3406, ADA Amendments Act of 2008, into law on September 25, 2008. [Thomas | Open Congress]. Superseding the Supreme Court's holdings in Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc., 527 U.S. 471 (1999) and Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. v. Williams, 534 U.S. 184 (2002), the Act clarifies the definition of "disability" by providing that a person may be disabled even though measures such as medication, prosthetics and assistive technology are used to mitigate the disability.

The Act sets forth rules of construction regarding the definition of "disability," including that (1) "disability" shall be construed in favor of broad coverage of individuals under the Act, (2) an impairment that substantially limits one major life activity need not limit other major life activities in order to be a disability and (3) an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active.

The law is set to take effect on January 1, 2009. [JH]