Your Healthcare Rights If You Have A Disability
Key takeaways:
Federal laws protect people with physical and mental disabilities from discrimination in healthcare settings.
You have the right to expect your healthcare providers to arrange “reasonable modifications” to accommodate your disability.
You can file a complaint or take legal action against a healthcare provider who doesn’t offer accommodations or refuses to offer you care.
The CDC estimates that 61 million U.S. adults — more than 1 in 4 – have a disability. This includes trouble with walking and climbing stairs, thinking and memory, independent living, and other types of disabilities. In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became the first comprehensive civil rights law to ban discrimination against people with disabilities. The law allows people with disabilities to enjoy the same opportunities as other people in the U.S.
Since its inception, the ADA has been changed multiple times. And additional laws have been passed to further protect the rights of people with disabilities in regards to healthcare.
This article will look at some of these laws. We’ll also explore what accommodations you can expect from healthcare providers, and what to do if you believe your rights have been violated.
What federal laws safeguard the rights of people with disabilities?
There are several federal laws that protect the rights of people with disabilities. The one you’ve probably heard about most is the ADA.
The ADA defines a person with a disability as:
A person with a physical or mental challenge that keeps them from one or more major life activities
A person with a history or record of a physical or mental challenge
A person that other people believe has a disability
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It protects people with disabilities from discrimination in many areas of American life, such as:
Employment
State and local government activities, including healthcare and social services
Public transportation
Public access to buildings including medical offices and recreational facilities
Telephone and television communication for people with speech and hearing disabilities
How does the ADA apply to healthcare?
The ADA requires healthcare facilities and organizations to provide equal access to its structures and services to anyone with a disability. The law includes several sections known as “titles.”
Title II of the act covers healthcare organizations run by state or local governments. This includes facilities like state-run hospitals or county health clinics.
Title III covers private healthcare providers, like a physician in private practice, and nonprofits, such as community health centers.
For example, when you call for an appointment with your healthcare provider, they should ask if you’ll need assistance or extended time due to a disability to better meet your needs.
What other federal laws protect the rights of people with disabilities?
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. This law gives individuals with disabilities the right to receive federally funded program benefits and services from organizations and employers.
The law applies to entities that receive federal funding, such as:
Hospitals
Skilled nursing facilities (nursing homes)
Mental health centers
Social service programs
For example, when a child with a disability, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or dyslexia, needs accommodations at school, the staff can develop a 504 plan to support their learning.
Architectural Barriers Act (ABA). This law requires buildings and facilities funded by federal money to comply with federal standards for physical access. They must provide accommodations such as ramps and wide entryways for wheelchairs, for example.
Types of facilities covered by the ABA include medical care buildings, long-term care properties, and recreational facilities.
Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act. This law protects the rights of people with mental health issues or substance use disorders. It requires most group health plans and insurers to provide mental health benefits that are equal to their physical health benefits.
What are some examples of what is required under these laws?
Disability laws cover a wide range of situations that can be confusing. To help clarify, here are some examples of what a provider is required to do to comply with these laws:
Make sure care, services, and programs are truly accessible
Provide accessible services in the most integrated setting that meets the needs of a person with a disability
Change policies and practices to avoid disability discrimination
Post a notice that the practice or facility doesn’t discriminate against disability
Offer free aids to a person with a disability to help them engage in a program or activity
Develop a grievance process to handle discrimination complaints
What ‘reasonable modifications’ can you expect to be made?
A “reasonable modification” is a change that’s made to a policy, procedure, or structure to accommodate a person with a disability. For example, a healthcare provider’s exam room may be too small for a wheelchair. So, the provider must evaluate how to provide an accessible exam room. And if you use a wheelchair, your provider should examine you on their exam table, not in your wheelchair.
Other reasonable modifications include:
A patient lift or trained staff to transfer you from a wheelchair to an exam table or an imaging machine
Signage for people who have low vision
Space for a service animal in a waiting area or exam room
An interpreter for patients who are deaf or hard of hearing
Medical instructions in Braille
It’s important to also understand what modifications you shouldn’t expect from a healthcare provider. They may not be able to offer accommodations if they can show that a change in structure or equipment could cause undue financial hardship. For example, widening doorways into exam rooms or constructing a ramp may create a financial burden. So, the ADA may allow the provider to continue operating as is, depending on what other actions they take to improve accessibility.
Do healthcare rights and modifications extend to people with mental health disabilities?
Yes. The ADA protects people with mental health disabilities. So modifications should be made by healthcare providers to accommodate people with mental health issues, too.
For example:
Title II may require a mental health counselor at a public clinic to communicate in American Sign Language (ASL) rather than use a translator.
A healthcare provider could schedule a patient with social anxiety to a visit during less busy office hours.
What should you do if your healthcare rights under the ADA aren’t being met?
Several federal agencies handle ADA complaints. Here are a few agencies you can contact if you believe your provider or a healthcare organization is not following ADA rules:
ADA. For information about your rights, contact the ADA at 800-949-4232 or fill out this email form to find an ADA center near you.
Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board. For complaints about the Architectural Barriers Act, contact the board at 800-872-2253 (voice) or 800-993-2822 (teletypewriter, or TTY).
Department of Justice (DOJ). For complaints about Section 504, call the DOJ at 800-514-0301 (voice) or 800-514-0383 (TTY).
Office for Civil Rights (OCR). To file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights, visit its website and submit a complaint through the online portal. You also can call 800-368-1019 (voice) or 800-537-7697 (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, or TDD), or email OCRComplaint@hhs.gov.
The bottom line
As a person with a physical or mental disability, you have the same healthcare rights as someone without a disability. Your rights are protected by laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Mental Health Parity Act. You have the right to expect healthcare providers to offer you reasonable modifications so that you can access care. You also have the right to file a complaint or sue if you believe your rights aren’t being met by your healthcare provider.
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References
ada National Network. (n.d.). Email us. U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.
ada National Network. (2020). Health care and the Americans with Disabilities Act. U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.
ADA.gov. (n.d.). Introduction to the ADA. U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.
ADA.gov. (2020). A guide to disability rights laws. U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Disability impacts all of us.
CMS.gov. (n.d.). The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity act (MHPAEA). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
National Association of the Deaf. (n.d.). Culturally affirmative and linguistically accessible services.
Office for Civil Rights. (2006). Fact sheet. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Rosenbaum, S. (2007). The Americans with Disabilities Act in a health care context. The Future of Disability in America.
U.S. Access Board. (n.d.) About the U.S. access board: Architectural Barriers Act of 1968.
Understood.org. (n.d.) What is a 504 plan?
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Complaint portal assistant.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2020). Filing a civil rights complaint.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2021). Disability.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2021). Discrimination on the basis of disability.
U.S. Department of Justice. (2010). Access to medical care for individuals with mobility disabilities.
