Addiction and the Americans with Disabilities Act

Addiction and the Americans with Disabilities Act

On July 26, 1990, the U.S. Congress enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was intended as
a broad, national, civil rights–oriented mandate “for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with
disabilities,” both physical and mental. ADA protection is extended, in limited form, to those with addiction
disorders. However, many addicted individuals are denied ADA protection because of exclusionary criteria in the
ADA itself and because of increasingly restrictive interpretations of the ADA in recent cases. The benefit to the
addicted persons, and to the larger society, is lost when unfair discriminatory practices preclude employment of
otherwise qualified, though stigmatized, individuals. The ADA currently falls short, in many respects, of preventing
such discrimination against those with addictions.


Persons with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence are protected,
but those with drug dependence are protected only if they are
in treatment or have completed a treatment program, and are
not “currently” using illegal drugs    

Note: So according to ADA guidelines, doesn't that make it ILLEGAL to steal a child from a recovering addict? An addict forced out of treatment by the Court?

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