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ADA and health care workers

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued a question-and-answer fact sheet on how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to job applicants and employees in the health care industry. The new publication is part of a series of Q & A documents about specific disabilities in the workplace and specific industries.

     The fact sheet provides practical information about applying ADA employment rules in health care jobs in a variety of settings—from public and private hospitals and nursing care facilities to doctors’ and dentists’ offices and diagnostic laboratories.

     According to the EEOC, certain impairments occur more commonly in the health care field, or, regardless of cause, present particularly challenging accommodation issues in the health care context. Health care workers face a wide range of hazards on the job, including needlestick injuries, back injuries, latex allergy, and stress.

     Health care is the largest industry in the U.S. economy. The health care industry provided more than 13 million jobs in 2004 and is expected to account for 19% of all new jobs created between 2004 and 2014, more than any other industry.