Celebrating 25 Years of the ADA

When George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law on July 26, 1990, its proponents believed that it would have a sweeping impact for disabled workers. Bush himself described the law as an “historic new civil rights act.” Yet, over the next decade and a half, judicial decisions steadily narrowed the categories of conditions that qualified as “disabilities,” and thus excluded many individuals from protection under the ADA. With the passage of the ADA Amendments Act on Jan. 1, 2009, Congress attempted to halt and overcome court decisions that had improperly limited the scope and intent of the ADA; and did so by expanding protections for individuals with disabilities. With July 26, 2015, marking the 25th anniversary of the ADA, disabled Americans have reason to celebrate as recent court decisions have strengthened and broadened their protections under the ADAAA.