Americans with Disabilities Act or the Rehabilitation Act, discussed below.
Prior to 1990, the only protection employees with communicable diseases received from discharge by their employers was that granted under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This set of provisions applied only to those employers receiving federal assistance; most private employers were not affected by the Act. This problem was remedied by the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. The ADA applies to all employers of 25 or more employees (15 or more employees beginning on July 26, 1994). The provisions of the ADA cover job application procedures, hiring, advancement, and discharge of employees, as well as discrimination in compensation, job training, "and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment." The ADA defines "discrimination" as including limiting, segregating, or classifying a job applicant or employee in a way that adversely affects his or her status or opportunities because of the disability.
Nowhere in the ADA is HIV-infection specifically mentioned, but the primary sponsors of the legislation cited the incidences of discrimination against persons who were HIV-positive as proof of the need for the legislation. Throughout the legislative history of the bill, its applicability to AIDS and those testing HIV-positive was discussed and the legislative reports which considered the issue all determined that HIV-positive status was a covered disability. Attempts to specifically exclude persons with infectious or communicable diseases from coverage under the legislation were unsuccessful. The ADA defines disability as (1) having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; (2) having a record of such impairment; or (3) being regarded as having such an impairment. In legislative reports, persons who were HIV-positive were considered to have an impairment of ...