Let’s Try This Again: The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 Attempts to Reinvigorate the “Regarded As” Prong of the Statutory Definition of Disability

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was enacted in 1990 with considerable fanfare and support. A broad-based coalition of supporters testified in favor of the legislation before committee hearings, and both houses of Congress passed the legislation by wide margins. President George Bush, signing the ADA into law, described the new statute as “an historic opportunity” representing “the full flowering of our democratic principles.” Disability rights activists were optimistic that the new legislation would accomplish its stated purpose of providing a “national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities.”