The Americans with Disabilities Act and Employee Medical Examinations
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers may have employees undergo medical examinations only in certain limited circumstances. The ADA was passed to prevent employer from using medical information to discriminate against a disabled employee.
Under the ADA, an employer's ability to make disability-related inquiries or require medical examinations is analyzed in three stages: pre-offer, post-offer, and employment. At the first stage (prior to an offer of employment), the ADA prohibits all disability-related inquiries and medical examinations, even if they are related to the job. At the second stage (after an applicant is given a conditional job offer, but before s/he starts work), an employer may make disability-related inquiries and conduct medical examinations, regardless of whether they are related to the job, as long as it does so for all entering employees in the same job category. At the third stage (after employment begins), an employer may make disability-related inquiries and require medical examinations only if they are job-related and consistent with business necessity.
The ADA requires employers to treat any medical information obtained from a disability-related inquiry or medical examination (including medical information from voluntary health or wellness programs, as well as any medical information voluntarily disclosed by an employee, as a confidential medical record. Employers may share such information only in limited circumstances with supervisors, managers, first aid and safety personnel, and government officials investigating compliance with the ADA.
It is imperative that a business have the assistance and advice of competent legal counsel when determining whether to ask an employee to submit to a medical examination. These types of requests are fraught with peril and should only be made when a company is sure that it is in full compliance with the law.
