Abstract
This Note points out problems with the Bragdon v. Abbott Supreme Court decision and ultimately argues that an asymptomatic HIV-positive person is not disabled under the first definition of disability contained in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); that is, “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual.” An asymptomatic HIV-positive individual is not disabled within that definition because, even though he or she suffers from a physical impairment, the impairment does not substantially limit any major life activity. Although this Note rejects the argument that reproduction is a major life activity even assuming arguendo that reproduction is a major life activity within the meaning of the ADA, the ability to reproduce is not substantially limited. Any limitation comes not from the physical impairment itself, but from the individual’s reaction to the disease.
Recommended Citation
Teresa A. Schneider,
Stretching the Limits of the ADA: Asymptomatic HIV-Positive Status as a Disability in Bragdon v. Abbott, 118 S. Ct. 2196 (1998),
77 Neb. L. Rev.
(1998)
Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/nlr/vol77/iss1/6