The White House on Wednesday called on Congress “to improve and expand home- and community-based services so more seniors and people with disabilities can live independently in their own homes.” The move came in conjunction with the 33rd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“It is hard for younger generations to imagine a world without the ADA, but before it existed, if you were disabled, stores could turn you away, and employers could refuse to hire you,” President Biden said in a proclamation.

The president noted that there is still more to be done three decades after the ADA was passed. Americans with disabilities, he said, are still three times less likely to have a job than nondisabled workers, “and when they do, they often earn less for doing the same work.”

Guidance for employers

Also in conjunction with the anniversary of the ADA, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released updated technical assistance document related to employees with visual disabilities.

“Providing reasonable accommodations is an employer’s responsibility. Workers who have vision impairments, including limited or low vision, should be provided the resources needed to succeed,” EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows said in a statement. “This document will provide employers the guidance to do so.”

The document:

  • Outlines when employers may ask applicants and employees questions about their vision.
  • Details how employers should treat voluntary disclosures about visual disabilities.
  • Discusses what types of reasonable accommodations those with visual disabilities may need in the workplace.
  • Highlights new technologies available for reasonable accommodation, many of which are free or low-cost.
  • Describes how employers’ use of artificial intelligence and algorithms to make employment decisions can affect individuals with visual disabilities.

Recent EEOC news releases about individuals who are blind or have vision impairments or other vision-related conditions and sought reasonable accommodations as applicants or employees are available in the EEOC’s newsroom.