The Americans With Disabilities Act and HIV/AIDS Discrimination: Unfinished Business

Crowley et al discuss the role the Americans with Disabilities Act could play in ensuring that persons with HIV/AIDS can access health care without stigma and discrimination. Twenty-five years ago when the Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and AIDS were significant sources of anxiety and public concern. There was only one transiently effective treatment, and HIV was the third leading cause of death in the US among adults aged 25 to 44 years and the leading cause of death among black men and Hispanic men in this age group. Indeed, whether to include people living with HIV/AIDS under the umbrella of protection being established by this legislation was part of the congressional debate around the law.