Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy (1985-2015) Volume 15 Issue 1 Article 12 1998 Asymptomatic HIV Under the ADA: The Invisible, Yet Legitimate Disability Christine Spinella Davis Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.edu/jchlp Recommended Citation Christine S. Davis, Asymptomatic HIV Under the ADA: The Invisible, Yet Legitimate Disability, 15 J. Contemp. Health L. & Pol'y 357 (1999). Available at: https://scholarship.law.edu/jchlp/vol15/iss1/12 This Comment is brought to you for free and open access by CUA Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy (1985-2015) by an authorized editor of CUA Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. ASYMPTOMATIC HIV UNDER THE ADA: THE INVISIBLE,YET LEGITIMATE DISABILITY' INTRODUCTION On July 26, 1990, Congress took a giant step toward equal opportuni- ties for persons with disabilities by enacting the Americans with Dis- abilities Act (ADA or Act),2 a statute designed to prevent discrimination and provide certain protections to persons with disabilities.3 Congress found that there needs to be protections for persons with disabilities be- cause, as part of a discrete and insular minority, these individuals suffer from discriminatory treatment and societal stereotypes due to their dis- abilities.4 The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabili- ties.5 Since its enactment, however, many questioned what constitutes a 1. This Comment was drafted before the Supreme Court's recent decision in Bragdon v. Abbott, 118 S. Ct. 2196, 2205 (1998), in which the Court held that an individual with asymptomatic HIV has a disability under the Americans with Dis- abilities Act.