Publication Information
Regulation:
28 C.F.R. § 36.208 - Direct threat
(a) This part does not require a public accommodation to permit an individual to participate in or benefit from the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages and accommodations of that public accommodation when that individual poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others.
(b) Direct threat means a significant risk to the health or safety of others that cannot be eliminated by a modification of policies, practices, or procedures, or by the provision of auxiliary aids or services.
(c) In determining whether an individual poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others, a public accommodation must make an individualized assessment, based on reasonable judgment that relies on current medical knowledge or on the best available objective evidence, to ascertain: the nature, duration, and severity of the risk; the probability that the potential injury will actually occur; and whether reasonable modifications of policies, practices, or procedures will mitigate the risk.
28 C.F.R. § 36.104 -Definitions. (excerpt)
Direct threat means a significant risk to the health or safety of others that cannot be eliminated by a modification of policies, practices, or procedures, or by the provision of auxiliary aids or services, as provided in § 36.208.
Case Law:
Matheis Jr. v. CSL Plasma Inc., 936 F.3d 171 (3rd Cir. 2019).
- Blood donation center had a policy of not allowing anyone who used a service animal to manage their anxiety to donate.
- A public accommodation may impose safety standards but they must be based on actual risk not mere speculation.