A.
General
A public accommodation shall take those steps that may be
necessary to ensure that no individual with a physical or mental disability is
excluded, denied services, segregated or otherwise treated differently than
other individuals because of the absence of auxiliary aids and services, unless
the public accommodation can demonstrate that taking those steps would
fundamentally alter the nature of the goods, services, facilities, privileges,
advantages, or accommodations being offered or would result in an undue burden,
i.e., significant difficulty or expense.
B.
Examples
The term "auxiliary aids and services" includes:
(1) Qualified interpreters on-site or through
video remote interpreting (VRI) services; note takers; real-time computer-aided
transcription services; written materials; exchange of written notes; telephone
handset amplifiers; assistive listening devices; assistive listening systems;
telephones compatible with hearing aids; closed caption decoders; open and
closed captioning, including real-time captioning; voice, text, and video-based
telecommunications products and systems, including text telephones (TTYs),
videophones, and captioned telephones, or equally effective telecommunications
devices; videotext displays; accessible electronic and information technology;
or other effective methods of making aurally delivered information available to
individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing;
(2) Qualified readers; taped texts; audio
recordings; Brailled materials and displays; screen reader software;
magnification software; optical readers; secondary auditory programs (SAP);
large print materials; accessible electronic and information technology; or
other effective methods of making visually delivered materials available to
individuals who are blind or have low vision;
(3) Acquisition or modification or equipment
or devises; and
(4) Other similar
services and actions.
C.
Effective communication
(1) A
public accommodation shall furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services
where necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals with
physical or mental disabilities. This includes an obligation to provide
effective communication to companions who are individuals with disabilities.
(i) For purposes of this section, "companion"
means a family member, friend, or associate of an individual seeking access to,
or participating in, the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages,
or accommodations of a public accommodation, who, along with such individual,
is an appropriate person with whom the public accommodation should
communicate.
(ii) The type of
auxiliary aid or service necessary to ensure effective communication will vary
in accordance with the method of communication used by the individual; the
nature, length, and complexity of the communication involved; and the context
in which the communication is taking place. A public accommodation should
consult with individuals with disabilities whenever possible to determine what
type of auxiliary aid is needed to ensure effective communication, but the
ultimate decision as to what measures to take rests with the public
accommodation, provided that the method chosen results in effective
communication. In order to be effective, auxiliary aids and services must be
provided in accessible formats, in a timely manner, and in such a way as to
protect the privacy and independence of the individual with a
disability.
(2) A public
accommodation shall not require an individual with a disability to bring
another individual to interpret for him or her.
(3) A public accommodation shall not rely on
an adult accompanying an individual with a disability to interpret or
facilitate communication, except -
(i) In an
emergency involving an imminent threat to the safety or welfare of an
individual or the public where there is no interpreter available; or
(ii) Where the individual with a disability
specifically requests that the accompanying adult interpret or facilitate
communication, the accompanying adult agrees to provide such assistance, and
reliance on that adult for such assistance is appropriate under the
circumstances.
(4) A
public accommodation shall not rely on a minor child to interpret or facilitate
communication, except in an emergency involving an imminent threat to the
safety or welfare of an individual or the public where there is no interpreter
available.
D.
Telecommunications
(1) When a
public accommodation uses an automated-attendant system, including, but not
limited to, voicemail and messaging, or an interactive voice response system,
for receiving and directing incoming telephone calls, that system must provide
effective real-time communication with individuals using auxiliary aids and
services, including text telephones (TTYs) and all forms of FCC-approved
telecommunications relay systems, including Internet-based relay
systems.
(2) A public accommodation
that offers a customer, client, patient, or participant the opportunity to make
outgoing telephone calls using the public accommodation's equipment on more
than an incidental convenience basis shall make available public telephones,
TTYs, or other telecommunications products and systems for use by an individual
who is deaf or hard of hearing, or has a speech impairment.
(3) A public accommodation may use relay
services in place of direct telephone communication for receiving or making
telephone calls incident to its operations.
(4) A public accommodation shall respond to
telephone calls from a telecommunications relay service established under title
IV of the ADA in the same manner that it responds to other telephone
calls.
(5) This part does not
require a public accommodation to use a TTY for receiving or making telephone
calls incident to its operations.
E.
Closed caption decoders
Places of lodging that provide televisions in five or more
guest rooms and hospitals that provide televisions for patient use shall
provide, upon request, a means for decoding captions for use by an individual
with impaired hearing.
F.
Video remote interpreting (VRI) services
A public accommodation that chooses to provide qualified
interpreters via VRI service shall ensure that it provides -
(1) Real-time, full-motion video and audio
over a dedicated high-speed, wide-bandwidth video connection or wireless
connection that delivers high-quality video images that do not produce lags,
choppy, blurry, or grainy images, or irregular pauses in
communication;
(2) A sharply
delineated image that is large enough to display the interpreter's face, arms,
hands, and fingers, and the participating individual's face, arms, hands, and
fingers, regardless of his or her body position;
(3) A clear, audible transmission of voices;
and
(4) Adequate training to users
of the technology and other involved individuals so that they may quickly and
efficiently set up and operate the VRI.
G.
Alternatives
If provision of a particular auxiliary aid or service by a
public accommodation would result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of
the goods, service, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations being
offered or in an undue burden, i.e., significant difficulty or expense, the
public accommodation shall provide an alternative auxiliary aid or service, if
one exists, that would not result in an alteration or such burden but would
nevertheless ensure that, to the maximum extent possible, individuals with
physical or mental disabilities receive the goods, services, facilities,
privileges, advantages, or accommodations offered by the public
accommodation.
