Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Earlier this year, the American Medical Association announced it would be classifying obesity as a disease, citing an "overabundance of clinical evidence." In approving its Resolution 420, the AMA compared obesity to lung cancer -- suggesting that obesity is a "chosen lifestyle" characterized by overeating or inactivity is like suggesting lung cancer is not a disease because it can be brought about by smoking cigarettes.
While not carrying the weight of law, the AMA resolution about obesity could have consequences for employers, making it easier for overweight employees to claim protected status under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"People are slowly starting to come forward," said Claudia Center, senior staff attorney with the San Francisco-based Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center. "The trend is people are starting to see this as a civil rights issue," which advocates have been arguing for decades, she added.
http://www.post-gazette.com/busines...se-or-merely-a-condition/stories/201312160009
While not carrying the weight of law, the AMA resolution about obesity could have consequences for employers, making it easier for overweight employees to claim protected status under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"People are slowly starting to come forward," said Claudia Center, senior staff attorney with the San Francisco-based Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center. "The trend is people are starting to see this as a civil rights issue," which advocates have been arguing for decades, she added.
http://www.post-gazette.com/busines...se-or-merely-a-condition/stories/201312160009