"Regarded As" Disabled, and Discrimination Because of a Family Member's Disability

You do not need to have a disability right now to be protected by disability discrimination law. Federal, New York State and New York City law each cover a person who is treated as if they had an impairment and a person with a past condition.⁠^[1][2][9][3] Federal law, New York City law and a New York State regulation also address discrimination against a worker because of the disability of someone the worker is associated with.⁠^[6][7]

This page covers those three situations: perceived ("regarded as") disability, a record of a disability, and association with a person who has a disability. The basic definitions are in what counts as a disability in New York.

The three layers at a glance

Situation	Federal law (ADA)	New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL)	New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL)
Perceived disability	Disability includes "being regarded as having such an impairment."⁠[1]	Disability includes "a condition regarded by others as such an impairment."⁠[2]	The law protects against discrimination because of an "actual or perceived" disability.⁠[3]
Past condition	Disability includes "a record of such an impairment."⁠[1]	Disability includes "a record of such an impairment."⁠[2]	Disability includes "a history or record of such impairment."⁠[9]
Association with a person who has a disability	It is discrimination to exclude or deny equal jobs or benefits to a qualified individual because of the known disability of a person with whom the individual is known to have a relationship or association.⁠[6]	The statute lists the individual's own characteristics.⁠[10] A Division of Human Rights regulation says "unlawful discriminatory practice" is to be construed to prohibit discrimination because of an individual's known relationship or association with a member of a protected category.⁠[7]	The law is to be construed to prohibit discrimination because of the actual or perceived disability of a person with whom the individual has a known relationship or association.⁠[11]
Which employers	Employers with 15 or more employees.⁠[12]	All employers within the state.⁠[13]	Generally, employers with four or more persons in their employ.⁠[14]

What "regarded as" means under the federal ADA

Under the ADA, a person is "regarded as" disabled if they are subjected to a prohibited action because of an actual or perceived impairment, whether or not the impairment limits or is perceived to limit a major life activity.⁠^[5] The focus is on what the employer did and why, not on how limiting the condition is.

Two limits apply to the federal regarded-as prong:

• Transitory and minor impairments. The prong does not apply to impairments that are transitory and minor, and the statute defines a transitory impairment as one with an actual or expected duration of 6 months or less.⁠^[5] This limit belongs to the regarded-as prong only; the EEOC regulation says an impairment lasting fewer than six months can still be substantially limiting under the other prongs.⁠^[15]
• No accommodation. An employer need not provide a reasonable accommodation to a person who meets the ADA definition solely under the regarded-as prong.⁠^[4]

One ADA provision gives a specific example of perceived status. The exclusion for current illegal drug use does not apply to a person who is erroneously regarded as engaging in illegal drug use but is not doing so.⁠^[16] That topic is covered in addiction, alcoholism and medical cannabis at work.

Perceived disability under New York State and City law

The NYSHRL builds perception into its definition: a disability includes "a condition regarded by others as such an impairment."⁠^[2] The State definition reaches an impairment that is demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques, with no requirement that it substantially limit a major life activity.⁠^[2]

New York's highest court has read the State definition to reach conditions that are "merely diagnosable medical anomalies," and it held in 1985 that an employer cannot deny employment because a condition has been detected before it produces harmful effects.⁠^[17] In that case the employer had offered a job on condition of a pre-employment medical examination and then refused to hire the applicant on the basis of the examining physician's finding.⁠^[18]

The NYCHRL takes a more direct route. Its core employment provision prohibits discrimination because of a person's "actual or perceived" disability, along with the other characteristics on its list.⁠^[3] The NYC Commission on Human Rights likewise describes harassment related to an actual or perceived disability as a form of discrimination.⁠^[19]

The State and City definitions quoted above do not contain the ADA's "transitory and minor" wording.⁠^[2][9] Short-term conditions are discussed in temporary injuries and short-term conditions.

A record of a disability: past illness, remission and recovery

A person who has recovered is covered by the "record of" language at each layer. The federal ADA includes a record of a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.⁠^[1] The State law includes a record of an impairment as defined in the State statute.⁠^[2] The City law includes a history or record of any physical, medical, mental or psychological impairment.⁠^[9]

Under the ADA, a condition that comes and goes is also covered while it is quiet: an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active.⁠^[20]

Genetic information and family medical history under State law

New York State law adds a category that often overlaps with perceived disability. The NYSHRL separately prohibits employment discrimination because of "predisposing genetic characteristics," defined to include an inherited gene or chromosome that is determined by a genetic test or inferred from information derived from an individual or family member, and that is believed to predispose the person or their offspring to a disease or disability.⁠^[21] It is also an unlawful discriminatory practice under State law for an employer to require a genetic test, or information from which a predisposing genetic characteristic can be inferred, as a condition of employment, subject to a narrow exception.⁠^[22]

Discrimination because of someone else's disability

Federal law

The ADA's list of discriminatory acts includes "excluding or otherwise denying equal jobs or benefits to a qualified individual because of the known disability of an individual with whom the qualified individual is known to have a relationship or association."⁠^[6] The provision speaks of a "known" disability and of a person with whom the individual "is known" to have a relationship or association.

The federal accommodation duty is written differently. It runs to the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified individual with a disability who is an applicant or employee.⁠^[23] Time off to care for a relative is addressed by leave laws. Under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, an eligible employee may take leave to care for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition.⁠^[24] Under New York State law, Paid Family Leave covers care for a family member with a serious health condition.⁠^[25] The guide to how the leave laws fit together compares them.

New York City law

The City law states that its prohibitions "shall be construed to prohibit such discrimination against a person because of the actual or perceived" disability of a person with whom that person has a known relationship or association.⁠^[11] Because the words "actual or perceived" appear in the clause, the City text reaches a relative or associate who is only believed to have a disability.⁠^[11]

In its December 2025 enforcement guidance, the NYC Commission on Human Rights says the City law does not require a familial relationship.⁠^[26] To establish a disparate treatment claim of associational discrimination, the Commission says, an individual must show three things:⁠^[26]

1. the covered entity knew of the individual's relationship or association with a person with an actual or perceived disability;⁠^[26]
2. the individual suffered an independent injury, separate from any injury to the person with the disability;⁠^[26] and
3. the covered entity treated the individual less well and was at least in part motivated by discriminatory animus.⁠^[26]

The Commission's employment example is an employer that refuses to promote an employee because it knows the employee's spouse has a disability and fears the employee will not give enough attention to the larger role.⁠^[26] It describes the rule as one that prevents adverse action based on unfounded concerns about the known disability of a family member or anyone else with whom the applicant or employee has a relationship or association.⁠^[26]

The association clause does not list every characteristic the City law protects. Its text covers race, creed, color, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, uniformed service and immigration or citizenship status.⁠^[11]

Caregiver status in New York City

The City law separately lists "caregiver status" among the characteristics an employer may not discriminate on.⁠^[3] A caregiver is a person who provides direct and ongoing care for a minor child or a care recipient, and a care recipient is a person with a disability who is a covered relative or lives in the caregiver's household and relies on the caregiver for medical care or daily living needs.⁠^[8] The association clause and caregiver status are separate provisions of the City law.⁠^[11][8]

New York State law

The State statute prohibits discrimination "because of an individual's" listed characteristics, which include disability, predisposing genetic characteristics and familial status.⁠^[10] A regulation of the Division of Human Rights, 9 NYCRR § 466.14, addresses association directly. It provides that where the term "unlawful discriminatory practice" is used in the Human Rights Law, it is to be construed to prohibit discrimination against an individual because of that individual's known relationship or association with a member or members of a protected category covered by the relevant provisions.⁠^[7] To prove such a claim, the regulation says, a complainant must show an adverse action specified in the relevant provisions of the Human Rights Law because of the known relationship or association.⁠^[7]

How these claims are proved

Federal and City courts state the causation standard differently. In the Second Circuit, an ADA employment discrimination plaintiff must prove that discrimination was the but-for cause of the adverse action.⁠^[27] Under the City law, a plaintiff prevails by proving that unlawful discrimination was one of the motivating factors for the decision, even if it was not the only one.⁠^[28]

The ADA also states that it does not provide a basis for a claim by a person without a disability that they were subjected to discrimination because of their lack of disability.⁠^[29] That is a different situation from the association provision described above, which protects a qualified individual because of another person's known disability.⁠^[6] The general framework is explained in how discrimination is proved.

What people commonly get wrong

• "My employer perceived me as disabled, so it owed me an accommodation." The ADA says an employer need not provide a reasonable accommodation to a person covered only under the regarded-as prong.⁠^[4]
• "A short-term condition can never support a regarded-as claim." The federal exception requires the impairment to be both transitory and minor.⁠^[5]
• "Association protection gives me the right to change my schedule to care for a relative." The ADA's accommodation duty is written around the applicant's or employee's own limitations; care for a relative is the subject of leave laws.⁠^[23][24]

Practical notes

• Write down any statement that shows what the employer believed about your health or a relative's health, with the date and who said it.
• Keep the documents that show what changed afterward, such as a schedule, a review or a promotion decision.
• If you work in New York City, note it; the City law's association and caregiver provisions apply there.⁠^[30]
• Related protection for relatives of people who complain is covered in retaliation against witnesses and family members.