EEOC Issues Sample Notice for Wellness Programs

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has posted on its website a sample notice that will help employers who have wellness programs comply with their obligations under a recently issued Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) rule. The notice is available at https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/regulations/ada-wellness-notice.cfm, and a brief question-and-answer document describing the notice requirement and how to use the sample notice is available at https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/regulations/qanda-ada-wellness-notice.cfm. The rule, available at https://federalregister.gov/a/2016-11558, says that employer wellness programs that ask employees about their medical conditions or that ask employees to take medical examinations (such as tests to detect high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes) must ensure that these programs are reasonably designed to promote health and prevent disease, that they are voluntary, and that employee medical information is kept confidential.