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Service Animals in the Chiropractic Office – ADA Compliance

By Adrienne Hersh, JD, ICS Legal Counsel · September 6, 20175 min read

Dog sitting in a box — Service Animals in the Chiropractic Office – ADA Compliance

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Civil Rights Act require business owners, including chiropractic offices, to make a variety of accommodations for persons with disabilities who patronize the business. The ICS has previously written about required structural accessibility, auxiliary aids for hearing, sight and speech impairments, and translation requirements for persons with limited English proficiency.

Many persons with disabilities use a service animal to assist in activities of daily living. The ADA requires public businesses to make reasonable modifications in their policies, practices and procedures to accommodate persons with disabilities. Service animals fall under this principle. Therefore, physician offices with a “no pet” policy must revise the policy to permit service animals on their premises.

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About the Author

Adrienne Hersh, JD, ICS Legal Counsel

Adrienne serves as Illinois Chiropractic Society general counsel and provides legal advice and support on a wide range of legal issues affecting chiropractic physicians, including licensing and other health care regulations, scope of practice, insurance and reimbursement, business structuring, labor and employment, contracts, and litigation. Adrienne previously served for 8 years as general counsel to the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation (now the Division of Professional Regulation, Department of Financial and Professional Regulation), where she was chief legal counsel responsible for overseeing all legal issues and advising the 50+ licensing and disciplinary boards, including the Medical Disciplinary Board and the Medical Licensing Board. She is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association Health Care Section, the Illinois Association of Healthcare Attorneys, and the National Association of Chiropractic Attorneys.