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Anti-mask ordinances amount to disability discrimination

Sep 14, 2021

1 min

Mical Raz

University of Rochester health policy expert Mical Raz says anti-mask ordinances amount to disability discrimination for individuals with compromised immune systems—that includes people who have cancer and autoimmune disease, as well as those who have received organ transplants. As Dr. Raz explained in a recent Washington Post essay, immunocompromised individuals—even those who are vaccinated—may now find themselves inadequately protected in workplaces where mask requirements are legally banned and there are no vaccine requirements.


Dr. Raz also co-authored a piece in the JAMA Health Forum discussing the implications of some states banning attempts to mandate masking. As she points out, vaccines have been less effective in individuals with different categories of immunosuppression. Dr. Raz concludes that allowing mask requirements is an important form of disability accommodation.


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Mical Raz

Mical Raz

Charles E. and Dale L. Phelps Professor in Public Policy and Health

Author of "What's Wrong with the Poor? Psychiatry, Race and the War on Poverty."

Foster Care and AdoptionsChild WelfarePsychiatryEducation PolicyRace Culture and Ethnicity

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