Abstract
The current article describes a review of U.S. states and the District of Columbia boards of nursing pre-licensure applications, which were collected, summarized, and evaluated to assess compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). Less than one half (n = 21) of RN licensing boards do not ask questions about mental illness on pre-licensure applications. Of the 30 boards that ask questions about mental illness, eight focus on current disability, which is legal under the ADA. The remaining 22 boards ask non-ADA–compliant questions by targeting specific diagnoses, focusing on historical data in the absence of current impairment, and/or requiring a prediction of future impairment. Nursing boards are urged to join colleagues in law, psychology, and medicine in using ADA–acceptable applications by eliminating mental health questions or limiting them to current impairment queries.
