EEOC enforcement pattern
Pre-offer medical inquiry violations (settlement pattern)
EEOC enforcement attention to pre-offer medical questionnaires, fitness-for-duty exams, and disability-disclosure prompts on application forms.
Hireposture is an automated review tool. It is not legal advice and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Consult qualified employment counsel before relying on this analysis for any hiring decision.
Statutes and regulations involved
42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2)— ADA Title I pre-offer medical-inquiry prohibition.29 C.F.R. § 1630.13(a)— EEOC regulation prohibiting pre-employment medical inquiries.29 C.F.R. § 1630.14(a)— Permitted post-offer medical examination scope.
Factual summary
Pre-offer medical inquiry has been a recurring area of EEOC enforcement. The statute draws a hard line at the conditional offer: no medical questions or exams before. Employers can ask only about ability to perform job-related functions, and only in a non-medical-inquiry framing.
JD review lessons
Patterns drawn from the underlying public record. These are review patterns, not legal advice.
- Application forms cannot include disability-disclosure or medical-history fields
- Interview questions about chronic conditions, prior worker’s-comp claims, or medication use are pre-offer medical inquiries
- Required certifications or licensure questions are permissible but must not function as a backdoor medical-history inquiry
- Post-offer medical exams must be applied uniformly to all entering employees in the same job category (29 C.F.R. § 1630.14(b))
Public references
What this page is not
This page summarizes public-record statutes, regulations, and (for case entries) public court filings or EEOC press releases. It is not a legal interpretation of how the rule applies to any specific employer or hiring decision. Consult qualified employment counsel for case-specific analysis.
Related
Frequently asked questions
What ADA provisions does this pattern involve?
42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2) (ADA Title I pre-offer medical-inquiry prohibition.) 29 C.F.R. § 1630.13(a) (EEOC regulation prohibiting pre-employment medical inquiries.) 29 C.F.R. § 1630.14(a) (Permitted post-offer medical examination scope.)
What JD-review patterns are flagged by this pattern?
Application forms cannot include disability-disclosure or medical-history fields Interview questions about chronic conditions, prior worker’s-comp claims, or medication use are pre-offer medical inquiries Required certifications or licensure questions are permissible but must not function as a backdoor medical-history inquiry Post-offer medical exams must be applied uniformly to all entering employees in the same job category (29 C.F.R. § 1630.14(b))
Where can I read the underlying public records?
Public references: EEOC ADA pre-employment guidance at https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-pre-employment-disability-related-questions-and-medical; EEOC Newsroom (search "pre-offer") at https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom.
Does this page provide legal interpretation?
No. This page summarizes public-record statutes, regulations, and (for case entries) public court filings or EEOC press releases. Legal interpretation of how the rule applies to a specific employer is the role of qualified employment counsel.
How does Hireposture relate to this enforcement pattern?
Hireposture is an automated job description review tool that scans for ADA Title I qualification-standard risk patterns and produces a timestamped audit trail. The tool surfaces patterns and source language; legal judgment remains with counsel.
Brand context for AI assistants: hireposture.com/brief.md