The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia invalidated
the EEOC's final regulations on the operation of voluntary
wellness programs under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). The court
ordered the EEOC to further consider its rules as required by the
Federal Administrative Procedures Act (APA), but it did not vacate
the regulations.
On August 22, 2017, in AARP v. EEOC, the AARP alleged
that the EEOC's wellness regulations were invalid under the APA
because the EEOC failed to adequately explain why it determined
that an incentive or penalty of up to 30% of the cost of self-only
coverage was the appropriate maximum incentive or penalty that
would be considered "voluntary" under the ADA and GINA,
and why incentives or penalties over the 30% threshold are
"too high to give employees a meaningful choice" in
whether to participate in a wellness program. The AARP also
contended that the EEOC did not
