EEOC Updates COVID-19 Workplace Testing Rules: What Employers Need To Know

On July 12, 2022, the EEOC updated its "What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws: Technical Assistance Questions and Answers" by updating its guidance on when employers can routinely test employees for COVID-19 in the workplace without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"). 

The EEOC has always maintained that testing employees for COVID-19 in the workplace is a "medical examination" under the ADA. In general, under the ADA, an employer may only conduct or require medical examinations if the exams are "job-related and consistent with business necessity." Prior to July 12, 2022, the EEOC maintained that a COVID-19 viral test (i.e., a test to detect the presence of the COVID-19 virus using samples from the nose or mouth and including both laboratory and rapid testing) when evaluating an employee's initial or continued presence in the workplace always met this standard.