August 26, 2009

State Dept. Changes HIV Policy After Lawsuit by Positive Vet

The State Department will no longer automatically bar HIV-positive people from working with department contractors. The change in its policy is a result of a lawsuit in which the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) represented an anonymous U.S. Army veteran who was denied a security job with U.S. State Department contractor Triple Canopy Inc. because he is HIV positive.

According to the ACLU, which filed the lawsuit against Triple Canopy and the State Department in September 2008, the veteran’s dismissal was a violation of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act.

In November 2005, a Triple Canopy director told the veteran he couldn’t be employed because the State Department wouldn’t allow workers living with HIV to be deployed overseas. The agreement between Triple Canopy and the State Department required the contractor to provide tests results proving that employees are HIV negative, according to legal documents.

"Although we have laws barring HIV discrimination in both the public and private sectors, the government's contracts here seemed to require discrimination," said Rose Saxe, a staff attorney with the ACLU AIDS Project.

This case is one of many recent challenges against the U.S. government regarding discrimination against people living with HIV in the workplace. It's a subject that the Obama administration is taking very seriously, according to the ACLU.

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don black, memphis, 2009-08-27 21:07:14
excellent. manageable disease. are the discriminating against diabetes, herpes, warts, etc. Bet not. anyway great step forward.