DTRA Personal Assistance Services

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Personal Assistance Services (PAS) are services that assist a person with performing activities of daily living that an individual would typically perform if he or she did not have a disability, and that is not otherwise required as a reasonable accommodation.

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Making a Request for Personal Assistance Service

An employee may request a Personal Assistance Service by informing a supervisor, the Reasonable Accomodation coordinator, or other suitable representative that he or she needs assistance with daily life activities because of a medical condition. The employee does not need to mention Section 501 or EEOC regulations explicitly, or use terms such as “PAS” or “affirmative action” to trigger DTRA’s obligation to consider the request.

The Reasonable Accomodation coordinator will work with the employee to define PAS parameters to include:

  • The employee’s targeted disability which makes him or her eligible for PAS.
  • The type(s) of Personal Assistance Services (i.e., assistance with removing and putting on clothing, eating, using the restroom, pushing a wheelchair, etc.) required because of his or her targeted disability as defined by the treating health care provider.
  • The extent to which Personal Assistance Service is needed for job-related travel, if applicable, but not including the commute to and from work, which is not covered under EEOC regulations.
  • The extent to which Personal Assistance Service is needed for teleworking, if applicable.
  • The extent to which Personal Assistance Service is needed for employer-sponsored trainings and events.
  • The extent to which a Reasonable Accomodation is needed to supplement the PAS, if applicable.
  • The employee’s preference to a specific Personal Assistance Service provider, if applicable.

Reasonable Accomodation Request Forms

DTRA 123 DTRA Reasonable Accommodation Request Form

DTRA 259 RA Request Medical Inquiry Form

Please download form, fill out and send by encrypted email to Terrence Fox

Denying a Request for Personal Assistance Service

DTRA is only required to provide Personal Assistance Services if the requesting employee is entitled under the EEOC’s affirmative action ruling. Therefore, DTRA will deny a request for Personal Assistance Service if:

  • The requestor is not a DTRA employee;
  • The requestor does not have a targeted disability;
  • The targeted disability does not create a need for Personal Assistance Services;
  • The requestor is not able to perform the essential functions of the job, even with Personal Assistance Services and any Reasonable Accomodations;
  • The requestor would create a direct threat to safety on the job, even with Personal Assistance Services and any Reasonable Accomodations; or
  • Providing Personal Assistance Services would impose undue hardship on DTRA.
 

Confidentiality Requirements for PAS

All medical information obtained in connection with PAS requests must be kept confidential and appropriately protected from unlawful disclosure. PAS requests must be kept confidential and must not be shared with others unless on a need-to-know basis. Any employee who obtains or receives such information is strictly bound by these confidentiality requirements per EEOC regulation and federal laws. The RA coordinator must maintain records for a period of 3 years. If the RA is needed on a recurring basis, then the RA records will be maintained for as long as the case is active.

Formal Definitions

Personal Assistance Services

Assistance with performing activities of daily living that an individual would typically perform if they did not have a disability, and that is not otherwise required as a reasonable accommodation, including, for example, assistance with removing and putting on clothing, eating, using the restroom, pushing a wheelchair or assisting someone with getting into or out of a vehicle at the worksite. (Note that this is not an exhaustive list.)

Targeted Disability

Targeted disabilities are a subset of conditions that would be considered disabilities under the Rehabilitation Act. The federal government has recognized that qualified individuals with certain disabilities face significant barriers to employment, which for some people may include lack of access to PAS in the workplace, that are above and beyond the barriers faced by people with the broader range of disabilities. The federal government calls these "targeted disabilities."

Note, however, that not everyone with a targeted disability will be entitled to PAS under the new regulations, because only some individuals with targeted disabilities require assistance with basic activities like eating and using the restroom. Medical conditions that are more likely to result in the need for PAS include, for example, missing limbs or paralysis due to spinal cord injury.

Undue Hardship

Undue hardship means that an accommodation would be unduly costly, extensive, substantial or disruptive, or would fundamentally alter the nature or operation of the department.

Essential Functions of a Job

Those job duties that are so fundamental to the position that the individual holds or desires that the individual cannot do the job without performing them. A function can be “essential” if, among other things:

  • the position exists specifically to perform that function,
  • there are a limited number of other employees who could perform the function, or
  • the function is specialized and the individual is hired based on their ability to perform it.

Determination of the essential functions of a position must be done on a case-by-case basis so that it reflects the job as actually performed, and not simply the components of a generic position description.

For more information on or to submit a request for PAS: