Know Your Rights — AI Access Alliance

Important: This page provides general educational information about disability-rights law as it may apply to AI comprehension tools. It is not legal advice. Every situation is different. If you need legal help, contact a disability-rights attorney or your local legal-aid organization.

This page is for you — the person who uses AI to read a medical report, understand a benefits letter, or make sense of a school document. You are not doing anything wrong. You are using a tool to understand information that belongs to you.

Here is what you should know about your rights.

What the law says

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and related federal laws require hospitals, schools, government agencies, and many employers to provide "auxiliary aids and services" so people with disabilities can effectively communicate and access information.

You may already know what auxiliary aids look like: sign language interpreters for deaf individuals, screen readers for blind users, extra time on exams for students with learning disabilities. These are tools that help people access information they have the right to access.

AI comprehension tools — software that summarizes, explains, and simplifies written text — serve the same function for people with cognitive, learning, and neurodevelopmental disabilities. They help you understand information that is written at a level you cannot independently process.

While no federal agency has yet issued guidance specifically naming AI comprehension tools as auxiliary aids, the legal framework that protects screen readers and interpreters may also apply to the AI tools you depend on. That is the core of AI Access Alliance's advocacy.

The key principle

You are not asking for access to information you don't have the right to see. You are asking to understand information you already have the right to read.

This is an important distinction. When you use AI to simplify your own discharge instructions, understand your own lease, or read your own benefits letter, you are not asking for anything new. You are asking for the same right to comprehension that a blind person exercises when they use a screen reader.

How to request AI comprehension tools as an accommodation

The process depends on the setting. Here are practical steps for three common situations.

At school (college or university)

Steps to request accommodation

Contact your school's disability services office. This is typically called the Office of Disability Services, Accessibility Services, or Student Accommodations. Every school that receives federal funding is required to have one.

Provide documentation of your disability. This usually means a letter from a doctor, psychologist, or other qualified professional confirming your disability diagnosis and how it affects your ability to read and understand written text.

Specifically request AI comprehension tools as an accommodation. Be clear about what you need: "I am requesting permission to use AI comprehension tools (such as [tool name]) as an accommodation to help me understand course materials, including assigned readings and instructional documents." Frame it as a comprehension aid, not a writing tool.

Put everything in writing. Follow up verbal conversations with an email summarizing what was discussed and what was requested. Keep copies of all communications.

If the school has a blanket AI ban, your request asks them to make an individualized exception for disability accommodation. Under Section 504, schools must assess accommodations individually — blanket policies that make no exception for disability may not comply with federal law.

At work

Steps to request accommodation

Contact your employer's HR department or your direct supervisor. You have the right to request reasonable accommodations under the ADA (Title I) if you work for an employer with 15 or more employees.

Explain your need. You do not have to disclose your specific diagnosis. You can say: "I have a disability that affects my ability to read and understand complex written documents. I am requesting permission to use an AI comprehension tool as a reasonable accommodation."

Be specific about what documents you need help with. Workplace policies, employee handbooks, training materials, performance reviews, or other documents you need to understand to do your job.

Your employer must engage in an "interactive process" to determine a reasonable accommodation. They may offer alternatives — but the alternative must be equally effective at ensuring you can understand the information.

At a healthcare provider

Steps to request accommodation

Tell your provider or the patient services department that you have a disability that affects your ability to understand written medical information, and that you need to use an AI comprehension tool to understand your own records.

If the patient portal blocks AI tools, ask the provider to either remove the restriction for your account or provide the information in a format that is accessible to you (such as a plain-language summary).

Know that you have the right to your own health records. Federal law (including HIPAA and the 21st Century Cures Act) gives you the right to access your medical records and send them to third-party applications of your choosing.

If you are denied, ask for the denial in writing. This creates a record you can use if you need to file a complaint.

What to do if your request is denied

If an institution denies your accommodation request:

Ask for the denial in writing, including the specific reason the accommodation was denied.
Ask what alternative accommodation they will provide that is equally effective at ensuring you can understand the information.
Document everything: dates, names of people you spoke with, what was said, copies of emails and letters.
Contact a disability-rights organization for guidance. Many offer free consultations. The National Disability Rights Network can connect you with your state's Protection & Advocacy organization.
Consider filing a complaint with the relevant federal agency (see links below).

Where to file complaints

If you believe your rights have been violated, these are the federal agencies that handle disability-rights complaints:

Department of Justice — ADA Complaint For complaints about state/local government services (Title II) and public accommodations (Title III).
HHS Office for Civil Rights — Health Discrimination Complaint For complaints about hospitals, healthcare providers, and health insurers (Section 504, Section 1557).
Department of Education — OCR Complaint For complaints about schools, colleges, and universities (Section 504, Title II).
EEOC — Employment Discrimination Charge For complaints about workplace accommodations (Title I of the ADA).
National Disability Rights Network — Find Your State P&A Every state has a Protection & Advocacy organization that provides free legal assistance to people with disabilities.

Remember

You are not asking for a special privilege. You are asking to understand information that affects your life — your healthcare, your education, your benefits, your housing. The same civil-rights laws that require ramps, interpreters, and screen readers may also require that institutions not block the comprehension tools you depend on.

This area of law is still developing. AI Access Alliance exists to accelerate the recognition of AI comprehension tools as protected accommodations. Your experience is part of that work.

If you have a story about using AI as a comprehension tool — whether it has been supported or blocked — we'd like to hear from you.