When “Good Times Bad Times” Still Trigger ADA Coverage

Led Zeppelin was decades ahead of the ADA, but “good times, bad times” captures exactly how episodic disabilities can look in the workplace. Some employees have great days. Others have rough days. Most have both. And under the ADA, those fluctuating limitations still count. A recent Sixth Circuit decision shows why employers cannot ignore an employee’s bad days just because the good ones look fine.

TL;DR: A federal appeals court held that a jury could reasonably find that an employee’s episodic night-vision limitations substantially limited her ability to see, so they could qualify as a disability under the ADA. The ADA does not require constant symptoms or total inability. Courts focus on what happens during flare-ups. The same jury also found that her episodic asthma substantially limited breathing, sleeping, and walking, and the Sixth Circuit affirmed that too.

📄Read the decision

The ADA Doesn’t Require Employees to Be Struggling 24/7

When Congress passed the ADA Amendments Act, it broadened the definition of disability and rejected earlier, narrow approaches. The regulations make clear that an impairment can qualify even if symptoms appear only in certain situations. Episodic conditions count if they substantially limit a major life activity when active.

In this case, the employee’s vision limitations did not appear all the time. During the day, she functioned normally. Some nights she managed too. But during flare-ups, she struggled with depth perception, reading signs, judging distance, and navigating safely in low-light conditions. The Sixth Circuit held that the jury could reasonably find this was a substantial limitation in the major life activity of seeing.

The court emphasized that the ADA does not require someone to be “entirely unable” to perform a major life activity. Good days do not cancel out bad days.

The jury applied the same standard to her asthma. Even though her asthma was usually controlled with medication, the evidence showed that when flare-ups hit, breathing, sleeping, and even walking short distances became difficult. The Sixth Circuit affirmed that the jury could find those episodic limitations substantial as well.

Why episodic symptoms still qualify as substantial limitations

Employers often assume:

if the employee is fine today, the ADA does not apply
if the employee sometimes manages the task, it is not a disability
if symptoms come and go, accommodations are optional

None of that is correct.

The ADA requires employers to evaluate:

the effect of the condition during episodes
the functional limitations
environmental or situational triggers
which major life activities are affected

The Sixth Circuit stressed that the ADA rejects categorical rules and favors individualized assessments. A condition does not lose ADA coverage simply because it appears only sometimes, or because the employee can power through it on certain days.

This is not a one-snapshot analysis. It is a functional assessment of what happens when symptoms appear.

Why this matters far beyond one person’s vision and asthma

The real employer issue is not limited to night blindness or asthma. Many fluctuating medical conditions hit employees unpredictably:

migraines
asthma
Crohn’s flare-ups and other gastrointestinal issues
seizures
vertigo
panic attacks
PTSD triggers
long COVID episodes
arthritis flare-ups
episodic back pain
depression
anxiety spikes

Employees experiencing these conditions may live their own version of “good times, bad times.” On some days, they look like any other employee. On other days, basic functions become a struggle.

Many episodic impairments do not show up clearly on medical tests. The ADA focuses on function, not perfect diagnostics.

Employers cannot rely on “she looked fine yesterday” to shut down an accommodation conversation.

What employers should take from this

1. The ADA’s definition is intentionally broad
Courts apply the ADAAA’s instruction to construe “disability” broadly and avoid severity-based standards.

2. Episodic impairments count when active
If symptoms substantially limit a major life activity during flare-ups, the employee is covered, even if the condition is usually controlled.

3. Occasional performance does not defeat coverage
Employees do not lose ADA protection because they sometimes manage the task or push through symptoms.

4. The interactive process applies even to fluctuating issues
Variability does not excuse ignoring a request tied to an underlying medical condition.

5. Accommodations may be simple
Shift adjustments, schedule changes, lighting modifications, telework options, or temporary task redistribution may be all that is needed.

Episodic does not mean minor. And it does not fall outside the ADA. The Sixth Circuit’s decision confirms that when employees experience “good times, bad times,” employers still have obligations. The key is to evaluate what happens during flare-ups and engage in a real, well-documented interactive process.