ADA Laws for Cardiologist in Tennessee

State Law Summary

Tennessee Does Not Have a Specific Website Accessibility Law for Private Businesses

Tennessee does not have a state statute that directly requires private business websites to be accessible.

Instead, accessibility obligations generally come from the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Two ADA sections are most relevant:

• Title II – applies to state and local governments
• Title III – applies to private businesses open to the public

Under Title III, businesses considered places of public accommodation must provide equal access to their goods and services. Courts increasingly interpret this requirement to include websites and digital services, particularly when the website is connected to a physical business location.

Examples of businesses commonly covered include:

• restaurants
• retail stores
• hotels
• healthcare providers
• banks
• professional service providers.

Common accessibility barriers cited in ADA website lawsuits include:

• missing alt text for images
• inaccessible forms or checkout pages
• keyboard navigation failures
• poor color contrast
• incompatibility with screen readers.

Because the ADA does not specify a technical web standard, courts and settlements usually rely on Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 or 2.1 Level AA as the benchmark for accessibility.

Website Compliance Rules

Accessibility Requirements for Tennessee Government Websites

State government websites in Tennessee are expected to comply with accessibility requirements under both:

• ADA Title II
• Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

Tennessee executive branch agencies state that their websites follow the same accessible web standards applied to federal agencies under Section 508.

These requirements apply to:

• state agency websites
• online forms and public services
• digital documents and downloadable files
• other web-based government information systems.

State agencies must take steps to ensure communications with people with disabilities are as effective as communications with others.

Damages & Penalties

Accessibility Standards Used by Tennessee Agencies

Tennessee government websites generally follow modern accessibility standards such as:

• WCAG 2.1 Level AA
• Section 508 accessibility standards

For example, the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office states its website is designed to conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA success criteria.

These standards include requirements such as:

• alternative text for images
• keyboard-accessible navigation
• clear heading structure and semantic HTML
• sufficient color contrast
• captions or transcripts for multimedia content.