Federal & State Regulations | Medical exams - Kansas | J. J. Keller® Compliance Network

State Info

Summary of differences between federal and state regulations

The federal laws which govern medical exams for employment purposes are the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), federal drug testing guidelines under the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act, and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). A federal executive order prohibits federal employers from requesting genetic tests as a condition of employment, but there are as yet no provisions relating to private employers.

The ADA governs medical testing in relation to applicants and employees with disabilities. For more information on the ADA, see the Americans with Disabilities Act topic.

Drug tests are not considered medical examinations under the ADA, but the records of such tests are considered confidential medical records from a privacy standpoint, and certain procedures must be followed in conducting the tests. For more information, see the section on Drug Testing.

For more information on privacy and medical records, see the section on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA.

Pre-employment exams

Kansas law mirrors federal ADA law in providing that an employer may require a pre-employment medical exam after an offer of employment has been extended if the same is required of all employees in the same job category; all medical information is to be kept separate from an employee’s file and treated as confidential.

Drug test information

Kansas law also mirrors federal drug testing law in requiring that drug test information be kept confidential.

Genetic test

Kansas law provides that an employer can not use a genetic screening test for employment purposes nor require an employee or job applicant to be subjected to such a test.