DOJ Opinion Reinterprets Olmstead, Says States Are Not Required To Provide Community-Based Services

The Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Legal Counsel issued a memorandum opinion for the counsel to the President that concluded states are not required to provide community integration and services for people with mental disabilities. The opinion was issued on June 18, 2026.

The opinion states the following conclusions about the role of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the 1999 Olmstead decision in the context of preventing discrimination on the basis of disability:

Neither Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act nor Title II of the ADA imposed an integration mandate on . . .