A new class action lawsuit has been filed against the Walt Disney Company.

Disney’s Disability Access Service, better known as DAS, has received controversial updates in recent years. Disney’s changes have made the service even more limited, which has caused many people to be dissatisfied with Disney’s accommodations for those with disabilities. Now, a new class action has been filed against both the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and Inspire Health Alliance in the state of California due to the changes that were made to DAS at both the Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort.

DAS was originally offered to those with a wide range of disabilities. Before the changes in 2024, the service allowed those to enter the Lightning Lane line via a return time after they were approved for the service. However, in May of 2024 at Disney World and June of 2024 at Disneyland, the service changed as Disney wanted to tackle overuse of the service. The wording was adjusted, and only guests who “due to a developmental disability like autism or similar disorder are unable to wait in a conventional queue for an extended period of time.”

This left many with non-developmental disabilities out of luck, and they were instead offered accommodations instead of DAS. These accommodations included being told to purchase Lighting Lane (or Genie+ pre-July 2024) or talk to Cast Members at each attraction to see what accommodations they could provide.

Since the changes were made in 2024, there have also been changes made to the way registration is done, as well as the length that DAS is good for before needing to re-apply. But just last month, Disney made another quiet change to their DAS wording. It now reads, “DAS is intended to accommodate only those Guests who, due to a developmental disability like autism or similar, are unable to wait in a conventional queue for an extended period of time.” The change here may be small, but by taking out the word “only,” DAS could be offered to more people.

The class action lawsuit Malone vs. Disney, filed in Orange County, California, alleges that Disney, along with Inspire Health Alliance (who helps Disney determine DAS eligibility), discriminated against and is still currently still discriminating against those with disabilities during the DAS interview process.

The lawsuit continues on to say that under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), those with disabilities are entitled to equal access, privacy, and dignity. The screening criteria is the leading cause for concern as it may have violated the California Unruh Civil Rights Act, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) guidelines, as well as privacy rights that are protected under the California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA).

Currently, if approved for DAS, it allows the individual who has a disability as well as three guests to enter the Lighting Lane of an attraction. There is a return time but no return window. Once redeemed, they must wait 15 minutes to book their next return time.

We will continue to monitor any changes this lawsuit could bring to the future of DAS at both Disneyland and Disney World, so make sure to continue to follow along with DFB!

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The post NEWS: Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Disney Over DAS Policy Changes first appeared on the disney food blog.