Indiscriminate characterization of persons with disabilities: strictly nosographic legislation without functional assessment

The concept of a person with a disability has evolved from a medical-biological perspective to a biopsychosocial understanding that considers the dynamic interaction between functioning, disability, and contextual factors, as proposed by the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. However, a tension can be observed between this model and legislation that automatically recognizes certain conditions as disabilities without the corresponding functional assessment. Among these conditions are monocular vision, autism spectrum disorder, and fibromyalgia. This opinion article analyzes some legal, social, and ethical implications of this conceptual expansion in Brazil. Such expansion, by compromising the principles of positive discrimination, poses significant challenges to public policies guided by equity and distributive justice.

Keywords
disabled persons; disability evaluation; models; biopsychosocial; health policy; occupational health.