ADA compliance · Healthcare

ADA and Section 504 website compliance for healthcare.

HHS now requires WCAG 2.1 AA from federally funded providers. The deadline was extended to May 2027. We're building to it now.

See plans and pricing

$75

Monitor · per month

$250+

Remediate · per month

The short answer

What does ADA compliance mean for hospitals, clinics, and medical practices?

Healthcare organizations that receive HHS federal financial assistance, including Medicare and Medicaid, must make their websites, apps, and patient portals conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA under the 2024 Section 504 rule. HHS extended the deadline to May 11, 2027 for recipients with 15 or more employees and May 10, 2028 for smaller ones. Private practices also face ADA Title III lawsuits today.

The HHS Section 504 rule names WCAG 2.1 AA as the technical standard for web content and mobile apps.
Compliance dates: May 11, 2027 (15+ employees) and May 10, 2028 (fewer than 15), after HHS's May 2026 extension.
The rule covers content provided through contractors and third parties, which pulls in scheduling tools and patient portals.
Healthcare accounted for about 2 to 3% of 2025 digital accessibility lawsuits, and the workflows cited include booking appointments and refilling prescriptions (UsableNet).

The exposure

Why healthcare is different

Most industries face lawsuit risk. Federally funded healthcare providers now face a regulatory standard with a date. Section 504 compliance is enforced by the HHS Office for Civil Rights and can be tied to your federal funding.

Patients with disabilities use healthcare at higher rates than the general population. A patient who can't book an appointment, complete intake forms, or read lab results in the portal is being denied a service, not just a web page.

Health systems carry large volumes of PDFs: intake forms, financial assistance policies, price transparency files, consent documents. Documents are in scope, and they're usually the biggest remediation line item.

The rules

Accessibility laws that apply to hospitals, clinics, and medical practices.

Section 504 (2024 HHS rule)
Who it covers
Recipients of HHS federal financial assistance
Standard
WCAG 2.1 AA for web content and mobile apps
Timing
May 11, 2027 (15+ employees); May 10, 2028 (under 15)
ADA Title III
Who it covers
Private practices and hospitals as public accommodations
Standard
WCAG 2.1 AA by reference
Timing
In effect now
ADA Title II
Who it covers
Public and county hospitals, state health departments
Standard
WCAG 2.1 AA
Timing
April 26, 2027 or April 26, 2028 depending on population served
Section 1557 (ACA)
Who it covers
Health programs receiving federal funds
Standard
Nondiscrimination, including accessible communications
Timing
In effect now

Accessibility laws that apply to hospitals, clinics, and medical practices
Law or rule	Who it covers	Standard	Timing
Section 504 (2024 HHS rule)	Recipients of HHS federal financial assistance	WCAG 2.1 AA for web content and mobile apps	May 11, 2027 (15+ employees); May 10, 2028 (under 15)
ADA Title III	Private practices and hospitals as public accommodations	WCAG 2.1 AA by reference	In effect now
ADA Title II	Public and county hospitals, state health departments	WCAG 2.1 AA	April 26, 2027 or April 26, 2028 depending on population served
Section 1557 (ACA)	Health programs receiving federal funds	Nondiscrimination, including accessible communications	In effect now

Common failures

Where patient journeys break

What we find most often on sites in this industry, and the WCAG success criterion each one fails.

Online scheduling widget unusable by keyboard or screen reader
Where it shows up
Book-an-appointment flows (often third-party)
WCAG criterion
2.1.1 Keyboard, 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value
Scanned intake and consent PDFs with no text layer or tags
Where it shows up
New patient forms, policies
WCAG criterion
1.1.1 Non-text Content, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships
Session timeouts in the patient portal with no warning or extension
Where it shows up
Portal, bill pay
WCAG criterion
2.2.1 Timing Adjustable
Form errors shown only in red with no text explanation
Where it shows up
Intake, insurance, contact forms
WCAG criterion
3.3.1 Error Identification, 1.4.1 Use of Color
Provider finder filters that don't announce updated results
Where it shows up
Find a doctor / location search
WCAG criterion
4.1.3 Status Messages
Patient education videos without captions
Where it shows up
Procedure explainers, telehealth instructions
WCAG criterion
1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded)
Login requiring a memorized puzzle or copy-paste blocked
Where it shows up
Portal authentication
WCAG criterion
3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (WCAG 2.2)

Common accessibility barriers on websites for hospitals, clinics, and medical practices
Barrier	Where it shows up	WCAG criterion
Online scheduling widget unusable by keyboard or screen reader	Book-an-appointment flows (often third-party)	2.1.1 Keyboard, 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value
Scanned intake and consent PDFs with no text layer or tags	New patient forms, policies	1.1.1 Non-text Content, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships
Session timeouts in the patient portal with no warning or extension	Portal, bill pay	2.2.1 Timing Adjustable
Form errors shown only in red with no text explanation	Intake, insurance, contact forms	3.3.1 Error Identification, 1.4.1 Use of Color
Provider finder filters that don't announce updated results	Find a doctor / location search	4.1.3 Status Messages
Patient education videos without captions	Procedure explainers, telehealth instructions	1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded)
Login requiring a memorized puzzle or copy-paste blocked	Portal authentication	3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (WCAG 2.2)

What you get

What's included for hospitals, clinics, and medical practices.

On Monitor ($75/mo)

Monthly scans of the public site, location pages, and provider directory
Manual testing of appointment booking, intake forms, bill pay, and contact paths
Inventory of third-party tools (scheduling, portal, telehealth, chat) with vendor accessibility status
PDF inventory with pass/fail on tagging, reading order, and form fields

Added on Monitor + Remediate (from $250/mo)

Template and component fixes across the site and location pages
PDF remediation for intake forms, consent documents, and policies, quoted by page count
Captions and transcripts for patient education video
Vendor accessibility documentation for your Section 504 compliance file

Pricing

ADA compliance pricing for hospitals, clinics, and medical practices.

No annual audit invoice, no widget license. Monthly pricing and work you can see in the report.

Monitor

$75/mo

Continuous WCAG 2.2 AA monitoring and a prioritized fix list your team can ship.

Baseline audit against WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 Level AA
Automated scans of your site every month, plus alerts when new issues ship
Manual checks of key templates: keyboard, screen reader, zoom, and forms
Prioritized recommendations with the exact WCAG success criterion and fix guidance
Monthly report showing open issues, resolved issues, and trend
Accessibility statement drafted for your site

Best for: Teams with a developer or agency who can implement fixes.

Start monitoring

Monitor + Remediate

$250/mo and up

Everything in Monitor, and we fix the issues in your code and content.

Everything in Monitor
We implement fixes in your theme, templates, CMS, and content
Alt text, captions, form labels, color contrast, focus order, and ARIA repairs
Accessible PDF and document remediation, quoted by volume
Regression checks after every fix and every major release
Documented remediation log you can hand to counsel or procurement

Best for: Businesses that want the issues fixed, not just reported.

Get a remediation quote

Monitor + Remediate starts at $250/mo. Final price depends on site size, number of unique templates, platform, and how much content (PDFs, video) needs remediation. You get a fixed monthly quote before anything starts.

How it works

Baseline, prioritize, fix, and keep it fixed.

01
Baseline
Automated crawl plus manual testing of your highest-traffic and highest-risk templates. You get a scored list of every WCAG failure we find.
02
Prioritize
Issues ranked by user impact and legal exposure: checkout, booking, forms, and navigation first. Cosmetic issues last.
03
Fix or hand off
On Monitor, your developers get fix-ready tickets. On Remediate, we ship the fixes and verify them.
04
Hold the line
Monthly scans and manual spot checks catch regressions from new pages, plugins, and releases before a plaintiff's scanner does.

Questions

Healthcare ADA compliance FAQ.

Does the HHS Section 504 rule apply to my private practice?

It applies if your practice receives federal financial assistance from HHS. That generally includes Medicaid payments and HHS grants. How Medicare Part B payments are treated has varied across HHS rules, so confirm with counsel. Either way, private practices remain public accommodations under ADA Title III and can be sued over an inaccessible website today.

Is our patient portal vendor responsible, or are we?

The rule holds the recipient responsible for content provided through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements. In practice: you are. Ask each vendor for a current VPAT or Accessibility Conformance Report, then verify it. We test the portal flows your patients actually use and document gaps for your vendor conversations.

Do we have to fix every old PDF on our site?

The HHS rule has limited exceptions for archived content and some pre-existing documents that aren't currently used to access your services. Anything patients need now, like intake forms, financial assistance policies, and consent documents, should be accessible. We inventory your documents and sort them into fix, archive, or retire.

How is this different from HIPAA compliance?

They're separate obligations. HIPAA covers privacy and security of health information. Section 504 and the ADA cover equal access for people with disabilities. Accessibility fixes don't touch PHI. We work on templates and public content, and we test portals with test accounts you provide.

Keep reading

More on ADA website compliance

Related industries

Other industries we cover.

Sources

Where these facts come from

Quorum is not a law firm, and this page is not legal advice. Deadlines and rules change. For advice on your situation, talk to an attorney.

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See every WCAG failure on your site, ranked by risk, before you commit to fixes.

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