Migraine as a disability

It’s the latest news out of Virginia, USA.  Carin Manders Constantine was taking her constitutional law final exam, but asked for extra time.  Why?  Migraine.  The school (George Mason University) refused, and she failed.

Of course, the whole thing is more complicated than that, and I don’t know all the details of the case.  But I do know that this brings up some very important issues about migraine and disability.  It certainly is time that migraine was treated like the disability it truly is.  But what does that really mean in practical terms?  There are a whole host of things that need to change before that can really become a reality.  How can schools be fair to students and at the same time take into consideration diseases like migraine?

At this point, Carin is winning.  The lawsuit was rejected, but in appeals court reinstated.  Carin is in Florida now, and is preparing to take the Florida bar exam.