Comfort Aids
Comfort aids are small, medically necessary items that require pre-approval prior to being permitted into the testing room.
See Comfort aids that do not require pre-approval.
For Test Takers
All requests for a comfort aid should include the following:
- A completed comfort aid form (pdf).
- A signed Verification and Release Form.
- A professional report confirming the presence, nature and extent of your impairment and the need for specific accommodation. Professional reports should be by a qualified and licensed/certified professional with specific and appropriate expertise evaluating adults with the impairment that you have. See the "For Evaluators" section below for details of what the report should contain.
Note: Past failure of ABIM examinations does not, in and of itself, constitute objective evidence of a functional limitation due to a disability.
For Evaluators
Your professional report should include the following:
- Your name, address and phone number
- Your area of specialty/expertise
- A description of the specific functional limitations caused by the test taker's impairment that require accommodation
- A description of the accommodations recommended by you
- A desciption of the history of treatment and/or rehabilitation efforts that the test taker has received for their impairment
- Documentation addressing whether the test taker's impairment substantially limits one or more major life activities within the meaning of the ADA
- Objective evidence of functional limitations:
- A list of all standardized test instruments and assessment procedures used to diagnose and evaluate the functional impact of the test taker's impairment
- Date(s) of assessments and/or treatment contacts upon which your report and opinions are based