YOUR PHYSICIAN
______________________________________________________________________
YOUR PHYSICIAN’S ADDRESS AND PHONE NUMBER
Property Manager or Association President
Mailing Address
Date
Dear Property Manager or Association President:
Your name is currently under my care and I am prescribing, as a necessary adjunct to his or her current treatment and therapy, the continued use and ownership of an emotional support animal companion in order to help alleviate the disabling difficulties he or she has on a chronic basis which adversely affect his or her Activities of Daily Living.
Because of his or her difficulties, he or she meets the definition of having a disability under the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Medication and other treatments are not fully and consistently effective and his or her life functions are often interrupted and impaired.
I am therefore strongly recommending that he or she utilize an emotional support animal in residence permanently as a necessary treatment and support system, that his or her privacy regarding this not be unduly intruded upon in any way, and that he or she not be forced or coercing into relocating at this time. Under no circumstances should he or she be separated from his or her emotional support animal, and relocating to a new residence at this time would exacerbate his or her symptoms.
An emotional support animal’s obvious ability to provide support, comfort, security and relaxation been proven to enhance the treatment of patients with Your name’s condition and will enable him or herto live independently and to fully enjoy his or her current dwelling unit. The therapeutic use and function of these animals should not and cannot legally or ethically be impinged upon by any group, organization or individual per the Federal legislation cited above, under which protection Your name now comes, which supersedes all otherwise restrictive policies.
Further, Your name’s right to privacy under law as well as his or her need to avoid undue stress should preclude the need to exert any pressure upon him or her to disclose further details of his or hercondition should he or she choose confidentiality.
In closing, please note that actions and speech which “…coerce, intimidate, threaten, or interfere with any person in the exercise of, or on account of her or his having exercised, or on account of her or his having aided or encouraged any other person in the exercise…” of their rights to reasonable accommodation is unlawful. (PART II FAIR HOUSING ACT [ss. 760.20-760.37] of Florida Statutes). Clearly, not all speech is protected and, with respect to this issue, retaliatory speech and action are not permitted.
Yours truly,
______________________________________________
Your Physician
CC: Your County Office of Equal Opportunity
Your County Legal Aid Society