Under proposed legislation, workers in the United Kingdom living with serious physical illnesses such as HIV, MS and cancer, as well as those suffering from long term mental illness, will be classified as disabled as soon as the illness is diagnosed. Current legislation limits protection to employees until after they begin to show symptoms. The legislation will cover people at service points such as shops and gyms as well as in the workplace.
See "Better protection for work sick", BBC News Online, July 15, 2004