Young Boy With Autism Removed From Flight for Not Wearing Face Mask
This is just unacceptable. Spirit airlines removed a 4-year-old boy and his family from a flight because the 4-year-old was not wearing a mask.
The family was flying home from Arkansas to Las Vegas and showed the flight attendant a medical note from their doctor. The note stated the 4-year-old has autism and wearing the mask causes him to hold his breath or hurt himself. United States guidelines say travelers with a medical exemption should not be required to wear a face covering, but this was not considered a medical condition.
The flight crew said autism is not a disability and removed the family. The family was able to fly home on American Airlines and Spirit has refunded the family the cost of the flight.
Spirit Airlines told US media: “Our existing policy does not provide for medical exemptions, regardless of diagnosis. Our team members explained this to a family traveling today, but never questioned anyone’s medical status in the process.” See more on the story here.
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