On an airline with assigned seating those with disabilities that require specific seating contact the airline in advance and have a seat assigned to them that best meets their need, so that people who have no clue about disabilities and peoples rights and needs don't write insensitive comments on a forum. Those airlines will either set aside seats that no one else can be assigned to until 24 hours before the flight, or will reassign people as the requests are made, or both.
Why can't they do as you want? well it is a violation of the law for starters.... Granted their blanket no preboards in exit row seats may be as well. According the the US Department of transportation:
An airline must not exclude any qualified individual with a disability from any seat in an exit row or other location, if the individual can perform the necessary functions of sitting in the seat in accordance with FAA regulations.
Airline personnel are responsible for making an individual determination as to whether any individual is able to perform the functions required of a passenger occupying an exit seat in the event of an emergency.
Not all disability-related limitations prevent people from performing the required exit row functions.
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