Justice Department Settles with Ohio Healthcare System Over HIV Discrimination
eNews Park Forest
The Justice Department announced today that, as part of its Barrier-Free Health Care Initiative, the department has reached a settlement with Genesis Healthcare System (Genesis) to resolve claims that Genesis discriminated against a woman with HIV in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Genesis operates a healthcare system that includes a hospital, a network of more than 300 physicians, and multiple outpatient health care centers throughout southeastern Ohio.
Settlement Agreement: Genesis Healthcare System
The parties to this Settlement Agreement are the United States of America and Genesis HealthCare System (“Genesis”).
This matter is based upon a complaint filed with the United States Department of Justice, in which a Complainant alleged that Genesis discriminated against her on the basis of her disability in violation of title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189. Specifically, the Complainant alleges that Genesis refused to accept her as a new patient based on her HIV.
The parties have reached agreement that it is in the parties' best interests, and the United States believes that it is in the public interest, to resolve this dispute.
EEOC to Offer Guidance on Wellness Programs
JD Supra
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced it will soon issue guidance on EEOC compliance when encouraging employees to participate in employer-sponsored wellness programs. The guidance — to be released next month — is expected to address both the relationship between federal health care laws and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with respect to incentive-based wellness programs, as well as the meaning of "voluntary" under the ADA.
Time for an annual review of personnel policies
Lexology
As 2014 turns to 2015, employers should take time to carefully review their personnel policies in hopes of avoiding a challenge from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) in the coming year. In 2014, as part of its Strategic Enforcement Plan, the EEOC pursued claims against employers with inflexible personnel policies – implicitly recognizing that, by challenging a policy, the EEOC is often able to identify many applicants or employees with a claim for relief and obtain a greater amount of media attention and damages. If the EEOC stays the course in 2015, employers unwilling to make accommodations or engage in individualized applications of their personnel policies may find themselves in expensive and time consuming legal proceedings.
Case Weighing ADA Protections Against Workplace Violence Survives
The Legal Intelligencer
A federal judge in Philadelphia has decided to develop the record in a case that, according to the judge, "tests the outer bounds of the Americans with Disabilities Act in the context of workplace violence."
Blind woman, dog turned away from Mattituck restaurant
Suffolk Times