Luedecke v. Tenet Healthcare Corp. (Summary)

ADA/DISCRIMINATION

Luedecke v. Tenet Healthcare Corp., Civil Action No. 3:14-CV-1582-B (N.D. Tex. Jan. 5, 2015)

A federal court in Texas dismissed an anesthesiologist’s claim that he was discriminated against when his hospital employer refused his request for accommodation.

The anesthesiologist first requested that he be removed from the emergency room on-call schedule due to neck pain in 2010. His request was denied, and he remained on the on-call list. The anesthesiologist provided a letter from his doctor stating that his neck condition allowed him to work, but should excuse him from night call. His request for accommodation was once again denied. After the anesthesiologist requested again that he be removed from the on-call schedule, the hospital ordered him to undergo an examination by his doctor. The Medical Board in two subsequent meetings maintained that the anesthesiologist was still required to be on call in accordance with the hospital’s bylaws. The anesthesiologist then filed a discrimination charge, claiming that the hospital had discriminated and retaliated against him due to his disability and requests for accommodation.

The court found that the anesthesiologist did not allege sufficient facts to support his claim that he falls under the definition of “disabled” as described by the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). While he claimed to have pain in his neck, he did not specify what “major life activities” were limited or adversely affected by this pain. The letter from his doctor was similarly insufficient, as it did not indicate how the anesthesiologist’s pain or medication would prevent him from fulfilling his on-call requirements. The anesthesiologist’s claims of retaliation were dismissed because the denial of his request for accommodation does not constitute retaliatory conduct.