Most healthcare employers have been dealing with COVID-19 for a year now. With vaccines widely available for this workforce, we offer five considerations for healthcare employers as they move toward a post-pandemic environment. Will COVID-19 vaccinations become an annual event? For years many healthcare providers have required employees to get a flu shot. Are we … Continue Reading
As more healthcare employees receive their COVID-19 vaccinations, questions about when vaccinated healthcare employees can return to work if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms continue to arise. Coupled with ongoing staffing shortages in the industry, the need for employees to return to work when safe to do so is a pressing concern for many healthcare employers. To … Continue Reading
As employers in healthcare settings prepare to administer the vaccine to healthcare personnel, they are likely grappling with new practical considerations. Undoubtedly, one of the most widespread challenges is how to manage employees with potential post-vaccination systemic signs and symptoms (“signs and symptoms”), without unnecessarily imposing work restrictions to the detriment of patient care demands. … Continue Reading
Requiring flu vaccines is nothing new for healthcare employers. However, in light of COVID-19, there is a renewed emphasis and discussion concerning flu vaccines in the workplace. Healthcare employers are unique because often state or municipal laws regulate when a healthcare employer must require flu vaccinations, permissible exceptions and documentation requirements. These regulatory obligations are … Continue Reading
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued two technical assistance documents addressing accommodation issues under the Americans with Disabilities Act for employees who use opioid medications or may be addicted to opioids. One of them provides guidance to health care providers on helping patients through the ADA interactive process with their employers. You can … Continue Reading
Healthcare employers who believed they were entirely exempt from the FFCRA’s obligations, including providing certain paid leave, based on the Department of Labor’s March regulations should revisit their position in light of a recent ruling from a New York federal court. Many healthcare providers believed they were entirely exempt from the FFCRA because of the … Continue Reading
A federal court in Ohio has dismissed Family and Medical Leave Act and disability discrimination claims filed by a nurse who was caught sleeping while on duty and fired. Lasher v. Medina Hosp., et al., C.A. No. 1:15CV00005 (N.D. Ohio Feb. 5, 2016). The court found the hospital had a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for terminating … Continue Reading
A federal court in Texas has dismissed a nurse’s disability discrimination and retaliation claims because she failed to establish she was qualified to perform the duties of her position with or without reasonable accommodation even after the EEOC found the employer’s six-month cap on leaves of absence violated the American with Disabilities Act. Salem v. … Continue Reading
Denying a nursing home’s motion for summary judgment, a federal court in Tennessee has allowed a nurse who suffered from impaired vision to proceed with her age and disability discrimination claims and a claim for retaliation. Harris v. MatureCare of Standifer Place, LLC d/b/a The Health Center at Standifer Place, C.A. No. 1:14-CV-64 (E.D. Tenn. … Continue Reading
A nurse’s request to use a cane while working in a hospital’s behavioral health unit is not a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal district court in Florida has ruled. United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. St. Joseph’s Hospital, Inc., No. 8:13-cv-2723-T-30TGW (M.D. Fl. Feb. 18, 2015). Leokadia Bryk worked … Continue Reading
A senior living facility lawfully terminated an LPN when, following knee replacement surgery and the expiration of her FMLA leave, she could no longer perform the essential functions of her job, a federal district court has found.… Continue Reading
A certified nurse’s assistant cannot pursue a disability discrimination claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act because she failed to exhaust her administrative remedies, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee ruled in Davenport v. Asbury Inc., No. 3:12-CV-00445 (E.D. Tenn. Mar. 29, 2013). Under the ADA, a claimant must file a … Continue Reading
A resolution adopted by the Nurse Alliance Leadership Council of SEIU Healthcare opposing mandatory flu vaccine and masking policies may add another challenge to healthcare employers seeking to implement such requirements.… Continue Reading
For insights regarding litigation avoidance from our very own blogger, Ana Shields, check out this link on Resource Nation: http://www.resourcenation.com/blog/email-interview-with-jacksonlewis-com/34965/… Continue Reading
OSHA recently announced a new enforcement program targeting nursing home and residential care facilities. The program, effective a week-and-a-half ago, focuses OSHA compliance officers on inspecting nursing homes and assisted living facilities. More info. is available on Jackson Lewis’ OSHA Law Blog at the following link: http://www.oshalawblog.com/… Continue Reading
Healthcare employers – we thought you may be interested in this 9th Circuit decision addressing the request of an ICU neo-natal nurse to “opt-out” of the employer’s unplanned absence policy as an accommodation. A summary of the opinion is available on Jackson Lewis’ Disability, Leave and Health Management blog at http://www.disabilityleavelaw.com/. … Continue Reading
