Health Law Advisor

Our colleagues Frank C. Morris, Jr., Jonathan K. Hoerner, and Katie Smith—attorneys at Epstein Becker Green—authored an article in Healio titled “4 Ways to Address the #MeToo Era in Health Care.”

Following is an excerpt:

The #MeToo movement has its roots in Hollywood and the entertainment industry, but its branches extend into myriad other industries including journalism, the financial sector, government, athletics, tech, academia, and even the federal judiciary. The health care sector is no exception, despite its guiding principle to “first do no ...

In the midst of one of the worst flu seasons to date, many hospitals and other health care organizations enforced mandatory flu vaccine policies for their employees to boost vaccination rates. However, recent litigation and governmental actions should serve as a reminder that health care entities should carefully consider safeguards whenever implementing mandatory vaccine policies and to not categorically deny all requests for religious exemptions based on anti-vaccination beliefs.

In January, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the formation of a ...

An employee on an extended medical leave to recuperate from shoulder surgery posts pictures of his active Caribbean vacation. His employer is justified in terminating him, right?  Maybe not.

On April 19, 2017, the Eleventh Circuit reversed a trial court ruling and held that a former employee had raised a genuine issue of material fact regarding whether he was terminated in retaliation for using FMLA despite the former employee posting pictures from various vacations on Facebook during his time off of work to recuperate from surgery. This case, Jones v. Gulf Coast Health Care of ...

While the presidential election has attracted extreme attention, marijuana legalization initiatives were on the ballots in nine states on November 8, 2016. Four states – Arkansas, Florida, Montana, and North Dakota – approved measures providing for the medical use of marijuana, and three states – California, Massachusetts, and Nevada – approved initiatives allowing for recreational use.  The results in Maine are still close to call, but, if that measure is approved, it will be the fourth measure permitting recreational use.  Only one state (Arizona) defeated a marijuana ...

On November 4, 2016, the Western District of Pennsylvania held that the “because of sex” provision in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. In doing so, the court broke from the recent trend of federal courts that have felt compelled by prior precedent to dismiss sexual orientation discrimination claims.

In EEOC v. Scott Medical Health Center, P.C., the plaintiff (a gay male) alleged that he was subjected to repeated and unwelcome offensive comments regarding his sexual orientation and his relationship with a male ...

In December 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released new guidance for job applicants and employees with HIV infection that is particularly applicable to employers in the health care industry.  This guidance is applicable not only to applicants and current employees with HIV infection, but also to physicians and other health care providers who treat individuals with HIV infection to the extent their assistance is requested in obtaining workplace accommodations.

The first publication, “Living with HIV Infection: Your Legal Rights in the Workplace ...

The United States District Court for the District of New Mexico recently dismissed a lawsuit filed by an employee who was fired after testing positive for marijuana despite using medical marijuana as permitted by New Mexico state law.  In finding that the employer did not violate New Mexico law or public policy, the court’s decision mirrors the holdings in similar cases from California, Colorado, Michigan, Montana, Oregon, and Washington holding that employers have no duty to accommodate medical marijuana use by employees.

In the New Mexico case, the employee applied for a ...