The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico as Case No. 1:26-cv-00968, targets St. Vincent Hospital, which operates Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe. The EEOC alleges the hospital's conduct violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The employee at the center of the case fractured her foot and tore tendons in her ankle around 2021. After returning from medical leave and working light duty in a patient care position for months, she requested reassignment as a reasonable accommodation. According to the EEOC, a vacant receptionist position existed that she could have performed within her restrictions, but the hospital did not reassign her. Instead, it fired her.
The termination letter, as described in the press release, told the employee she would not be eligible for rehire until she was "fully recovered" or had "a release for full duty." The EEOC treats that language as itself evidence of an unlawful policy.
Mary Jo O'Neill, regional attorney for the EEOC's Phoenix District Office, said: "Policies or practices requiring an employee with a disability to be fully recovered or to return to work at full duty levels violate the ADA. Employers are required to make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities, absent undue hardship, including reassignment to an open position."
EEOC Phoenix District Director Melinda Caraballo said: "Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations is a crucial part of the ADA and allows employees with disabilities to successfully participate in the workforce. When an employee can no longer perform the essential duties of her current job due to a disability, reassignment to a vacant position should be considered as an accommodation under the ADA."
The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process. No judicial ruling has been issued.