A former employee has filed a lawsuit against a prominent hospital, alleging wrongful termination and discrimination. Latasha Young filed the complaint in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana on June 25, 2024, naming Woman’s Hospital Foundation as the defendant.
According to the court documents, Young began her employment with Woman’s Hospital on May 17, 2021, as a patient access representative. She was entitled to full employee benefits under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), including healthcare and long-term disability plans. However, her employment was abruptly terminated on May 20, 2022. Young claims that her dismissal was unlawful and aimed at preventing her from accessing her entitled benefits.
The complaint outlines a series of events leading up to Young's termination. In February 2022, while on personal leave, she fell ill and was instructed by her supervisor to undergo a COVID-19 test before returning to work. The test was administered aggressively by a hospital nurse, causing severe pain and subsequent medical complications for Young. An ear, nose, and throat specialist later diagnosed her with a brain injury caused by the test. This led to brain surgery in March 2022 at Houston Methodist Hospital.
Young communicated with her employer about her condition and requested family medical leave for recovery. Despite providing medical documentation supporting her need for extended leave due to ongoing treatment and inability to work, Woman’s Hospital terminated her employment on May 20, 2022. Young alleges that this decision violated several laws including the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Louisiana Employment Discrimination Laws, and ERISA.
The plaintiff asserts that during this period she had a disability as defined by ADA and was entitled to reasonable accommodations which were not provided by Woman’s Hospital. Instead of accommodating her needs or extending her medical leave benefits, the hospital terminated her employment allegedly to prevent her from utilizing these benefits.
Young is seeking reinstatement to her former position along with back pay, front pay, compensation for mental anguish and emotional distress caused by the termination, lost medical care benefits, punitive damages, attorney fees, and court costs. She also requests a jury trial for all issues triable by civil jury.
The case is being handled by attorneys Dale R. Baringer, Benjamin J.B. Klein, and William H. Caldwell from The Baringer Law Firm II L.L.C., while it will be presided over by Judge Shelly D. Dick under Case ID: 3:24-cv-00518-SDD-EWD.