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EEOC Files Suit Against Hospital for Reviewing Applicant’s Hospital Records
According to the complaint, the healthcare system offered the applicant a job as Registered Nurse Care Coordinator, contingent upon a medical examination. During the medical examination, the applicant was asked about a prescription that appeared in her medical records from when she was a patient at one of the system’s facilities. She explained that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and had been prescribed the medication to treat that condition. The healthcare system then rescinded the job offer.
Although the ADA permits employers to condition job offers on post-offer medical examinations, the EEOC asserted that the healthcare system’s practice of checking its patient records in connection with post-offer medical examinations, which it called a Medication Reconciliation Policy, violated the ADA. While it is too early to tell whether courts will accept the EEOC’s position, healthcare providers should take note of the EEOC’s stance on accessing patient records as part of a post-offer medical exam.
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