A district judge in Massachusetts sided with major hospital network Mass General Brigham against six plaintiffs’ Americans with Disability Act claims stemming from the hospital denying their medical-exemption requests from receiving the COVID-19 vaccination, concluding they failed to allege disability as a matter of law.
Mass General Brigham Inc. (MGB) adopted a policy in June 2021 that required all of its employees to be vacated against COVID-19, providing provisions for medical or religious exemptions under certain circumstances. More than 2,400 employees applied for exemptions but only 234 were granted. The plaintiffs in this case were 160 of those employees who were denied exemptions. Their complaint alleged violations of the Americans with Disability Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, according to the Sept. 28 order.
