Immunocompromised Radiologist claims hospital system fired him for asking to work remotely
A New York City radiologist is suing the nation’s largest municipal healthcare system, claiming he was fired for asking to work from home during the pandemic.
Richard Heiden, MD, was with NYC Health and Hospitals for less than a year when COVID-19 struck. He suffers from the autoimmune disease ulcerative colitis that makes him vulnerable to the virus and requested remote duties back in March, the New York Post reported Monday.
However, leaders at the Bronx-based Lincoln Hospital, instead, allegedly issued a negative performance review the next day, and a few days later urged him to quit or be fired. He obliged April 2, tendering his resignation, according to the report.
Heiden, a 30-year veteran of the profession, subsequently filed suit, seeking unspecified damages from NYC Health and Hospitals, its radiology department chair, and Physicians Affiliate Group of New York, which staffs the hospital.
“Defendants’ alleged actions in this case demonstrate a flagrant disregard for the rights of their immunocompromised employees who are entitled to reasonable accommodations to protect themselves from this deadly coronavirus,” attorney Valdi Licul told the newspaper in a written statement. “We are confident that Dr. Heiden’s rights will be vindicated in court.”
HHC did not immediately respond to a New York Post request for comment. Read more about the dispute from the newspaper below.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.