5th Circuit says CFS is a Disability Under ADA

5th Circuit says CFS is a Disability Under ADA


An employee who suffered a recurrence of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) can sue under the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990), the 5th Circuit has ruled in reversing a summary judgment.

The plaintiff had originally been diagnosed in 1987 while she not working, but she received treatments and the symptoms went away.

Thirteen years later, now working full time, she began to experience the same symptoms, including extreme fatigue, sleep loss and difficulty concentrating. Her doctor recommended various accommodations that her employer refused to provide.

She was later fired for not mentioning the symptoms on a medical questionnaire at the time of her hire. The plaintiff sued, but a U.S. District Court found that she was not disabled. The 5th Circuit disagreed.

"The question of whether an individual is disabled under the ADA ... remains an individualized inquiry, and in this case a jury reasonably could find that [the employee] was disabled under the statute because she was substantially limited in the major life activities of caring for herself, sleeping and thinking." the court said.

"[The plaintiff] stated that at the time of her termination she was suffering from severe headaches, low-grade fevers that interfered with her sleep, sensitivity to light, pain in her legs, disturbances in her vision, difficulty staying awake at the wheel, and morning nausea that made it difficult to get up and get dressed. ... Although [her] symptoms improved somewhat on the correct regimen of medication, a jury reasonably could find that she was still substantially limited in the major life activities of caring for herself, sleeping and thinking, and thus still disabled under the ADA at the time she was discharged," the court said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Source:

* U.S. Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit. EEOC v. Chevron, No. 07-20661. June 5, 2009. Lawyers USA No. 993-845.