Employee Medical Exams Permitted Under Limited Circumstances
- By Your mom
- •
- 01 Apr, 2009
Requiring current employees to undergo a medical examination is unlawful, unless the
ADA’s requirements, and those of any comparable state law, are closely followed. The ADA
generally prohibits employers from requiring current employees to submit to medical
examinations, unless they can show the examination is “job related and consistent with business
necessity.” Conroy v. N.Y. State Dept. of Correctional Services, 333 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. 2003).
In Conroy the court laid out what an employer must prove to justify the examination. It
stated it is not enough for an employer to demonstrate the exam is convenient or beneficial to its
business. Instead it must show the asserted business necessity is “vital” to the business. The
employer must also prove the exam genuinely serves the asserted business necessity, and that the
request is no broader or more intrusive than necessary. The exam need not be the only way of
meeting the necessity, but it must be a reasonably effective method of achieving the employer’s
goal.
Examinations normally meeting the test include exams to justify a request for medical
leave; return to work exams; and exams to determine whether an employee can perform job-
related duties when the employer can identify legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons to doubt the
employee’s capacity to do so. Also, employees seeking reasonable accommodations can be
asked to provide sufficient medical documentation to substantiate their needs. When an
employer reasonably believes the information provided is inadequate it may arrange for an
independent medical examination at its own cost.
The Second Circuit’s thinking in Conroy was recently supported by the Appellate Court
of Connecticut. Joyner v. Simkins Industries, Inc., 111 Conn. App. 93 (2008). In Joyner, the
company fired the plaintiff for insubordination when she refused to submit to an independent
medical exam after the company felt the documentation she previously provided was inadequate,
and she failed to have her own doctor clarify her condition.
While employers have a right to require medical examinations under certain conditions, it
is prudent to consult with counsel prior to making such a request, or taking adverse action based
on an employee’s failure to comply.
ADA’s requirements, and those of any comparable state law, are closely followed. The ADA
generally prohibits employers from requiring current employees to submit to medical
examinations, unless they can show the examination is “job related and consistent with business
necessity.” Conroy v. N.Y. State Dept. of Correctional Services, 333 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. 2003).
In Conroy the court laid out what an employer must prove to justify the examination. It
stated it is not enough for an employer to demonstrate the exam is convenient or beneficial to its
business. Instead it must show the asserted business necessity is “vital” to the business. The
employer must also prove the exam genuinely serves the asserted business necessity, and that the
request is no broader or more intrusive than necessary. The exam need not be the only way of
meeting the necessity, but it must be a reasonably effective method of achieving the employer’s
goal.
Examinations normally meeting the test include exams to justify a request for medical
leave; return to work exams; and exams to determine whether an employee can perform job-
related duties when the employer can identify legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons to doubt the
employee’s capacity to do so. Also, employees seeking reasonable accommodations can be
asked to provide sufficient medical documentation to substantiate their needs. When an
employer reasonably believes the information provided is inadequate it may arrange for an
independent medical examination at its own cost.
The Second Circuit’s thinking in Conroy was recently supported by the Appellate Court
of Connecticut. Joyner v. Simkins Industries, Inc., 111 Conn. App. 93 (2008). In Joyner, the
company fired the plaintiff for insubordination when she refused to submit to an independent
medical exam after the company felt the documentation she previously provided was inadequate,
and she failed to have her own doctor clarify her condition.
While employers have a right to require medical examinations under certain conditions, it
is prudent to consult with counsel prior to making such a request, or taking adverse action based
on an employee’s failure to comply.
