Rodrigo v. Carle Foundation Hospital etc.

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendant-employee’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-employee’s action under Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), alleging that defendant terminated him from its medical residency program, after plaintiff had failed “Step 3” test for third time, and after defendant had rejected plaintiff’s request to be re-instated to residency program. While plaintiff claimed that his insomnia condition was cause of his failed tests, plaintiff failed to establish that he was “qualified individual” under ADA, where: (1) years prior to plaintiff being admitted into residency program defendant adopted policy requiring residents to pass Step 3 test before being offered employment contract for third year of residency program; (2) defendant had also adopted policy requiring termination from residency program whenever resident had more than two failures of Step 3 test; and (3) no resident who had failed Step 3 test more than two times had been allowed to continue in residency program while instant policies had been in force. Also, requirement that resident pass Step 3 test was essential function of plaintiff’s job at defendant’s hospital, and plaintiff’s failure to establish that he was qualified individual under ADA also precluded him from establishing retaliation claim based on defendant’s failure to grant him requested reinstatement to residency program.