US settlement signals protections for addiction medicine
A former Tennessee correctional officer could receive $160,000 in back pay and damages after he was forced to resign for taking Suboxone to treat his opioid use disorder
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A former Tennessee correctional officer will receive $160,000 in back pay and damages after he was forced to resign for taking Suboxone to treat his opioid use disorder, if a judge approves a landmark consent decree filed in federal court in Nashville on Wednesday.
It is the first time the U.S. Department of Justice has used the Americans with Disabilities Act to settle a claim that an employee was discriminated against for taking a prescribed medication to treat drug addiction, according to the Department.
It comes less than a year after the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division issued new guidelines advising that employers, health care providers, law enforcement agencies that operate jails, and others are violating the ADA if they discriminate against people taking prescription medications to treat opioid use disorder. The Department noted federal law does not protect people who are using illegal drugs.
In the present case, the complainant, who is not identified by name, was hired as a correctional officer at the Cumberland County jail in January 2015. He received positive employment evaluations and was even promoted, but when a drug screen showed he was taking Suboxone to treat his opioid addiction in 2018, he was given the choice of resigning or being fired for drug use.
