Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
A fire captain with the San Antonio Fire Department has filed suit claiming he suffered discrimination and retaliation on account of disabling long COVID. Captain Kenneth Galan filed suit against the city alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and Texas worker’s compensation laws.
Captain Galan, a 28-year veteran, claims the city discriminated, harassed, failed to accommodate, and retaliated against him as he struggled to cope with Long COVID. Among the allegations are that city was responsible for removing his doctor from the worker’s comp network’s approved physicians list, necessitating him finding a new doctor; that the city sent him to an independent medical exam with a doctor who believed there was no such thing as long COVID; that he was denied access to appropriate medical specialists that he needed for proper treatment; and that he was improperly removed from worker’s comp leave and placed on sick leave even though he contracted COVID on duty.
The suit seeks damages for lost wages, mental anguish and emotional distress, interest, costs and attorney’s fees. Here is a copy if the complaint:
