Recovering Addict Loses Disability Bias Suit Over Withheld Drugs

Medical providers who withheld pain relief drugs from a recovering addict escaped a disability bias case because the complaint didn’t plausibly allege that they were motivated by anything but medically pertinent considerations, a federal court said.

Nicole Costin’s Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act suit against Glen Falls Hospital and associated caregivers couldn’t move forward because their decision was based on reasons relevant to her treatment, the US District Court for the Northern District of New York said.

The decision shows how federal disability bias laws distinguish actions taken by caregivers based on their medical judgment from those based ...