Employee Terminated After Disclosing Cancer Diagnosis Survives Employer’s Motion to Dismiss

Wava A. Gunderson was employed by St. Louis Connectcare as a claims adjudicator in January of 2006 when she was diagnosed with cancer. Ms. Gunderson was terminated in July of 2006. In her recently filed lawsuit, Ms. Gunderson claims that when she notified her employer of the diagnosis, she was advised that she should resign. Ms. Gunderson further alleges that she refused to resign because she was able to perform her job with reasonable accommodations.

In response to Ms. Gunderson’s lawsuit, Connectcare filed a motion to dismiss. Connectcare argued that Ms. Gunderson’s claims under the Employee Retirement Security Act (“ERISA”) sections 502 and 510 failed to state claims upon which relief could be granted. The court agreed with Connectcare that Ms. Gunderson failed to state a claim under ERISA section 502 because that section provides remedies only against a defendant who has failed to comply with the terms of a benefits plan. The court recognized that Ms. Gunderson was not claiming in her lawsuit that Connectcare interfered with her ability to become eligible for further benefits, did not specify any particular benefits that were purportedly denied, and dismissed her claim under section 502.

However, the court held that Ms. Gunderson’s allegations that she was a participant under the terms of an employee benefit plan provided by the employer, and that she was fired for exercising her rights under that plan, properly pled all the elements of a claim under ERISA section 510. Although the court allowed Ms. Gunderson’s section 510 claim to proceed, it struck her claim for punitive damages finding that ERISA does not authorize the award of punitive damages.

Gunderson v. St. Louis Connectcare, No. 4:08CV01553 (E.D.Mo. Mar. 26, 2009).