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Former chief medical officer sues county for discrimination

San Diego Union-Tribune - 9/14/2021

Dr. Nick Yphantides, San Diego County's first chief medical officer, is suing his former employer, claiming discrimination and retaliation were behind his termination earlier this year.

Known to many in the public as "Dr. Nick," Yphantides had been one of the county's most visible medical figures in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak in 2020. But the stress of managing the COVID-19 pandemic became overwhelming and led to a mental health crisis, Yphantides says in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court.

Recognizing the symptoms, Yphantides says he took a four-week medical leave last October on a recommendation from his doctor. When he felt he was ready to return, however, he was told to take another leave or face termination, he said. Although he took the second leave, he was fired in March, according to the lawsuit.

San Diego County spokesman Michael Workman on Wednesday said the county does not comment on pending litigation.

"From March until October of last year, I focused on issues related to COVID-19 around the clock," Yphantides, 55, said during a remote press conference Wednesday morning. "But I must be transparent and admit that eventually the stress became overwhelming for me. I couldn't run from it. I began suffering from depression and overwhelming anxiety. I lost my ability to sleep. And so in that situation, I did what I believe any of us would tell our loved ones to do. To take a brief leave of absence."

The lawsuit states that unnamed members of the county leadership team were aware of Yphantides' mental state, which briefly included thoughts of suicide.

At the press conference, attorney Jenna Rangel said Yphantides wanted to return after his four-week leave, but in January was told by executive leadership to continue to stay off the job. After seven weeks, she said he was told to take a "fitness for duty" exam.

"These exams are invasive and intense, and they're only warranted when there's objective evidence that an employee is currently incapacitated from performing their essential job duties or they currently pose a danger to themselves or other employees," she said. "Dr. Nick was neither, and the county had no objective evidence to suggest otherwise."

Rangel said Yphantides agreed to take the exam though the county had no grounds to request it. The exam was not completed, and he was terminated March 22, she said.

"They threw him away because of his disability and because he took time off to treat it, and that cannot stand," Rangel said.

Yphantides said it was clear to him that he was viewed as "damaged goods" when he tried to return, and he fears other county health care workers may face the same discrimination.

"If the county can remorselessly dismiss a high-profile and influential chief medical officer like myself because of the strain that I went through trying to save lives, I believe this can happen to any of my heroic colleagues that are still in the trenches serving our region, and so for this reason, I have decided to take legal action and to hold the county accountable," he said.

Attorney Greg Klawitter on Yphantides' legal team said the county violated laws that allow workers to take mental health leaves.

"Those laws don't force us to choose between our health and our livelihoods," he said. "And those laws do not permit employers to stigmatize employees with mental or physical disabilities and discard them like a broken object. But the county of San Diego broke those laws with Dr. Nick, and it did so without even a shred of remorse. Nine disconsolate months of giving all of himself to the people of this county took an enormous toll on Dr. Nick, and the county leadership repaid its debt to Dr. Nick by ending his career."

The lawsuit is asking for an unspecified amount to cover loss of wages and benefits, emotional distress damages, attorney fees and other relief.

Yphantides was well known locally even before becoming the county's first chief medical officer 11 years ago. In 2001, he stepped down as medical director of Escondido Community Health Clinic to begin a quest to lose weight. At 467 pounds, he hit the road and visited Major League Baseball parks across the country while living off protein shakes. He chronicled his journey in the 2006 book, "My Big Fat Greek Diet."

Rangel said Yphantides was a popular, comforting figure for many San Diegans during the pandemic.

"When the world suddenly halted in early 2020 due to COVID-19, Dr. Nick was uniquely qualified to lead the county's response," she said. "I'm sure it's not difficult for any of you to remember the fear, panic and uncertainty that you felt in 2020, especially in the early days of the pandemic. We turned to our local officials for comfort and for guidance, and Dr. Nick was that comforting face. Not only was he the county chief medical officer, many thought of him as the chief compassionate officer."

Asked about his current state, Yphantides said he is better emotionally than when he took a leave of absence last year.

"I've had a few months to recover and continue to get support, medical support and counseling support," he said. "I think I'm doing a lot better. It's been very hard being sidelined, but I'm in a very good place personally."

Other employees have sued the county over disability-related allegations.

Before workers can file a lawsuit against their employer for any form of discrimination — whether that be race, age or disability related — they must first seek permission from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

From 2015 through May of 2020, the state gave 15 San Diego County employees the right to sue.

Of those 15, seven employees alleged discrimination due to some kind of disability, according to state records.

Of the five people who asked to sue the county but were denied during that time frame, three claimed they'd been discriminated against due to a disability.

Labor lawyers have noted that getting a right-to-sue letter isn't an assurance that the facts presented are correct, or that a case will win in court.

This story originally appeared in San Diego Union-Tribune.

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