Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
COLUMBIA — A former human resources employee of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, the state’s largest health insurer, is suing the company for disability discrimination, retaliation and violating her rights to medical leave under federal law. The Sept. 26 lawsuit filed in Richland County court by Columbia resident Tracy Grice Tallon seeks compensation for lost wages, benefits and emotional distress and punitive damages meant to punish the company for the alleged wrongdoing. It also asks the court to order BlueCross BlueShield to reinstate her job, pay her attorney’s fees and court costs and add interest to any damages. Tallon began working for BlueCross BlueShield in 2020, first as a contractor and later that year as a full-time human resources employee at its Columbia headquarters, according to the lawsuit. She met performance expectations and received positive feedback until she began requesting accommodations for lupus and other autoimmune-related complications, as well as pelvic floor dysfunction, the lawsuit said. Those conditions limit activities such as walking, mobility and immune and digestive function, and her attorneys say they qualify as disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Tallon told the company about her disabilities and submitted medical documentation requesting accommodations such as intermittent medical leave, remote work when needed and a more isolated workspace to reduce exposure to illness, the lawsuit said. “In the workplace, it’s common for people to have medical conditions and particularly ones like lupus that someone’s going to be living with and doesn’t necessarily preclude them from working, but it’s going to need accommodations,” said Shannon Polvi, Tallon’s attorney with the downtown Columbia law firm Cromer, Babb, Porter & Hicks. “It's one of the types of cases that I hold near and dear to my heart to be able to help people who can work and want to work, but just simply need accommodations to make it be possible.” BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina did not respond to an interview request. ‘Ignored, misplaced or intentionally denied’ Although physicians confirmed her need for accommodations and medical leave, those were “ignored, misplaced or intentionally denied without proper explanation,” according to the lawsuit. The company’s leave and human resources staff “unreasonably delayed and obstructed” her requests for medical leave and disability accommodations, the lawsuit said. Attorneys for Tallon say her supervisor, Bryce Cooper, made her use paid time off and counted her medical absences against her, violating her rights under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). He also denied her requests to move to a more secluded workspace because of her health conditions, the lawsuit says. It also says he made “belittling” remarks about her medical conditions and “questioned the legitimacy of her absences.” The company failed to investigate her complaints to employee relations and instead increased scrutiny of her work and attendance, according to the lawsuit. In November 2023, Tallon received a disciplinary note citing three issues that occurred while she was training for a new role, though the lawsuit does not detail what those issues were. It also cited unscheduled absences on days her attorneys say were covered by doctors’ notes. Later that month, Tallon called an employee relations representative to again express concerns about “feeling intimidated and targeted” by her supervisor, according to the lawsuit. She was advised to email her supervisor that she was working with employee relations for documentation purposes, the lawsuit said. The following month, one of her physicians directed her to undergo a medical procedure and, after completing it in January 2024, provided Tallon with ADA and FMLA documents that she submitted to a new leave manager, Anthony Davis, who asked for exact details about the frequency and duration of her condition, the lawsuit said. Tallon said her condition caused unpredictable flare-ups that made it impossible to provide exact figures. Later that January, another physician completed an ADA accommodations request stating that Tallon could perform her regular duties but would benefit from a more secluded workspace because of a weakened immune system. In response to the request, Davis said Tallon’s department is already struggling to find room for everyone and instructed Tallon to wear a mask. Attorneys say Davis made no effort to implement the accommodation, even though employees in other departments were working from home, the lawsuit said, adding that working with Davis on ADA and FMLA paperwork stretched over weeks and eventually months. Eventually, Tallon’s paperwork was submitted multiple times and included input from three medical providers, including a disability specialist, to ensure proper coverage, the lawsuit said. ‘A final, humiliating exit’ In May 2024, after an endocrinologist exam, Tallon was told she had a suspicious thyroid mass and was advised to undergo a biopsy under anesthesia after an ultrasound raised concerns it could be cancerous, the lawsuit said. Due to the “seriousness and size of the nodule,” rescheduling was not an option, the court filing said. In a message sent through the company’s internal system, Cooper, the supervisor, said, "I told you to get this rescheduled because it is going into a holiday weekend. We already have too many people off, and Tuesday we have a large new hire group," the lawsuit said. Tallon replied that rescheduling the biopsy could be considered noncompliance or going against medical advice, according to the lawsuit. After getting no response from her supervisor, Tallon escalated the issue to her manager, Kelly Brown, explaining the urgency of the biopsy and lack of approval from Cooper, according to the court filing. Brown assured her that she would be granted time off, the filing said. That same day, the supervisor expressed frustration in a text message that Tallon had not come to him again about the time off, saying he had been in his office all day, and she replied that she had already spoken with him earlier, the lawsuit said. Just under two weeks later, Cooper asked Tallon to follow him to his office, where he presented termination paperwork alleging she failed last year to communicate with a hiring manager about activating a contractor, causing a delay in the contractor’s start date. During the meeting, the complaint alleges that the supervisor remarked that maybe she could find a remote job now, which Tallon’s attorneys allege is evidence of disability discrimination. They say Tallon first said she had no questions but was cut off by human resources manager Trevea Vogt, who was on speakerphone, when she tried to ask further questions, according to the lawsuit. Vogt instructed Tallon to leave through a side door after handing her termination paperwork and said any remaining personal items would be retrieved on her behalf, the lawsuit said. “There was no acknowledgment of Plaintiff’s years of service, dedication, or accomplishments—only a final, humiliating exit through a side door, soaked, without an umbrella, after a retaliatory and discriminatory termination,” attorneys wrote.
