Constance v. State University of New York Health Science Center
Plaintiffs, Vernal and Navella Constance, sued State University of New York Health Science Center (SUNY HSC) for allegedly failing to provide a sign language interpreter, violating Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Mrs. Constance, who is deaf, received emergency treatment at SUNY HSC in 1996, where she and her husband requested an interpreter, but none was provided. The Hospital claimed to have a policy for hearing-impaired patients and asserted it requested an interpreter from an agency, but it failed to appear. The Court denied Plaintiffs' claim for injunctive relief, finding they lacked standing due to insufficient likelihood of future encounters with the Hospital. Furthermore, the Court granted Defendant's motion for summary judgment on the issue of damages, determining that the Hospital's failure to follow up on the interpreter request, while possibly negligent, did not amount to deliberate indifference necessary to establish intentional discrimination under the ADA or Rehabilitation Act.