Thanks to Kate Bischoff of The Employment Law Navigator for bringing this to our attention.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a petition yesterday in federal court in Minnesota to stop Honeywell International, Inc., from requiring that employees (and spouses, if the employees have family health insurance coverage) either get biometric testing, or face the loss of employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts and incur other charges.
The EEOC is seeking a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to stop the testing, which was scheduled to take place October 22 through the end of this week.
According to the EEOC’s petition, the testing requires a blood draw, and blood samples will be checked for cholesterol and glucose. Participants’ blood pressure and waist circumference will also be measured. The EEOC contends that the testing violates the Americans with Disabilities Act as applied to employees, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act as applied to employees’ spouses.
According to the EEOC, the penalties for non-participation can cost as much as $4,000 per employee for the 2015 plan year.
I’ve written about the EEOC’s position on the “coercive” aspects of wellness programs here, here, here, here, here, and here. The latest will definitely be a case to watch.
