Andersen v. N. Shore Long Island Jewish Health System's Zucker Hillside Hosp.

Full title: LAUREN ANDERSEN, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. NORTH SHORE LONG ISLAND JEWISH…

Court: UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT

Date published: Jan 22, 2016

632 F. App'x 13 (2d Cir. 2016)

Opinion

No. 15-1318-cv

01-22-2016

LAUREN ANDERSEN, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. NORTH SHORE LONG ISLAND JEWISH HEALTH SYSTEM'S ZUCKER HILLSIDE HOSPITAL, JOSEPH M. SCHULMAN, DR. ALAN J. MENDELOWITZ, DR. PAUL PANKAL, DR. LYUDMILA KARLIN, DR. HARSIMRAN BRAR, DR. LAUREN HANNA, NURSE CATHERINE AMES, NURSE SOOSAMMA KOMPANCARIL, NURSE ABRAHAM LOPEZ, PSYCHOLOGIST SHVETA MITTAL, CITY OF NEW YORK, comprising of the New York Police Department and the Fire Department of New York's Emergency Medical Services, and individual employees, PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY, JOHN DOE OFFICER 12-1049 (officer known as "P.O. Corwin 2524"), T.C. CARBANARO, JANE DOE 12-1049 (officer known as "Liantonio"), LT. MICHELLE SERRANO, UNITEDHEALTHCARE COMMUNITY PLAN, and JOHN and JANE DOES, #1-10, Defendants-Appellees, De LESLEY LIA, personally and in her official capacity as Director, Mental Hygiene Legal Services, BRIAN WELLINGTON, Attorney, Mental Hygiene Legal Services, Second Judicial Department, ANDREW CUOMO, in his official capacity as Governor of the State of New York, BILL de BLASIO, in his official capacity as Mayor of the City of New York, NYPD DET. MICHAEL T. O'BRIEN, NYPD LT. ANTOINETTE PETRUZZELLO, JOHN DOE 12-1049 (FDNY-EMS technician known as "Frank 50"), Defendants.

For Plaintiff-Appellant: Kevin T. Mulhearn, Orangeburg, NY. For Defendants-Appellees North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System's Zucker Hillside Hospital, Joseph M. Schulman, Dr. Alan J. Mendelowitz, Dr. Paul Pankal, Dr. Lyudmila Karlin, Dr. Harsimran Brar, Dr. Lauren Hanna, Nurse Catherine Ames, Nurse Soosamma Kompancaril, Nurse Abraham Lopez, Psychologist Shveta Mittal, and John and Jane Does, #1-10: Jonathan B. Bruno, Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP, New York, NY. For Defendant-Appellee City of New York: Amanda Sue Nichols, for Zachary W. Carter, Corporation Counsel, New York City Law Department, New York, NY. For Defendants-Appellees Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Doe officer 12-1049 (officer known as "P.O. Corwin 2524") T.C. Carbanaro, Jane Doe officer 12-049 (officer known as "Liantonio"), Lt. Michelle Serrano: James M. Begley, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, New York, NY. For Defendant-Appellee UnitedHealthcare Community Plan: John T. Seybert, Sedgwick LLP, New York, NY.

FOR THE COURT: CATHERINE O'HAGAN WOLFE, CLERK

SUMMARY ORDER Rulings by summary order do not have precedential effect. Citation to a summary order filed on or after January 1, 2007, is permitted and is governed by Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 32.1 and this court's Local Rule 32.1.1. When citing a summary order in a document filed with this court, a party must cite either the Federal Appendix or an electronic database (with the notation "summary order"). A party citing a summary order must serve a copy of it on any party not represented by counsel. At a stated Term of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, held at the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse, at 40 Foley Square, in the City of New York, on the 22^nd day of January, two thousand sixteen. Present: ROBERT A. KATZMANN, Chief Judge, DENNIS JACOBS, RICHARD C. WESLEY, Circuit Judges. For Plaintiff-Appellant: Kevin T. Mulhearn, Orangeburg, NY. For Defendants-Appellees North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System's Zucker Hillside Hospital, Joseph M. Schulman, Dr. Alan J. Mendelowitz, Dr. Paul Pankal, Dr. Lyudmila Karlin, Dr. Harsimran Brar, Dr. Lauren Hanna, Nurse Catherine Ames, Nurse Soosamma Kompancaril, Nurse Abraham Lopez, Psychologist Shveta Mittal, and John and Jane Does, #1-10: Jonathan B. Bruno, Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP, New York, NY. For Defendant-Appellee City of New York: Amanda Sue Nichols, for Zachary W. Carter, Corporation Counsel, New York City Law Department, New York, NY.^† For Defendants-Appellees Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Doe officer 12-1049 (officer known as "P.O. Corwin 2524") T.C. Carbanaro, Jane Doe officer 12-049 (officer known as "Liantonio"), Lt. Michelle Serrano: James M. Begley, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, New York, NY. For Defendant-Appellee UnitedHealthcare Community Plan: John T. Seybert, Sedgwick LLP, New York, NY.

† Counsel advised the Court by letter that the City of New York did not intend to file a brief in this appeal because the plaintiff waived the right to appeal her claims against the City.
^‡ Counsel advised the Court by letter that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey was never properly served, and therefore did not participate in the district court proceedings. The Port Authority did not participate in this appeal.
^§ Counsel advised the Court by letter that UnitedHealthcare Community Plan would not participate in this appeal because the plaintiff waived the right to appeal her claims against United. --------

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Bianco, J.).

ON CONSIDERATION WHEREOF, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.

In 2011, plaintiff Lauren Andersen was involuntarily committed to North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System's Zucker Hillside Hospital (the "Hospital") following an incident at JFK Airport. The Hospital kept her for psychiatric treatment for 18 days. After she was released, Andersen sued the Hospital and various individuals involved in her confinement, alleging violation of her rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA") and the Rehabilitation Act, along with a number of state law claims. The district court dismissed all of her federal law claims and declined to exercise jurisdiction over her state law claims. It found that because the Hospital is a private institution and the doctors and nurses involved in her care are private actors, Andersen could not pursue a claim of unlawful state action under § 1983. The court also determined that Andersen had not plausibly alleged that her treatment had been motivated by bias, as required to find discrimination under the ADA or the Rehabilitation Act.

After reviewing Andersen's complaint de novo, we conclude that the district court correctly held that Andersen may not pursue a claim under § 1983. As this Court recently held in a case with nearly identical facts, "the forcible medication and hospitalization of [a plaintiff] by private health care providers can[not] fairly be attributed to the state" for purposes of § 1983. McGugan v. Aldana-Bernier, 752 F.3d 224, 229 (2d Cir. 2014), cert. denied, 135 S. Ct. 1703 (2015). Likewise, because Andersen "has not plausibly alleged that Defendants forcibly medicated and hospitalized her on the basis of considerations that were 'unrelated to' or 'improper to consideration of' the likelihood that she posed a danger to herself or others," "she has not stated a claim of discrimination under the [ADA or the] Rehabilitation Act." Id. at 234. We find no reason to depart from our recent precedent in McGugan, and we therefore affirm the district court's dismissal of Andersen's federal claims.

Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.

FOR THE COURT:

CATHERINE O'HAGAN WOLFE, CLERK