Stacy Aguirre has filed a lawsuit against her former employer, alleging unlawful disability discrimination and retaliation. The complaint was filed by Aguirre on April 11, 2025, in the District Court of Harris County, Texas, against Houston Methodist Specialty Physicians. This legal action underscores the ongoing challenges employees face when seeking fair treatment in the workplace.
The case revolves around Aguirre's employment with Houston Methodist Specialty Physicians, where she began working as a Medical Assistant in December 2021. Diagnosed with Mixed Connective Tissue Disease (MCTD), Aguirre experienced significant health challenges that required workplace accommodations. Despite initially agreeing to these accommodations, Houston Methodist allegedly failed to implement them fully and later rescinded them entirely. According to the complaint, this led to further health complications for Aguirre and ultimately resulted in her termination on April 1, 2024. Aguirre claims that Houston Methodist's actions violated Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code, which prohibits discrimination based on disability and mandates reasonable accommodations for employees with known disabilities.
Aguirre's lawsuit details a series of events where she communicated her need for accommodations due to her medical condition. Initially supportive, her supervisor at the time accepted her accommodation request; however, a change in management brought increased scrutiny and eventual withdrawal of support for these accommodations. In November 2023, despite previous approvals and documented needs from medical professionals like Dr. Mohammed A. Bari, Houston Methodist revoked Aguirre’s accommodations citing undue hardship—an assertion that Aguirre disputes as pretextual.
In addition to claiming disability discrimination under Tex. Lab. Code § 21.051 and § 21.128(a), Aguirre also accuses Houston Methodist of retaliation under Tex. Lab. Code § 21.055 for opposing discriminatory practices related to her disability accommodations. She argues that after voicing concerns about inadequate implementation of approved accommodations, she faced adverse actions culminating in her dismissal.
Aguirre seeks various forms of relief from the court including back pay, reinstatement or front pay, compensatory damages for emotional distress and punitive damages due to what she describes as intentional malice or reckless indifference by Houston Methodist towards her rights under state law.
Representing Stacy Aguirre is attorney Mauro Ramirez from Ramirez Law PLLC based in Houston, Texas. The case is assigned Case ID: 2025-25717 and will be heard in the 152nd Judicial District Court with Judge Wanda Chambers presiding over proceedings.