Award-winning public health employee terminated without notice

After several years managing clinics, I then worked Project Management for the State of Colorado Public Health. Within five years, I’d earned a PMP Certification and had an entire wall of my office covered in awards, including those for efforts in COVID Emergency projects. I was working 100% remote and had no business need to attend in-person. 

I was fomally trained as a HIPAA Officer, so when all State employees were required to post their PHI to the state database, I knew that this was a reportable violation and offense to my rights as an employee, most certainly considering my 100% remote status, and progressing me toward any disciplinary action would be illegal, due to the training I have received as their employee. 

I was asked to present my last years’ work and most current project success to the Executive Leadership Team for Best Practices. I was sponsored to attend a three-day Clinical Leadership program working in-person alongside our State’s best and brightest medical leaders – even AFTER I was disciplined for not surrendering my protected medical history to my employer. 

I attended a disciplinary hearing where I presented to the State the dollars that we receive from pharma versus the dollars we receive from our municipalities and how the Emergency status gave me uncertainty, as well as my rights under HIPAA law. The State had until November 9th to formally respond to my claims. 

I heard nothing of the process again from my employer until December 16th, just days before christmas. I was terminated immediately “to protect the safety of others”, dispite the shot doing nothing to prevent transmission. My girl was five years old. I was made to feel unemployable during a time of peak pandemic fear and needed to seek psycologolical consult for terrible depression. 

The State then went so far as to deny my unemployment benefits. I was able to appeal this case and be awarded the payment, but not until after I was forced to feed my family and pay my mortgage on zero income for over six months while enduring harsh unemployment circumstances due to these mandates.