Zazueta-Lara

BACKGROUND

Plaintiffs are former employees of the County of Sonoma (County). In 2021, the Board of Supervisors released a policy requiring all County employees to either provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. Plaintiffs refused to do so and were subsequently fired for failure to comply with the “COVID-19 medical information policy.” In December 2021, plaintiffs Besanceney and Zazueta-Lara filed separate complaints alleging, in relevant part, violations of the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (Civ. Code, § 56 et seq.; CMIA). Neither complaint alleged compliance with the Government Claims Act. Plaintiff Felix failed to submit his initial complaint as part of the appellate record. However, from the available record and the parties’ briefing it appears he likely filed an initial complaint around the same time as the other plaintiffs and likewise failed to allege compliance with the Government Claims Act. On May 2, 2022, plaintiffs mailed claim notification packets to the County pursuant to the Government Claims Act. On May 19, 2022, plaintiffs received a notice that the County rejected their claims “for failure to present a timely claim.”…