John Doe, M.D., by Curtis Lavery, of His Estate v. Attorney General of the United States

The executor of Dr. Doe’s estate (Doe) appeals from the district court’s judgment, after a nonjury trial, denying Doe’s claim for damages under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794 (Act). The district court had jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1331 . We have jurisdiction over this timely appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We affirm.

I

Doe, who died in 1992, was a doctor and director of a health facility in San Francisco (facility) which contracted to perform physical examinations for Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents. Between 1984 and 1988, FBI agents were required by their employer to undergo yearly examinations, and applicants for employment were required to obtain preemployment examinations at the facility. Doe was the doctor who performed virtually all of the physicals, including anal, vaginal, and oral cavity examinations. His salary was based in part on how many examinations he performed.

In 1988, FBI Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco office, Richard Held, was told by an unnamed source that Doe had Kaposi’s Sarcoma, a malignancy consisting of darkened skin lesions and usually associated with Acquired Immune Deficiency…