Legal Definitions - serious health condition

Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a serious health condition is a significant illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that requires specific types of medical care or results in an inability to perform regular daily activities for a certain period. It's not just a minor ailment; it involves more substantial medical intervention or impact on daily life. Specifically, a condition is considered serious if it involves:

• Inpatient Care: An overnight stay in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility.
• Incapacity for More Than Three Days with Continuing Treatment: Being unable to work, attend school, or perform other regular daily activities for more than three full consecutive calendar days, *and* receiving ongoing treatment from a healthcare provider. This treatment might include two or more visits to a healthcare provider, or one visit followed by a regimen of continuing treatment (like prescription medication or therapy).
• Incapacity Due to Pregnancy or Prenatal Care: Any period of being unable to work or perform regular activities due to pregnancy, including prenatal appointments or conditions like severe morning sickness.
• Incapacity Due to, or Treatment for, a Chronic Serious Health Condition: A long-term condition that requires periodic visits for treatment by a healthcare provider, continues over an extended period, and may cause occasional periods where you cannot work.
• Permanent or Long-Term Incapacity: A condition that causes a permanent or long-term inability to work or perform daily activities, even if treatment isn't fully effective (e.g., a terminal illness).
• Absence for Multiple Treatments: Needing multiple appointments for restorative surgery following an injury or accident, or for a condition that would otherwise incapacitate you for more than three days if left untreated (e.g., chemotherapy, dialysis, or physical therapy).

Here are some examples to illustrate what qualifies as a serious health condition:

• Example 1: Acute Illness Requiring Hospitalization and Recovery

  An employee experiences sudden, severe chest pain and is admitted to the hospital for emergency cardiac catheterization. They stay in the hospital for three nights and are then discharged with instructions for two weeks of restricted activity and follow-up appointments with a cardiologist. During this time, they are unable to perform their job duties.

  How it illustrates the term: This situation qualifies as a serious health condition because it involves an overnight stay in a hospital (inpatient care) and results in an inability to perform regular daily activities for more than three full days, requiring continuing treatment from a healthcare provider.

• Example 2: Chronic Condition with Episodic Incapacity

  An employee has Type 1 diabetes, a chronic condition requiring daily insulin injections and regular monitoring. Occasionally, they experience severe hypoglycemic episodes that cause disorientation and weakness, making them unable to work for a full day or two. They regularly see an endocrinologist for management and treatment of their condition.

  How it illustrates the term: This illustrates a serious health condition because it is a chronic condition that requires ongoing treatment by a healthcare provider and causes episodic periods of incapacity, meaning the employee cannot perform their job duties during these episodes.

• Example 3: Pregnancy-Related Incapacity

  An employee in her third trimester of pregnancy develops severe preeclampsia, a serious condition characterized by high blood pressure. Her doctor orders her to take immediate medical leave and remain on bed rest at home for the remainder of her pregnancy to prevent complications for both her and the baby. She is unable to come to work during this period.

  How it illustrates the term: This situation falls under a serious health condition because it involves a period of incapacity directly related to pregnancy, as certified by a healthcare provider, and requires medical leave.