Judge Finds Bias at Hospital in Dealings with Deaf Man

By BARBARA STEWART
Published: Saturday, April 17, 1999 in the New York Times

Mount Sinai Medical Center illegally discriminated against the deaf husband of a pregnant woman by refusing to provide a sign language interpreter while the couple were attending Lamaze classes, a Federal judge has ruled. As a result of the hospital's refusal, Jeffrey Bravin, a teacher at the Lexington School for the Deaf in Manhattan, was unable to learn the Lamaze method of assisting a woman giving birth, Judge Robert W. Sweet of Federal District Court in Manhattan said in his opinion on Wednesday. Mr. Bravin's wife, Naomi, needed a birthing partner to take part in the classes and to learn the techniques being taught, the judge wrote.
Mount Sinai Medical Center illegally discriminated against the deaf husband of a pregnant woman by refusing to provide a sign language interpreter while the couple were attending Lamaze classes, a Federal judge has ruled. Go to NYTimes to read full article.