⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

The Sixth Circuit considers communication access during a hospital stay. In February 2023, Spencer, a deaf patient, was admitted to Union Hospital in Ohio and later transferred to Cleveland Clinic's main campus, where she underwent surgery. Her chart said she needed an American Sign Language interpreter. The hospitals used video remote interpreting, or VRI: a video connection to a sign language interpreter. But some attempts were unsuccessful, and staff also communicated through written notes and phone-based speech-to-text. Spencer says communication failures left her without full access to medical information and left family members filling gaps. She and her two daughters sued. The district judge ruled for the hospitals on the federal claim under the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits disability discrimination in covered health programs. The judge considered the interpreting services and alternative methods together, and relied on Spencer's testimony about understanding her procedure. The appeal concerns communication rights, not an allegation that the surgery was performed incorrectly. The ruling was summary judgment, a decision without trial when no genuine dispute over an outcome-relevant fact remains and the law entitles one side to win. Here, the question is whether the record allowed that decision or required a trial. A judge cannot simply choose between competing versions of a genuinely disputed material fact. The family will argue that important medical conversations were not effectively accessible, regardless of the eventual medical outcome. The hospitals will point to completed interpreting calls and testimony that Spencer understood her care. The judges will also press counsel on the daughters' separate communication claims and whether those claims were addressed. Another question is what showing of intentional discrimination is required for nominal damages: a small award recognizing a proven legal violation rather than compensating a demonstrated loss. Seeking that award does not by itself establish a right to it. Andrew Rozynski will present the family's appeal first.

Dian Spencer et al. v. Cleveland Clinic Union Hospital et al. (No. 26-3116) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, argued October 21, 2026.