A former Chief Medical Officer has taken legal action against her previous employer, alleging a series of discriminatory and retaliatory actions that have left her seeking justice. Angelique Green filed a complaint on December 23, 2024, in the Superior Court of California for the County of Santa Clara against Valley Health Plan (VHP) and unnamed defendants referred to as DOES 1-10.
Angelique Green, an African American woman over the age of 40, served as the Chief Medical Officer at Valley Health Plan starting January 22, 2024. She alleges that during her tenure, she faced racial discrimination, retaliation for reporting unethical practices, harassment, and defamation. The complaint details how Ms. Green was initially praised by CEO Laura Rosas for her contributions but later encountered hostility when she challenged hiring practices and questioned alleged unethical conduct involving patient management. According to Green's complaint, Rosas denied her the autonomy given to her white predecessor in staffing decisions and subjected her to verbal abuse after Green advocated for a more qualified candidate for a Medical Director position over Rosas' preferred choice.
Green claims that she was unfairly terminated without investigation into her complaints against Rosas' behavior. She argues that this termination was retaliatory following her reports of discrimination and HIPAA violations related to patient information handling. The lawsuit accuses VHP of violating several laws under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), including race discrimination (Govt. Code §12940), retaliation (Govt. Code §12940(h)), harassment (Govt. Code §12940(j)), failure to prevent discrimination and harassment (Govt. Code §12940(k)), retaliation under Labor Code §1102.5, and defamation per se.
In seeking redress from the court, Green requests general damages for emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life; lost wages; permanent injunctive relief prohibiting discriminatory practices; declaratory relief; reasonable attorney’s fees; and other equitable relief deemed appropriate by the court.
The case is being handled by Justice Ojo from the Law Offices of Justice Ojo representing Angelique Green with Judge Ojo presiding over Case No. 240V454843.