Muzaffar v. Aurora Health Care S. Lakes, Inc. (Summary)

WHISTLEBLOWER/JURISDICTION

Muzaffar v. Aurora Health Care S. Lakes, Inc., No. 13-CV-744 (E.D. Wis. Oct. 4, 2013)

A physician brought a claim against a hospital for retaliation after he complained of patient transfers that he believed violated the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (“EMTALA”).  The physician, who had a contract with the hospital, alleged that while on call at the hospital certain transfers were made to the hospital without mandatory transfer paperwork in violation of EMTALA, and that the hospital retaliated against him after reporting those violations to the hospital’s medical executive committee.

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin found that there was a question whether the physician’s claim against the hospital for retaliation alleged a violation of the federal whistleblower statute.  The district court stated that the whistleblower protection, among other things, protects hospital employees from retaliation for reporting EMTALA violations.

The hospital argued that the physician was not a hospital employee, and the court found that raised a factual issue of jurisdiction.  Thus, the court found that additional information was required to determine whether it had jurisdiction in the case, and since the physician has the burden to establish jurisdiction, the court ordered the physician to provide additional information to respond to the factual challenge to jurisdiction raised by the hospital.