Baugher v. Kadlec Health Sys. – Sept. 2015 (Summary)

EMTALA

Baugher v. Kadlec Health Sys., No. 4:14-CV-5118-TOR (E.D. Wash. Sept. 3, 2015)

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington held that a hospital violated EMTALA when it failed to provide an appropriate screening examination for a patient, instead threatening the patient that if she did not leave the ED, she would be arrested. Notably, this hospital claimed, in its defense, that it was excused from providing a screening examination because the patient entered the hospital yelling and failed to comply with the hospital’s registration process. Further, the hospital claimed the patient left voluntarily.

Because the hospital did not offer admissible evidence indicating that the patient failed to comply or left the hospital voluntarily – and because the patient steadfastly claimed that she was threatened with arrest and therefore left under duress – the court found that the violation of EMTALA was essentially established by the uncontested evidence submitted by the patient. The court noted that the issue of damages to the patient would need to be determined by a jury. While there was no evidence of any physical injury, the court noted that a reasonable jury could find that the patient suffered emotional damages.