Emtala
EMTALA: The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) was enacted in 1986 as a part of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of 1985. EMTALA was enacted to prevent hospitals with Emergency Departments from refusing to treat or transferring patients with emergency medical conditions (EMC) due to an inability to pay for their services. This act also applies to satellite locations whom advertise titles such as “Immediate Care” or “Urgent Care,” and all other facilities where one-third of their patient intake are walk-ins. Several rules and regulations to this act have been established and it has become a very serious piece of legislation and health care regulation, as it is enforced by several government entities. Originally known as the “anti-dumping act,” EMTALA has saved the accreditation of health care today as it was quickly in transformation to becoming an unreliable, acquisitive practice, rather than a dependable source of care.
History of EMTALA There were a few incidents that led to the enactment of EMTALA. One in particular was the case of Eugene “Red” Barnes from California in January of 1985. Barnes suffered a gruesome stab wound to the head during an altercation and was rushed to the emergency room of Brookside Hospital by ambulance. Once he arrived, the emergency physician performed a computed tomography (CT) scan, which revealed an intracranial injury that was necessary for immediate surgical action by a Neurosurgeon (Moy, 2010, pp. 33-41). Upon contacting the Neurosurgeon on-call, he refused to come in to treat the patient. Another Neurosurgeon was also contacted, but refused to come in because he was not on call (Flint et al., 2008, pp. 172-173). Brookside attempted to transfer the patient to two separate facilities to no avail, but finally received approval for transfer to San Francisco General Hospital after sitting in Brookside’s ED for four hours (Flint
History of EMTALA There were a few incidents that led to the enactment of EMTALA. One in particular was the case of Eugene “Red” Barnes from California in January of 1985. Barnes suffered a gruesome stab wound to the head during an altercation and was rushed to the emergency room of Brookside Hospital by ambulance. Once he arrived, the emergency physician performed a computed tomography (CT) scan, which revealed an intracranial injury that was necessary for immediate surgical action by a Neurosurgeon (Moy, 2010, pp. 33-41). Upon contacting the Neurosurgeon on-call, he refused to come in to treat the patient. Another Neurosurgeon was also contacted, but refused to come in because he was not on call (Flint et al., 2008, pp. 172-173). Brookside attempted to transfer the patient to two separate facilities to no avail, but finally received approval for transfer to San Francisco General Hospital after sitting in Brookside’s ED for four hours (Flint
References: Bitterman, R. A. (2011, July). Jury awards woman $200,000 after hospital ED sends her home to deliver her dead 16-week-old fetus. ED Legal Letter, 22(7), 73-78. doi:1087-7341 Bitterman, R. A. (2012). Texas emergency physician sues hospital in EMTALA whistleblower claim. ED Legal Letter, 23(2), 13-17. doi:1087-7341 Bitterman, R. A., & Fish, M. B. (2009). Sixth circuit: Admission to the hospital does not end EMTALA liability: Third party can recover from EMTALA claim. ED Legal Letter, 20(7), 73-76. doi:1087-7341 Edwards, D. M. (2000). Fleming v. HCA health services of Louisiana. Southern University Law Review, 27(2). doi:00991465 EMTALA: Nurse 's screening met hospital 's legal responsibilities, lawsuit dismissed. (2012). Legal Eagle Eye Newsletter for the Nursing Profession, 20(10), 1-1. doi:1085-4924 EMTALA. (2012). Retrieved November 10, 2012, from American College of Emergency Physicians website: http://www.acep.org/content.aspx?id=25936 Flint, L., Meredith, J., Schwab, C., Trunkey, D., Rue, L., & Taheri, P. (2008). Trauma: Contemporary principles and therapy. Philadelphia, PA: Lipincott Williams & Wilkins. Frew, S. A. (2005). The 20 commandments of COBRA/EMTALA (4th ed.). Loves Park, IL: Few Consulting Group. Moy, M. (2010). The legislative history of EMTALA. In E. Barnes, F. Starks, & E. M. Kennedy (Eds.), The EMTALA Answer Book (pp. 33-41). doi:15442772