News

Lawmakers Expected to Introduce Patient Dumping Legislation

Thursday, February 22, 2007

LOS ANGELES, February 22, 2007 -- A hospital said Thursday that procedures "were not strictly followed" when a van driver left a discharged paraplegic man crawling on Skid Row this month, and steps will be taken to improve services for the homeless.

The statement by Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center came as local and state officials, responding to a series of incidents, unveiled a bill to make it a crime for hospitals to dump homeless patients on streets.

"We have 55 reports over the last year of incidents of homeless patient dumping on Skid Row," said Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, who hopes the bill will become law by January.

Authorities have had trouble building criminal cases because there isn't a state law that prohibits leaving patients on the streets.

Hollywood Presbyterian said it was "deeply concerned" about the incident involving the paraplegic man.

Authorities said the 41-year-old man, whose name was not released, apparently lost the use of his legs in a 1990 car crash. Witnesses saw him crawling in the street Feb. 9 after a being dropped off by the driver of a van contracted by Hollywood Presbyterian, officials said.

"As a result of our investigation, and the fact that some policies and procedures were not strictly followed, Hollywood Presbyterian is implementing a series of actions to further enhance hospital services for the homeless who receive care at the facility," the hospital statement said.

The hospital plans to appoint a coordinator who will be responsible for overseeing care relating to homeless people. Patient-discharge policies, including those for the homeless, have been revised to include a requirement that all transportation requests be approved by a supervisor, and that the individual provide written consent to any transportation.

A policy has been instituted requiring that all patients requiring assistance walking to receive durable medical equipment as needed, such as a wheelchair or walker. Training will also be improved for emergency-room staff.

Also, security and transportation contractors must provide signed acknowledgment of their understanding and commitment to hospital policies.

Asked about the driver, hospital spokesman Dan Springer said, "My understanding is she has been counseled and retrained on our policies. Beyond that, the matter is a personnel issue with the contracted company."

"All the measures we are taking are designed to prevent a situation like this from every happening again," Springer said.

City attorney spokesman Nick Velasquez said Hollywood Presbyterian's statement had yet to be reviewed.

"However, if our own investigation determines that the law has been violated in this matter, we will proceed accordingly," Velasquez said.

The hospital previously said it would expand staff to cover off-hour placement of homeless individuals, and reassess coordination with social service providers, including downtown missions for the homeless.

The alleged dumping of homeless patients by hospitals and release of criminals on Skid Row by law enforcement agencies has been under investigation by Los Angeles police for months.

The proposed legislation, to be introduced by state Sen. Gil Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, would make it a misdemeanor for any hospital facility or worker to transport patients anywhere other than their residences without their informed consent.

Individual offenders could be punished by up to two years in jail and possibly face a fine of up to $1,000. Healthcare facilities that violate the law could be hit with penalties of up to $10,000.

The Hospital Association of Southern California expressed concern about the proposal.

"The problem goes back to the lack of social services for homeless and indigent patients who end up in hospitals," said Jennifer Bayer, the group's public affairs director. "We are already spending $2 billion in uncompensated care providing medical treatment for indigent patients. Imposing fines or arresting people is not productive."

Delgadillo's office has filed false-imprisonment charges against Kaiser Permanente for the suspected dumping of a homeless woman on Skid Row last year. The charges have not been tested in court.

Get more News »