Georgia Hospital Settles Case Involving Patient Dumping Allegation

On May 12, 2017, Monroe County Hospital (MCH) in Forsyth, Georgia, entered into a $25,000 settlement agreement with OIG. The settlement agreement resolves allegation that MCH violated the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act when it failed to provide an appropriate medical screening examination and stabilizing treatment for a woman who presented to MCH’s Emergency Department (ED) complaining she was 36 weeks pregnant and her water had broken. The patient told a nurse that she wanted to see her physician in Macon, Georgia. Without providing a medical screening examination, ED staff decided that the patient could go see her physician in Macon. The patient was then escorted to her car and told to call 911. Emergency medical services arrived and found the patient in her car. She was brought to another hospital where she delivered her child within an hour of arriving. Under EMTALA, a small hospital can be fined up to $25,000 per violation. Associate Counsel Srishti Sheffner represented OIG.

Share