Healthcare Risk Management
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Nurse in Jeopardy for Refusing Hospital’s COVID-19 Policy on Scrubs
A Minnesota nurse refused to follow his hospital’s policy on taking scrubs home and laundering them, rather than using hospital-provided scrubs. The hospital fired the nurse, who is alleging whistleblower retaliation. Nurses at the hospital resisted the policy because they did not want to take COVID-19 home to their families.
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Understanding Emergency Use Authorization Issues with COVID-19 Vaccine
Current COVID-19 vaccines have not undergone the process for full FDA approval, but have been authorized under a streamlined process known as an emergency use authorization. Because of this, the vaccines are technically considered experimental and are subject to regulations that may affect whether employers are permitted to mandate their use by employees.
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EEOC Says Employers Can Mandate Vaccines — with Exceptions
Under certain circumstances, employers are permitted to mandate their employees to receive a COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of their employment. That position was outlined by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in guidance published in December 2020. However, this guidance is not without its limits.
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HIPAA Issues Can Arise with COVID-19 Vaccinations
HIPAA can become an issue if healthcare employers require proof that employees have received a COVID-19 vaccine. Under HIPAA, immunization records are protected health information.
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Vaccine Rollout Brings Legal, Labor Concerns for Employers
As the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines continues, healthcare employers face complicated questions about what they can require of employees, how to handle employees who refuse the vaccine, and other potential legal consequences that may result in the coming months.
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Defense Verdict Rejects $16 Million Demand, but 14-Minute Deliberation Gives Rise to an Appeal
A widow filed a malpractice action alleging a hospital’s failure to evaluate the patient, which would have revealed extreme respiratory distress. The patient’s death was caused by a lack of oxygen. Experts testified that if the patient had been placed on a ventilator, he would have had a significantly higher chance of surviving his condition, pneumonia. Following a seven-day trial, the jury rendered a defense verdict after a mere 14 minutes of deliberation. The plaintiff brought a post-trial motion seeking to overturn the decision, and the court ordered a new trial.
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Complications from Gastric Bypass Surgery Result in Brain Injury, $14.1 Million Award
A patient underwent gastric bypass surgery, but suffered permanent brain damage because of post-surgery complications and requires around-the-clock care for the rest of her life. The patient sued, alleging that the physician who performed the procedure failed to recognize that she was suffering from a severe thiamine and vitamin B1 deficiency, which led to her injuries. A jury awarded a $14.1 million verdict. The defendant physicians appealed, but the appellate court affirmed the verdict.
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Telemental Health Survey Finds Increased Risk of Fraud
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Annual Physician Liability Survey Reveals Hardening Markets
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OCR Seeking Ways to Improve HIPAA, Respond to Value Concerns