The lawsuit alleges that employees of the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center drove
Gabino Olvera, 42, in a van to "Skid Row," a section of Los Angeles known for its high concentration of homeless people, and dumped him in a gutter without a wheelchair, dressed only in a dirty hospital gown.
According to witnesses who came to the man's assistance and video cameras from a nearby homeless shelter, Olvera placed his hospital papers and other documents between his teeth and began to drag himself forward by his arms, while the hospital driver sat in the van applying makeup and then drove off.
Los Angeles is "ground zero in the fight against unlawful dumping of homeless patients by hospitals," said Hernan Vera, a lawyer with Public Counsel, which helped bring the lawsuit against Hollywood Presbyterian. Olvera's case, Vera said, is "the most obscene and callous example of this practice that we have seen."
Approximately 50 cases were reported in 2007 of homeless, sick or mentally confused patients being dropped off by ambulances in the 50-block area known as Skid Row, where an estimated 12,000 homeless people are believed to live and sleep.
In response to the lawsuit, Hollywood Presbyterian announced that it had conducted a thorough review of its patient discharge policies to make sure that such dumping would not occur in the future. The hospital said that it hopes to reach an out-of-court settlement.
Olvera's is not the first lawsuit against a hospital for patient dumping in Los Angeles. In May, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals settled a similar lawsuit by agreeing to improve discharge procedures, including by finding places in shelters for all discharged homeless patients. Kaiser also agreed to pay $500,000 to homeless services in Skid Row.
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- goldenways
- added this
- added August 04, 2008
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They weren't dumping him, just being passionate conversatives. Who still thinks faith based initiatives need federal money?
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- bluestranger
- 11 months ago
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That's happened MANY times in LA. Kaiser is the hospitol that's been found doing it more than once, ON CAMERA!!!!!!!!!!!
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How horrible would that be! Wait until you feel bad enough to warrant a hospital visit you can't afford, then get treated (maybe) and dropped without your clothes and other belongings in the very worst part of town. That's like a cruel joke.
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I hope he wins. If he does, HE SHOULD OPEN A HOMELESS SHELTER WITH THE MONEY! Imagine that?
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You really don't hear about patient dumping in, oh, Japan, Sweden, Germany or just about anywhere else in the developed world.
The Conservatives will probably read this and still insist that everyone gets "great" treatment with or without insurance.
Video footage of the hospital dumping cripples out of their wheelchairs (practically naked!) into a gutter and the Cons will still fight tooth and nail to block a universal healthcare system.
This is the direct result of for-profit-hospitals desperately trying to cut corners and save money.
Why?
Because under the current system hospitals are legally required to save the lives (as in provide extremely expensive life saving procedures) on people who can't afford it (damn the Founding Fathers for insisting all people should be treated equally regardless of credit score!) -- and since there is no universal system in place to reimbuse the hospitals they are losing millions of dollars every year.
So they jack up prices on EVERYONE (conservatives too) and resort to patient dumping and other sneaky treatment-denial tactics because they're desperate to save money.
Thank god the cops and fire department aren't run by the same insane "free market" model the hospitals are being forced to work under.
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This is a nice glimpse into the mindset of a free market commerical hospital. Can you tell what they are interested in most? (A little hint, the answer is not "helping people")
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I hope he does not take an out of court settlement with these assholes. I hope he takes them to the cleaners. Maybe when people like this start putting a dent in that hospitals wallet , they will learn to treat these patients with a little kindness and respect..
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A good lawfirm would recommend that the suit should be handled by a group of victims for hundreds of millions of dollars with no promise of considering or accepting an out-of-court settlement.
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LA is just not the place to be if you need a Hospital.....sad that California is suppose to be progressive and yet...we see it's not.
