Dive Brief:
- A California hospital has agreed to pay $200,000 to the city of Los Angeles for dropping a patient off on Skid Row without making arrangements for that patient's care and safety.
- The hospital, 224-bed Beverly Hospital in Montebello, had been sued by the city for failing to perform an appropriate screening of a dependent adult with an emergency medical condition.
- This case follows on an epidemic of patient dumping that took place in Southern California about a decade ago, with Los Angeles police reporting hundreds of patients on downtown streets, some still in hospital gowns.
Dive Insight:
Patient dumping is a problem which flares up from time to time, especially when economic times are tough, and it's hard to prevent it from appearing now and again. However, it appears that the city of Los Angeles, at least, is particularly serious about cracking down on hospitals that engage in this practice. Let's hope that other cities and counties are equally serious about safe and appropriate discharge planning, especially for patients that can't take care of themselves.