Question

Background or Scenario:

Because the hospital is not well-equipped to handle the more serious patients in the ED, it must transfer them to other hospitals, which some believe endangers their lives unnecessarily (time and type of transport), and also increases the cost of their care.

The hospital is concerned that it might not be transferring the patients in accordance with the requirements of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA).

Prompt:

Transfers and failures to address the needs of trauma patients have caused patients and their families to report the hospital for violations of EMTALA. This has led to corrective action plans (CAPs) from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and increasing scrutiny of the hospital’s Emergency Department’s compliance issues with EMTALA. The hospital is interested in learning more about the transfer requirements of the EMTALA law and regulations and complying with them.

4. What is the basic premise of the EMTALA law? What are the legal and regulatory consequences of failing to comply with the EMTALA? How does complying with the EMTALA affect the quality of patient care?

Answer 1

4) EMTALA is known as Federal law and referred as anti- dumping law. This law helps to provide emergency care to every patients, irrespective of their financial ability to pay, their insurance status, nation, culture, origin etc ., If there is an emergency medical condition exists, hospital must provide furthet examination and treatment to stabilize the condition.  The main aim of this law is, to ensure that the uinsured patients are getting a Medical screening examination to check whether their condition is stable to transfer them to another hospital. There are some requirements to transfer a patient under EMTALA.

• Need a Physician certificate showing that patient will get greater medical benefits when compared to the transfer risks
• Patient must give the consent form that he know the all risksof transfer.

Hospitals with more specialized capabilities must provide appropriate transfer of the patients if they have the capacity to treat the patient. By this EMTALA, patients get more care and specialized treatments.

EMTALA ensures universal access to emergency medical care at all Medicare participating hospitals with emergency departments

2) Cocerned authorities have the right to close the Medicare providre agreement of the hospital and the physician. The civil courtcan take case against the hospital for personal injury. Penalty fees are there for hospital and physicians ( $ 50000 per violation)