Local Attorneys Gearing Up For Ebola Lawsuits

[TexasTowelie]

The rhetoric from Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital nurses in the last several days has been vehement. Nurses are anonymously alleging that the hospital did not take proper steps to prevent contamination and infection, which ultimately led to nurses Amber Vinson and Nina Pham contracting Ebola from patient Thomas Eric Duncan. "In the end, the nurses strongly feel unsupported, unprepared, deserted and lied to in preparing for this," said National Nurses United spokesperson Deborah Burger in a press conference on Wednesday.

And Texas Health Resources is scrambling to counteract the claims. "National Nurses United recently made allegations regarding the protocols and equipment in place during Thomas Eric Duncan's treatment at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas. The assertions do not reflect actual facts learned from the medical record and interactions with clinical caregivers," said spokesperson Candace White in an e-mail statement. "Our hospital followed the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and sought additional guidance and clarity."

Still, chances are good that when the outbreak has subsided, Presbyterian's owner, Texas Health Resources, along with the CDC and any other group involved in treating the virus will be facing several lawsuits. Charla Aldous, a lead attorney with Aldous Law Firm in Dallas, said she could not give any details, but confirmed that someone involved in the Ebola outbreak has reached out to her about a possible suit. "I have been contacted, but cannot disclose the names," she says. "I have not yet been formally retained."

But it's clear the lawyers at Aldous are gearing up for a fight. Brent Walker, another attorney at the firm, outlined the lengthy legal avenue that -- hypothetically, of course -- an attorney could take if either Duncan's contacts or employees at Presbyterian decided to take sue.

Read more: http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2014/10/local_attorneys_gearing_up_for_ebola_lawsuits.php

[valerief]

1. I didn't think you could sue a for-profit business in Texas. I thought

they outlawed that. Maybe next year.

[FarPoint]

2. The nurses can not file a lawsuit ....

Nurses who contracted Ebola virus; this falls under workers compensation. So far, no others have contracted the virus so I fail to see grounds for a claim.

[TexasTowelie]

4. That is assuming that the hospital purchased a workers compensation policy

since WC is optional in Texas and about one-third of employers do not carry WC insurance; therefore, a general liability policy may come into play or the hospital may be self-insured.

The question is whether the nurses would want to file a lawsuit against their employer since it creates an adversarial relationship and could possibly lead to the nurse being blacklisted by other employers. It is possible that the claim may go to arbitration, but the nurses certainly can file a lawsuit regardless of the type of insurance policy (WC or GL) or if the hospital is self-insured. The normal statute of limitations for this type of claim is two years in Texas.

[FarPoint]

5. That's insane!!!!

:

[Gothmog]

3. This is to be expected