Title: Can You Sue a Hospital or Doctor for Denying Medical Treatment?
Headings: Can You Sue a Hospital or Doctor for Denying Medical Treatment?
Can You Sue a Hospital or Doctor for Denying Medical Treatment?
If you’ve been denied treatment by a hospital or doctor, you need to know about medical malpractice and your right to seek compensation.
On This Page
Federal Laws Regulate Emergency Treatment
The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act
Case Summary: EMTALA Applies to Urgent Care Center
When Can Treatment be Denied?
Reasons Emergency Room Treatment Can Be Denied
Patients Cannot Be Released Until Stabilized
Case Summary: Unstable Patient Release Violates EMTALA
Private Doctors Can Refuse to Treat
A doctor can refuse to treat a patient because:
When to Hire an Attorney
A malpractice lawsuit can help you recover:
How Much is Your Injury Claim Worth?
Medical Treatment Denial Questions & Answers
Can Urgent Care refuse medical treatment to my son because of outstanding bill to insurance?
Turned away by urgent care?
Was my husband a victim of patient abandonment?
Insurance denials of EMTALA claims?
Neglect and mismanagement of severe pain related to ovarian cyst…
ER doctor refused to remove pieces of glass from my foot…
Can a hospital outpatient clinic refuse to treat a patient?
Doctor Refused My Surgery Due to Smoking?

Content: ²
Here’s where we unpack what kind of care hospitals and doctors are obligated to provide, and what you can do about it if the denial of treatment has harmed you. Federal Laws Regulate Emergency Treatment
Before the enactment of civil and patient’s rights laws, patients who couldn’t pay were often refused treatment or transferred (“dumped”) at public hospitals even when they were in no condition to be moved. Today, hospitals with emergency departments that qualify for Medicare are mandated by state and federal laws to provide emergency care to all patients, regardless of their ability to pay. The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act
The Federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), was signed into law in 1986. Originally written as an “anti-dumping” act, the law required private hospitals with dedicated emergency departments to treat women in active labor and people with emergency medical conditions, regardless of the person’s ability to pay. EMTALA defines an emergency medical condition as one that occurred suddenly, with symptoms such as severe pain, psychiatric disturbance, or symptoms of substance abuse, where lack of emergency care could result in: placing the health of the individual (or unborn child) in serious jeopardy
the serious impairment of a bodily function
the serious dysfunction of any bodily function or part
not enough time to safely transfer a pregnant woman to another hospital before delivery, or transfer could be risky for the woman or unborn child
Under EMTALA, the patient can’t be released or transferred to another hospital until their condition has been stabilized. Once stabilized, the hospital can legally release the patient or refuse further care, so long as the refusal is not discriminatory, for example, because of a person’s race or religion. 42 CFR §§ 413, 482, 489
EMTALA doesn’t cover every type of medical facility. Private doctor’s offices, stand-alone medical labs, and specialty hospitals that don’t have an emergency room, won’t be subject to EMTALA rules.