Hospital Wins on ‘Good Faith’ Defense to Alleged Patient Dumping

A man whose vehicle accident led to his legs being amputated failed to convince the Fourth Circuit to find that Maryland’s Dimensions Health Corp. admitted him in bad faith only to comply with a federal law aimed at preventing patient dumping.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has never addressed the issue, but the Ninth Circuit and other authorities have held that the standard for showing a lack of good faith admission under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act is a high one, Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. wrote in the opinion.

“We agree and ...