CMS EMTALA investigation

André Natta filed this request on behalf of Karen Rodriguez with the Department of Public Health of Alabama.
Tracking #

23-41
Submitted Feb. 23, 2023
Status
Completed

Communications

From: Karen Rodriguez

Subject: Alabama Open Records Law Request: CMS EMTALA investigation

Email

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Alabama Open Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

Dear Alabama Department of Public Health:

Under the Alabama Open Records Law, § 36-12-40, Code of Alabama 1975, et seq., I am requesting copy of all documents and files regarding the following CMS EMTALA violation investigation:

Event ID: YO8811

Facility Name: GREENE COUNTY HOSPITAL

Hospital Type: Short term

Facility ID: 10051

Facility Address: 509 WILSON AVENUE, EUTAW, AL

According to the publicly available CMS EMTALA deficiency database CMS investigators found “Based on review of the facility policies and procedure, Hospital B Medical Records, EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Patient Care Reports (PCR), EMS Event Clinical Presentations, 911 call log, and staff interviews, it was determined Greene County Hospital (Hospital A) failed to ensure a Medical Screening Examination (MSE) was conducted on a patient presenting to the hospital in active labor or on the newborn who was delivered while on hospital premises and failed to develop and adopt an EMTALA policy to guide staff of their responsibilities.”

I request the entire case file which may include but not be limited to:

Staff interviews

Fire department records

EMS records

Video recordings

Audio recordings

Transcripts

Letter to facility

Responses from hospital

Corrective action plans

Inspection reports

Origin of complaint

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

The Alabama Open Records Law, § 36-12-40, Code of Alabama 1975, et seq requires a response time within 14 business days. If access to the records I am requesting will take longer than this amount of time, please contact me with information about when I might expect copies.

Should you deny my request, or any part of the request, please state in writing the basis for the denial, including the exact statutory citation authorizing the denial.

Thank you for considering my request.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days.

Sincerely,

André Natta, a citizen of Alabama, in coordination with Karen Rodriguez.

From: Department of Public Health

Subject: Re: Alabama Open Records Law Requests are now to be submitted through the portal below

Email

https://adph.nextrequest.com/

From: Department of Public Health

Subject: Your first record request #23-41 has been opened.

Portal

Alabama Department of Public Health

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Your first Alabama Department of Public Health record request (request number #23-41) has been submitted.
It is currently unpublished and is not available for the general public to view.

Please be advised that "...the Public Records Law only contemplates the dissemination of completed records in final form." Opinion of the Alabama Attorney General to the Honorable Jim Bennett, Op. No. 2014-087 (Aug. 22, 2014). Preliminary information or incomplete records are not considered to be public records subject to dissemination under the Alabama Open Records Act. Op. No. 2014-087, citing Asbury Park Press, Inc. v. State Dep't of Health, 558 A.2d 1363, 1368 (N.J. Super. Ct., App. Dist. 1989).

To the extent your request is overly broad and would require the extraction of data via specialized programs and/or the creation of specialized documents, it is denied pursuant to the above-referenced authority.

Request #23-41.

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<em>Questions about your request?</em> Reply to this email or sign in to contact staff at Alabama Department of Public Health.<br></br><em>Technical support:</em> See our <a href='https://help.nextrequest.com/knowledge/requester-resources'>help page</a>

From: Department of Public Health

Subject: Your Alabama Department of Public Health public records request #23-41 has been closed.

Portal

Alabama Department of Public Health

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Record request #23-41 has been closed. The closure reason supplied was:

Thank you for your request.

Please see the three surveys below which can be found on the public website for the Alabama Department of Public Health under Health Care Facilities Deficiencies and by searching Greene County Health Systems. If paper copies are needed, then additional costs will be accessed.  

https://dph1.adph.state.al.us/DeficienciesReports/Greene%20County%20Hospital%204.1.2021%20A.pdf

https://dph1.adph.state.al.us/DeficienciesReports/Greene%20County%20Hospital%205.20.2021%20A.pdf

https://dph1.adph.state.al.us/DeficienciesReports/Greene%20County%20Hospital%207.28.2021%20A.pdf

This link is a CMS memorandum which details that that additional information requested is considered federal records. If paper copies are needed, then additional costs will be accessed.

https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Provider-Enrollment-and-Certification/SurveyCertificationGenInfo/downloads/SCLetter10_01.pdf

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<em>Questions about your request?</em> Reply to this email or sign in to contact staff at Alabama Department of Public Health.<br></br><em>Technical support:</em> See our <a href='https://help.nextrequest.com/knowledge/requester-resources'>help page</a>

From: Department of Public Health

Subject: [External Message Added] Alabama Department of Public Health public records request #23-41

Portal

Alabama Department of Public Health

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A message was sent to you regarding record request #23-41:

Thank you for your request.

This is being sent to you as a supplement response, and not as a replacement response, to your request. Please see the link below which can be found on the public website for the Alabama Department of Public Health under Health Care Facilities Deficiencies and by searching Greene County Health Systems. If paper copies are needed, then additional costs will be accessed. Please refer back to the original response for further information.  

https://dph1.adph.state.al.us/DeficienciesReports/Greene%20County%20Hospital%204.1.2021%20A.pdf

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<em>Questions about your request?</em> Reply to this email or sign in to contact staff at Alabama Department of Public Health.<br></br><em>Technical support:</em> See our <a href='https://help.nextrequest.com/knowledge/requester-resources'>help page</a>

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