South Carolina Hospital AnMed Health Fined $1.3 Million For Failure To Properly Treat People In Psychiatric Emergency

On June 2, 2017, AnMed Health agreed to pay a civil money penalty of nearly $1.3 million to settle allegations that during 2012 and 2013, it failed to properly treat people with psychiatric emergencies. The failure violated the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which requires hospital emergency departments to stabilize and treat people regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay. The non-profit AnMed system includes three hospitals that serve upper South Carolina and northeastern Georgia.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) investigated the allegations and determined that in 36 incidents, people . . .