CMS cites King-Harbor: Patient was in 'jeopardy'

A nurse has been fired and a supervising nurse put on administrative leave in light of yet another ugly incident at Los Angeles-based Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital.  CMS, which already was inspecting the facility, cited King-Harbor for putting patients in "immediate jeopardy" after a psychiatric patient was able to cut herself with a scalpel in the bathroom of the hospital's emergency department. If CMS chooses to pull the hospital's certification--due to this or other longstanding problems--it would lose $200 million per year, or half of its operating budget, and would almost certainly close. CMS will report its findings before August 15th.

This is the second time in two months that the hospital has been put on "immediate jeopardy" status. In June, a man who waited days for brain surgery was forced to go to another hospital to get his procedure done. The county of Los Angeles' Department of Health Services reported the incident to state health authorities, who are currently in the process of revoking the facility's license.

To find out more about the CMS investigation:
- read this Los Angeles Times article

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