Bass v. Cook Cnty. Hosp. – March 2015 (Summary)

EMERGENCY SERVICES

Bass v. Cook Cnty. Hosp., No. 1-14-2665 (Ill. App. Ct. Mar. 20, 2015)

The Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, held that emergency room physicians involved in inter-hospital transports, including physicians who prepare patients for ambulance transfer and accompany patients on ambulance trips, are immune from malpractice liability pursuant to a state statute establishing a statewide EMS system. The court found that a physician who accompanied an 11-year-old patient on an emergency transfer to a pediatric intensive care unit was immune from liability as a good-faith provider of emergency services. Because the physician was not liable, the hospital was immune from vicarious liability.