EMTALA Update 2021:  Two-Part Series 
(Registration fee covers both sessions)

Part 1:  Tuesday, December 7, 2021
Part 2:  Tuesday, December 14, 2021
9:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST

Offered Through Partnership with Georgia Hospital Association

Every hospital that has an emergency department and accepts Medicare and Medicaid patients must follow the federal law and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Conditions of Participation (CoPs) Interpretive Guidelines on the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). Even hospitals without emergency departments must comply with EMTALA if they have specialized capabilities.  

Yet a recent study found that 30% of US hospitals and 34% of Critical Access Hospitals have violated EMTALA in the last decade. Violations were found to most frequently occur in the southeast region and with hospitals with fewer than 100 beds. With more than 5,000 hospitals receiving deficiencies as reported by CMS, EMTALA is the most frequent area of noncompliance. To further complicate matters, the EMTALA CoPs manual was updated in July of 2019, but the Office of Inspector General (OIG) regulations and final changes are not contained in the manual. Penalties have been doubled to nearly $105,000 per violation for hospitals over 100 beds, and it is anticipated that health care will see even larger EMTALA fines and more activity because of the OIG final changes. 

frequently cited deficiencies, including a recent case against a South Carolina hospital, which resulted in the largest EMTALA settlement to date of $1.2 million.  

Don’t miss this important series to ensure that your hospital’s policies, procedures, and training are adequate to maintain compliance with EMTALA. 


LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
At the conclusion of this series, participants should be able to:

• Discuss that EMTALA is a frequent cited deficiency for hospitals (Part 1)
• Recall that CMS has a manual on EMTALA that all hospitals that accept Medicare must follow (Part 1)

• Describe that the hospital must maintenance a central log (Part 2)
• Discuss the hospital's requirement to maintain a list of the specific names of physicians who are on call to evaluate emergency department patients (2)
• Recall that CMS has requirements on what must be in the EMTALA sign (2)

• Describe the hospital's requirements regarding a minor who is brought to the ED by the babysitter for a medical screening exam (Part 2)
• Discuss when the hospital must complete a certification of false labor (2)

Laura A. Dixon, BS, JD, RN, CPHRM 
Laura A. Dixon is the president of Healthcare Risk Education and Consulting. She previously served as the Director, Facility Patient Safety and Risk Management and Operations for COPIC from 2014 to 2020.  In her role, Ms. Dixon provided consultation and training to facilities, practitioners and staff in multiple states. 

Ms. Dixon has more than twenty years of clinical experience in acute care facilities, including critical care, coronary care, peri-operative services and pain management.  Prior to joining COPIC, she served as the Director, Western Region, Patient Safety and Risk Management for The Doctors Company, Napa, California.  In this capacity, she provided consultation to the physicians and staff for the western United States.  

As a registered nurse and attorney, Laura holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Regis University, a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Drake University College of Law, and a Registered Nurse Diploma from Saint Luke’s School Professional Nursing.  She is licensed to practice law in Colorado and California.  

This speaker has no real or perceived conflicts of interest that relate to this presentation.