My bro, the doc, tried to help NO, but got turned away.

[Chalco]

My repub bro, an MD,was visiting for the weekend. He said he called FEMA who said that he couldn't assist because he wasn't licensed in any of the Gulf States and he called his insurance company who said they wouldn't insure him to work in a state he wasn't licensed in.

I see this as a big problem.

He said that all it would have required is for the Governor to declare that physicians from other states could help during the emergency because it was a states rights issue and the governors chose not to suspend states rights.

I said that if Bush/Homeland Security post 911 with congress's approval had stipulated that if a federal emergency is declared doc/nurses can work and that FEMA would insure them across jurisdictions for the length of the emergency.

We got into this federalism versus states rights argument (among others).

Bottom line was he was furious at not being able to help.

He also was ballistic at Mayor Nagin. Felt that he should be charged with negligent homicide for not getting the sick out, particularly that nursing home. He said he got the FEMA guidelines and read them and said that Nagin was responsible for getting the infirm out.

Any comments on any of these issues?

[wryter2000]

1. Nagin and the nursing home

The nursing home wasn't in NO. It was in a neighboring parish. Broussard's. Nagin couldn't do any more there than he could in Mobile, Alabama

[localroger]

10. Not Broussard's either

The nursing home is in St. Bernard Parish. Broussard is President of Jefferson Parish. The President of St. Bernard Parish is Henry J. Rodriguez.

[wryter2000]

18. Thanks

Wasn't that the nursing home Broussard was talking about on TV? Maybe his employee's mother was in the other parish.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. If you mean the nursing home

where all those residents died and the owners were charged - I believe it was in a suburban area, not in New Orleans. So blaming the mayor of New Orleans is like blaming the mayor of LA for a problem in Anaheim.

[rfranklin]

3. Air conditioned buses were promised to evacuate, never came...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1788866

[wryter2000]

4. And if he gets into school buses

NO doesn't use school buses. Students take public transit or walk. David Brock reported that NO owns about 300 school buses, of which 50 or so weren't running. www.mediamatters.org

No one knows where the figure 2000 buses came from, but school buses were NOT available to Nagin.

[Lars39]

5. There's a lot of info in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=106&topic_id=22805&mesg_id=22805

[seabeyond]

6. we gotta know the rules. if feds arent going to do anything, we gotta

know. these people yelling state do all this stuff. k. now we know the rules. didnt know it before. feds saying they are doing, they said it for days and days they were going to do and never did. still are not, as they continue to say they are going to do

my point. your brother wants state to do. lets us all know. reduce all our fed tax. significantly increase all our state and local taxes. so we can do

dont make us pay federal lessening what we pay state and local, and demand we do it on state and local

gotta know what rules we are playing by

[Chalco]

22. I thought that's what Homeland Security was going to do.

Standardize everything.

[seabeyond]

23. after katrina mess, i am hearing all the repugs making excuses

for bush, that it is not the feds responsibility. that it is state and local. i am tired of this argument. wont work. but i am tired of it. so now when a rightie says state and local, i say ok. lets make clear the rules. if it is going to be state and local, so be it. first, we raise taxes state and local. they start sputtering at this point.

they dont want to pay for anything and it is just their way of excusing the unexcusable. turn it back on them. make them, make it work. they wont do it and will shut them up. i dont care who does it, state or federal, but we need to know who, and they get our tax dollars.

[Tsiyu]

7. Isn't a tiny, ineffective government just peachy?

This IS what the Republicans wanted - complete control of a teeny-weeny government - and this is what they get.


Is your brother surprised? Why?

[aquart]

15. But it is NOT teeny.

Clinton reduced. Bush expanded exponentially. And all his hires are incompetent cronies. It's a huge patronage handout.

[serryjw]

8. Bureaucratic Bushit is going to kill this country

I'm not going to address what Nagin did or didn't do.I have heard so many versions at this point.
BUT what drives me crazy is your bro not being able to save lives because he is not covered. A Nuclear Bomb goes off in a major city are docs going to be calling their insurance companies before helping?. While everyone is arguing over States vs Federal rights people are dying and your bro can help. What the hell is the difference if he practices in MS, LA or NY?? He is a licensed MD!

[cloud_chaser1]

9. NOT LICENSED IN THE STATE?

I believe that is bullshit. Unless I am mistaken, there are good samaritan laws that allow a doctor to deliver emergency treatment anywhere he finds it is needed, even out of state, without penalty or punishment.
What about that group Doctors Without Borders? They treat in lots of different countries without a license from that country.



:wtf:

[serryjw]

13. Read it and WEEP....more Bushit

http://medi-smart.com/gslaw.htm

[Why Syzygy]

11. A friend of mine

who is going over to do insurance adjustments said they had suspended licensing requirements for THAT!

Aren't doctors and nurses on reserve duty being required to serve in Ira*q? Are they licensed in Ira*q?

What would it take for him to get licensed there?

This is bs. The GOVERNMENT = FUBAR !

Do you honestly believe that any of the sick survivors have tort on their minds?

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. I hope this wakes him up

it is nto the lawyers, it is the gov'ment and it is highly innefective because these bastards don't believe in it

By the way in disasters all them cute rules get suspended, usually.. but they don't want that help to get down there, PERIOD

[spuddonna]

14. Hey, tell your brother not to feel bad...

I'll bet he would have felt worse being told he couldn't work because he wasn't 'certified' while he was administering chest compressions! http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/091605/new_doctorordered001.shtml

Or maybe they would have made him MOP instead of treating patients! http://edition.cnn.com/2005/US/09/15/katrina.response/

As far as his claim that it's Blanco's responsibility to declare docs can work here, I don't know if that's true - my understanding is that FEMA assumes the responsibilty in toto for the entire cleanup, including medical aid.

Others have mentioned that Nagin was not in charge there - that nursing home was in St. Bernard's Parish. Something else to add to that that I've read but can't remember the source... The owners of that home are being charged criminally for leaving those people there because the local authorities offered them help and they apparently refused.

[skeeterbit]

16. Is this your brother?

Doctor says FEMA ordered him to stop treating hurricane victims
By LAURIE SMITH ANDERSON
Advocate staff writer

http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/091605/new_doctorordered001.shtml

[ncrainbowgrrl]

19. Hi skeeterbit! Welcome to DU!!

:hi:

[Chalco]

20. No, that's not him. nt

[riverwalker]

17. Congress passed Good Samaritan for Katrina

would this have helped?

http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/15529.html

AMA applauds passage of House bill to protect hurricane volunteers from lawsuits

For immediate release
September 14, 2005
Statement Attributable to:
J. Edward Hill, MD
AMA President



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The American Medical Association applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the Katrina Volunteer Protection Act of 2005 (H.R. 3736). This Good Samaritan legislation will assure that volunteers, including physicians, can focus on providing aid to hurricane victims instead of on the threat of lawsuits.

"Since Hurricane Katrina, the AMA has been sharing information with physicians nationwide on how to volunteer for the relief efforts. Physicians are eager to volunteer - they want to help the hurricane victims with their immediate and long-term medical needs. Passage of a Good Samaritan bill is an important step toward alleviating some of the uncertainty faced by physicians who want to volunteer."

###

[Chalco]

21. Passing that Sept 14th is a little late, isn't it?

My point was it should be a matter of course in a federal emergency that doctors and nurses can cross "borders."

[Chalco]

24. Thanks. I'm going to let him know.

When he called the AMA they advised him not to go. That was before 9/14.

Thanks.

[Chalco]

25. Help me out here. I sent the info to my brother because he

sincerely wants to help but wants to be covered.

I sent him the link which he read and here was his response:

"Unfortunately,the law has not passed the senate and does not address the issue of licensure.Thanks for your help."


WTF if going on????