Justice Department Settles FACE Act Lawsuit Against Abortion Protester

The Justice Department yesterday announced it settled claims against protestor David Hamilton  for violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinical Entrances (FACE) Act.  Under the terms of the agreement Hamilton will pay $2,500 in compensatory damages to the victim of Hamilton’s use of force outside the EMW Women’s Surgical Center in Louisville, Kentucky.  The United States and Hamilton came to the agreement at a settlement conference held January 7, 2013, in Louisville.  Yesterday, the United States sent Hamilton’s attorney a joint stipulation of dismissal to be filed with the court as soon as Hamilton tenders payment.  

The agreement settles a lawsuit the United States filed against Hamilton for his alleged violation of the FACE Act, which makes it unlawful for any person to use force to intentionally injure, intimidate, or interfere with, or attempt to injure, intimidate, or interfere with, anyone because that person is or has been obtaining or providing reproductive health services.  The United States’ complaint alleged that on Jan. 30, 2010, Hamilton, a regular protester, grabbed and pushed a volunteer escort at the center.  At the time of the incident, the victim was attempting to escort a patient to the front entrance of the center.  The complaint alleged that Hamilton’s actions constituted a use of force that intimidated and interfered with individuals who were attempting to obtain and provide reproductive health services at the center. 

The FACE Act limits statutory compensatory damages to $5,000.  The $2,500 Hamilton agreed to pay will go to the victim in accordance with the terms of the statute.  Hamilton no longer resides in the Louisville area.  

The prosecution and settlement reflects the Obama Administration’s interest in protecting and promoting abortion and other reproductive rights. “It is absolutely crucial that those individuals who desire reproductive health services be able to obtain them in an environment that is free of interference, intimidation and fear,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.  “By continuing to enforce the Freedom of Access to Clinical Entrances Act, we are helping to ensure that they are able to do so.”

For Representation, Training & Other Resources

If you need help monitoring HIPAA and other health and health plan related regulatory policy or enforcement developments, or to review or respond to these or other health care or health IT related risk management, compliance, enforcement or management concerns, the author of this update, attorney Cynthia Marcotte Stamer may be able to help.

Vice President of the North Texas Health Care Compliance Professionals Association, Past Chair of the ABA Health Law Section Managed Care & Insurance Section and the former Board Compliance Chair of the National Kidney Foundation of North Texas, Ms. Stamer has more than 24 years experience advising health industry clients about these and other matters. Ms. Stamer has extensive experience advising and assisting health care providers, health plans, their business associates and other health industry clients to establish and administer medical privacy and other compliance and risk management policies, to health care industry investigation, enforcement and other compliance, public policy, regulatory, staffing, and other operations and risk management concerns. She regularly designs and presents HIPAA and other risk management, compliance and other training for health plans, employers, health care providers, professional associations and others.

Scheduled to serve as the scribe for the ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits agency meeting with OCR, Ms. Stamer also regularly works with OCR and other agencies, publishes and speaks extensively on medical and other privacy and data security, health and managed care industry regulatory, staffing and human resources, compensation and benefits, technology, public policy, reimbursement and other operations and risk management concerns.  Her publications and insights appear in the Health Care Compliance Association, Atlantic Information Service, Bureau of National Affairs, World At Work, The Wall Street Journal, Business Insurance, the Dallas Morning News, Modern Health Care, Managed Healthcare, Health Leaders, and a many other national and local publications.   For instance, Ms. Stamer for the second year will serve as the appointed scribe for the ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits Agency meeting with OCR.  Her insights on HIPAA risk management and compliance frequently appear in medical privacy related publications of a broad range of health care, health plan and other industry publications Among others, she has conducted privacy training for the Association of State & Territorial Health Plans (ASTHO), the Los Angeles Health Department, the American Bar Association, the Health Care Compliance Association, a multitude of health industry, health plan, insurance and financial services, education, employer employee benefit and other clients, trade and professional associations and others.  You can get more information about her HIPAA and other experience here.

If you need help with these or other compliance concerns, wish to ask about arranging for compliance audit or training, or need legal representation on other matters please contact Ms. Stamer at (469) 767-8872 or via e-mail here.

You can review other recent publications and resources and additional information about the other experience of Ms. Stamer here.  Examples of some recent publications that may be of interest include:

If you need help investigating or responding to a known or suspected compliance, litigation or enforcement or other risk management concern, assistance with reviewing, updating, administering or defending a current or proposed employment, employee benefit, compensation or other management practice, wish to inquire about federal or state regulatory compliance audits, risk management or training, or need legal representation on other matters please contact Ms Stamer here or at (469) 767-8872.

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 ©2013 Cynthia Marcotte Stamer, P.C. All rights reserved.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 12th, 2013 at 2:32 am and is filed under Academic medicine, Electronic Health Records, Employee Benefits, Employment, Health Care, Health IT, HIPAA, HITECH Act, Hospital, OCR, Physician, Reproductive Rights. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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