Bill introduced to protect HCWs like airline staff

Editor's Note

US Representatives Madeleine Dean (D-Pa) and Larry Bucshon, MD, (R-Ind) on June 7 introduced a Bill to protect healthcare workers (HCWs) from violence that is modeled after protections for airline workers, the June 8 Becker’s Hospital Review reports.

The Safety from Violence for Healthcare Employees Act would criminalize assault or intimidation of HCWs and provide legal penalties for those who knowingly and intentionally do so. There are protections in the Bill for those who may be mentally incapacitated because of illness or substance abuse.

Violence in hospitals has been growing with increasing frequency, which hurts the ability of physicians, nurses, and other HCWs to provide quality care for patients, the Representatives say.