Special report. Controls for AIDS-infected health care workers: an update

In the wake of public concern and increased litigation about infected health care workers transmitting the AIDS virus to their patients, professional and government agencies--including the American Medical Association (AMA), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the American Dental Association (ADA)--have recently issued guidelines on self-policing and safety procedures to their members, and threatened strict sanctions to those who disregard them. Even tougher is the bill which was overwhelmingly approved by the United States Senate in July. Sponsored by Senator Jesse Helms (R-NC), the bill formally makes it a crime carrying a 10-year prison sentence and a fine for AIDS-infected doctors, nurses, and dentists to treat patients without first warning them that they have an infectious disease. In this report, we'll review the new guidelines and how they are expected to impact the health care industry. We'll also present recent developments in AIDS-related litigation that could affect safety and security directors, risk managers, or anyone with managerial responsibility for hospital safety.