ARRT: Exeter Hospital settled hep C cases to avoid bad press

EXETER – The American Registry of Radiologic Technologists Wednesday filed court papers claiming it has no responsibility to reimburse Exeter Hospital for settlements with patients who tested negative for hepatitis C after the 2012 outbreak.

ARRT was the agency that accredited “serial infector” David Kwiatkowski, who was placed at Exeter Hospital where his drug diverting activities resulted in infected needles being used on patients.

Though Kwiatkowsi was convicted of his crimes and is serving a 39-year prison sentence, litigation has continued for years, with Exeter Hospital attempting to recoup some of the legal costs and settlements it reached with patients who tested positive for hepatitis C, as well as those who tested positive but claimed they suffered as a result.

ARRT argues Exeter Hospital had no basis for paying settlements to 188 negative-testing patients, and was simply trying to avoid any further negative publicity.

More than 3,000 patients were tested, according to the hospital's motion. The amount of the settlements reached with the 188 negative patients remains confidential, but according to ARRT the majority of the patients received the same amount of money.

Exeter Hospital’s attorneys have argued ARRT was negligent in failing to investigate a 2010 complaint in Arizona that Kwiatkowski abused fentanyl while working at Arizona Heart Hospital. According to court documents, Arizona Heart Hospital did alert ARRT to Kwiatkowski’s alleged activities, but ARRT took no action.

Exeter Hospital’s claims about the negative patients are “abstract and fanciful,” according to ARRT attorneys, and it is the hospital’s burden to prove each claimant suffered injuries for ARRT to be held responsible.

“Before any lawsuits were ever filed, Exeter Hospital chose to settle each of the 188 individuals’ purported claims,” another recent motion reads. “Exeter Hospital now seeks contribution from ARRT (and others), but it is not entitled to do so because the negative result claimants did not sustain a legally compensable injury.”

Additionally, ARRT attorneys pointed out that in its filings, Exeter Hospital is careful to say negative-testing patients “allege” injuries rather than pleading that they have in fact suffered injuries.

“It is not plausible that all – or any – of the individuals have viable underlying claims under any theory,” ARRT attorneys wrote in their motion Wednesday.

Triage Staffing is also being sued by the hospital for the positive and negative-testing patients.

According to a June 24 filing by hospital attorneys, Triage failed to screen a “drug-addicted criminal” and put him in contact with a vulnerable population.

“Triage … foreseeably furthered Kwiatkowski’s drug diversion scheme by failing to adequately investigate his background, and ultimately putting Kwiatkowski in a position to exploit new, unsuspecting victims,” they wrote.

Exeter Hospital will file a surreply to ARRT’s recent filing by July 18, and to Triage’s recent filing by July 11. A jury trial on the whole matter remains tentatively set for October 2017.