A doctor and two nurses at a New Orleans hospital have been charged with murder in the investigation of possible "mercy killings" of patients after Hurricane Katrina, a state spokeswoman said this evening.
Tenet Healthcare, which owns Memorial Medical Center, said the attorney general alleged the three
The hospital at which those charged used to work. The hospital remains closed.
people may have administered pain medication to quicken the deaths of patients in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Attorney General Charles Foti planned to announce details later in the day of his investigation into the deaths at Memorial, spokeswoman Kris Wartelle said. She declined to say whether euthanasia, or mercy killing, was an element in the case.
More than 200 sick and elderly patients in area nursing homes and hospitals died in the days and weeks after the August 29th hurricane, when food and water was scarce, the electricity supply interrupted and hospitals overwhelmed.
Witnesses have said conditions at Memorial deteriorated quickly as temperatures rose above 100 degrees (38 C) inside the building and the sanitation system broke down.
The three people were charged with second-degree murder and arrested on Monday night, said Ms Wartelle.
Foti in October issued 73 subpoenas for hospital employees after dozens died in the medical center. The attorney general at that time was investigating allegations ranging from abandonment of patients to euthanasia at six hospitals and 13 nursing homes in the state.
Tenet said last month it intended to sell four of its five hospitals in New Orleans. Today, the company said it struck a deal to sell three hospitals, including Memorial, to Oschner Health System.
Its statement said euthanasia was "repugnant" and that if any such decision was made by the three employees arrested, it was done without the knowledge of their superiors.