Tort/Negligence – Medical Malpractice – DNA Testing Lab – Certified Question

When a genetic testing laboratory performs testing at the request of a patient’s treating physician for the purpose of assisting the treating physician in detecting an existing disease or disorder, the lab qualifies as a “licensed health care provider[]” under S.C. Code Ann. § 38-79-410.

The answer to the federal district court’s question is “Yes.”

As defined in § 38-79-410, “‘Licensed health care providers’ means physicians and surgeons; directors, officers, and trustees of hospitals; nurses; oral surgeons; dentists; pharmacists; chiropractors; optometrists; podiatrists; hospitals; nursing homes; or any similar category of licensed health care providers.”

Under the circumstances set out above, the genetic testing laboratory fits within the category provided by one of the specified designations in § 38-79-410: a hospital. Thus, we conclude that a genetic testing laboratory in these circumstances clearly falls within § 38-79-410’s catchall of “any similar category of licensed health care providers.”

Dissent

(Hearn, J.) The key commonality among the health care providers listed in the statute is that all function to provide direct, face-to-face treatment to patients, who in their own right conscientiously select these providers and rely on their skill, expertise, and professional judgment. While defendant may provide a medical service sometimes available at hospitals, the similarities end there.

I do not believe the limited, specialized services offered by defendant are sufficient to render it similar to hospitals, which are holistic enterprises offering a multitude of medical services and treatment options. Therefore, I would answer the certified question, “No.”

Williams v. Quest Diagnostics, Inc. (Lawyers Weekly No. 010-069-18, 5 pp.) (John Kittredge, J.) (Kaye Hearn, J., dissenting) Certified question from the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina (Margaret Seymour, S.J.) Bradford Cranshaw, Trevor Hughey, G. Robert DeLoach III, Matthew McGuire, and James Ervin for Plaintiffs; John Moylan III, Alice Parham Casey, Wallace Lightsey and Wade Kolb III for Defendants. S.C. S. Ct.