A diagnostics laboratory company and a staffing agency that provides employees to it must answer various claims asserted against them by a man erroneously told that he had HIV and herpes, a federal district court said Jan. 17 (Drew v. Quest Diagnostics, N.D. Ala., No. 5-13-cv-629). The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama partially denied motions by Quest Diagnostics and Aerotek Inc. to dismiss claims asserted by plaintiffs Kenneth and Elizabeth Drew. The court said the Alabama Medical Liability Act (AMLA), which applies in actions brought against health care providers based on a breach of the standard of care, didn’t provide an exclusive remedy for the plaintiffs, who complained that the companies’ negligence resulted in emotional harm and lost wages. The court refused to dismiss claims related to the defendants’ alleged negligence; negligent hiring, supervision, training, and retention; medical negligence; and invasion of privacy. It dismissed claims for negligence per se, outrage, and res ipsa loquitur. Sample Not Labeled In 2011, Kenneth Drew had a blood sample taken during a routine physical examination required by his military employer. The sample was drawn at Quest’s Huntsville, Ala., location by a technician employed by Aerotek. The sample either wasn’t…
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