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LOUISIANA RECORD

Friday, March 29, 2024

Deaf individual alleges Willis-Knighton Medical Center did not provide ASL interpreter

Medical malpractice 03

LAFAYETTE – A deaf individual residing in Bossier City alleges a Caddo Parish health care facility did not accommodate his needs.

William Edward Haab filed a complaint on Dec. 15 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana against Willis-Knighton Medical Center alleging that the health care provider violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act.

According to the complaint, the plaintiff was a patient of the defendant on Jan. 30, 2016, and was not provided an American Sign Language interpreter or auxiliary aids. The plaintiff alleges that as a result of defendant's purported discriminatory conduct, he has suffered injuries in the form of anxiety, indignity and invasion of his civil rights. The plaintiff holds Willis-Knighton Medical Center responsible because the defendant allegedly denied him meaningful access to the services and programs that defendant offers to other individuals by failing to provide the necessary interpreter or auxiliary aids and by failing to ensure effective communication in a medical setting.

The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks compensatory damages, plus interest, costs and attorneys’ fees and all other relief that the court finds necessary and appropriate. He is represented by Andrew D. Bizer, Garret S. DeReus and Marc P. Florman of Bizer & DeReus in New Orleans.

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana Case number 5:16-cv-01722

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