Louisiana panel OKs reviews of doctor acts in disasters

Legislation designed to help prosecutors determine whether to file charges against doctors, nurses or other healthcare professionals for their actions during or immediately after disasters has been approved by a Louisiana Senate committee. The bill establishes a three-member Emergency-Disaster Medicine Review Panel to examine disaster-related decisions by healthcare personnel, and a district attorney or state attorney general could choose to ask the board for an evaluation of a medical professional's conduct in a case before launching a prosecution. The findings of the panel would be advisory and not binding.