Women living with debilitating cluster headaches and other chronic illnesses Sues the largest health system in upstate New YorkDoctors claimed she was denied highly effective treatment because she was “of childbearing age.”
Tara Ruhl left Albany Medical Health Partners after she was told neurologists at the system’s Glens Falls hospital could not prescribe drugs believed to have the potential to cause birth defects. It accused the company of discrimination under the Affordable Care Act and the Age Discrimination Act.
Ruhl explained that she practices safe sex and that she is not pregnant and has no intention of becoming pregnant, but that possibility alone is enough to cause her doctor to prescribe a different, less effective drug. He reportedly said that was enough.
She alleges in a lawsuit filed last month by Ruhl on her behalf that doctors gave her blood pressure medication instead, even though her blood pressure was already dangerously low. ing.
“He said that as long as I was of childbearing age, regardless of my sexual partner, regardless of my birth control method, or any of the above, I could not receive treatment,” Ruhl posted. He spoke through tears in an emotional TikTok video. In September 2022.
“He’s literally putting me on drugs that could kill me, because other drugs could cause birth defects in a hypothetical child I don’t plan on having. ” she added. follow up video.
Ruhr alleges in its lawsuit that the video itself is a source of further infringement. She posted a recording of her doctor’s appointment on TikTok, where she accused hospital staff of “livestreaming” conversations with staff, and she said she alerted another hospital to the incident. .
A second hospital, Malta Medical, allegedly posted armed guards outside the door and released her while she was being treated.
Mr. Ruhl claims that a nurse will be live-streaming during a consultation, even though Malta Medical clearly has no such rules, and despite Ruhl’s claims that they do not live-stream. He said the false claims were “100% illegal.”
Ruhl accused the same nurse of sharing personal information with her partner through Facebook. In these messages, the nurse stated that she experienced severe depression due to Ruhl’s videos and the overwhelming harassment she received from her followers.
“She has devastated me to the point where I don’t know how or if I can move forward,” the nurse wrote, according to a screenshot attached to the lawsuit.
In an interview with jezebelRuhl said she had to travel out of state to receive treatment after nearby medical facilities learned about her video and began turning her away.
Albany Medical Health Partners told the outlet it could not comment on the matter. said last year: “We encourage all patients to be active participants in their care. If a patient raises a concern, we will investigate it in a timely manner.”
Ruhl said he still struggles to find the right medication to treat cluster headaches, which some patients describe as “cluster headaches.”worst pain known to medicine. ”
American Medical Association and other health organizations warned Following the Dobbs Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade last year, women face further medical collapse, even if they are “patients who rely on these drugs for reasons unrelated to abortion.” It was pointed out that there is a possibility that
