Hospital's own post-citation safety improvements proved OSHA's case, court rules
A federal court just made it clear: healthcare employers can't hide behind Medicare compliance when their workers face patient violence.
The warning came in a decision dated February 13, 2026, when the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals denied Cedar Springs Hospital's attempt to overturn a workplace safety citation. The Colorado psychiatric facility had argued it was already regulated by federal healthcare agencies and didn't need to follow separate OSHA requirements for protecting staff from violent patients.
The court wasn't buying it.
The case started when someone tipped off OSHA about violence at the facility. What investigators found was troubling: employees at the psychiatric hospital faced regular physical threats and assaults from patients, yet the hospital hadn't implemented basic safety measures that experts say are standard practice in behavioral health settings.
OSHA cited the hospital for seven missing safeguards. Nurses' stations were open, allowing patients to grab pens, pencils, and paperclips to use as weapons. Staff lacked adequate communication devices to call for help during emergencies. The hospital had written a workplace violence prevention program but never actually put it into practice. Staffing levels were insufficient during high-risk times like patient admissions and behavioral emergencies. No one was assigned specifically to security. And after violent incidents...
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