Joan Rivers' Clinic Has a Plan to Stay Open
— -- The clinic on the Upper East Side where Joan Rivers went into cardiac arrest has agreed to take corrective steps to maintain its accreditation with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
CMS has confirmed to ABC News the plan of action is acceptable and if Yorkville Endoscopy passes an unannounced inspection in the coming days it will not lose its certification January 7.
Joan Rivers went into cardiac arrest after undergoing a procedure at the Manhattan medical clinic and died a few days later. The New York State Health Department found Yorkville deficient in four categories during a routine investigation a few days later. Then, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found as part of their own investigation that staff members photographed Rivers with a cell phone while she was sedated, improperly documented how much of the sedative propofol was used, and "failed to identify deteriorating vital signs and provide timely intervention during the procedure."
"The Center has been working collaboratively with appropriate government regulatory agencies to ensure complete compliance with all regulations," a spokesperson for the clinic told ABC News in a statement at the time. "The Center remains open and will continue to collaborate with all accreditation and government regulatory agencies to ensure quality care."
As part of their new plan, Yorkville Endoscopy has agreed to make sure “all individuals in the clinical areas have appropriate name tags” after the unauthorized presence of Dr. Gwen Korovin when Rivers was sedated. The clinic agreed to follow appropriate surgical protocols that were not followed in the case of Rivers and document a “photo/filming policy.” The clinic also outlined new guidelines for the use of propofol.
Rivers' daughter Melissa Rivers has hired a personal injury law firm to lay the groundwork for a lawsuit against Yorkville.
