Can words have real consequences? A local man lost his medical care after facility claimed he threatened them

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - A few words. That’s all it took for a local man to be removed from receiving life-saving medical treatment. But exactly what he said matters. Was it a threat? Or something less harmful? And should he be punished for it—with his life?

Eighty-one-year-old Gene Pelloquin spends a lot of time alone. When not on the porch, he’s slowly making his way to his car, sliding in behind the wheel to drive himself to the ER, all to sit there alone again and wait—not for an emergency, but for a routine procedure twice a week.

“They put two needles in your arm. They draw blood and circulate it through the machine to clean it,” he said.

For the past 10 years, three days a week, Gene has been treating his end-stage renal disease at a Davita dialysis center in Creve Coeur. That is, until recently. A letter from December stated he “will no longer be able to seek treatment there,” citing his words as a direct threat to the health and safety of people at the facility.

Escalating disputes, he said, with a worker had angered him. Did he mention a gun? Yes, he said he prayed he didn’t bring one in. He insists he never meant to harm anyone.

“Check my record. I’m 81 years old. There hasn’t even been a ticket. They can check all that. I ain’t got no kind of record,” he said.

But with the threat now on his record, Gene can no longer get care at any DaVita location.

His daughter says that with it in his medical records, other companies are rejecting him, too.

“Lord, what has happened? You know? Because it’s like, well, you know, what are you going to do? You know that with dialysis, especially if you have to have it, without it,” said Wanda Pelloquin.

Though he’d never hurt anyone, she says she’s taken his gun away as a precaution. Emergency room staff say he’s not presenting imminent danger to himself or to others.

While police were called after he left, Gene was not charged for the incident. When contacted by an officer, the report says he denied saying what DaVita claimed he did.

“I don’t think that it’s fair to cut someone off completely, knowing that that’s the only way they are staying alive,” Wanda said.

Unable to comment on his case specifically, in a statement, a DaVita spokesperson wrote to First Alert 4 Investigates:

“Ensuring the safety of our patients and teammates is a responsibility we take very seriously. If a patient threatens violence, we work closely with the patient’s entire care team, including their outside physician, to determine the best course of action.”

Regretting what he did say, Gene said the punishment is too severe.

“They’re killing me. Legally. If I can’t get treatment, if you don’t get treatment for three or four weeks, you’re dead,” he said.

“This is a major problem, and it’s a national problem. And I think it’s very, very little understood,” said Tom Mueller. He’s the author of a book specific to this issue.

An issue called involuntary discharge.

Federal law allows dialysis facilities to refuse treatment if they have, “determined that the patient’s behavior is disruptive and abusive to the extent that the delivery of care to the patient or the ability of the facility to operate effectively is seriously impaired.”

“In many cases, I was able to determine that those accusations were false,” Mueller said.

While he says there should be due process and chances to appeal, regulators, he said, are often understaffed or ill-equipped to handle the cases.

“I think the foxes are guarding the henhouse here. That’s my opinion,” he said.

Missouri health officials have flagged providers 11 times since October 2018 for violating involuntary discharge procedures.

“I’ve spoken with a lot of patients who are in that kind of limbo state. And, you know, most of them have died since this book was published,” Mueller said.

While he acknowledges facilities must be safe, he, like others, believes involuntary discharges should only be an option of last resort.

“I don’t know the specifics of this case. But I do know that it fits a general pattern,” he said.

“Words matter, and organizations and companies have to take it seriously,” said Michele Vining, a licensed professional counselor with a background in criminal justice.

“The law enforcement side of me was like, oh, we can’t do that. Companies, hospitals, schools, everyone has had to put protocols in place because of the things that have been happening in our society,” she said.

Words, whether on social media or elsewhere, have in fact turned into action time and again. And even words alone can be considered criminal, resulting in charges for what’s called terroristic threats.

The Missouri courts, in recent years, have seen an increase in those cases, to nearly 200 in 2023.

“We are human beings. We have thoughts that come into our minds. We get aggravated, we get angry, we get to be that. Pause. Think before you speak,” she said.

Vining says patients who are chronically ill can feel intense emotions.

“Think about the sickest you’ve ever been. You’re not on top of your game. You simply are not,” she said.

Which is why support, she says, is critical.

“I encourage anyone who is having any kind of health crisis to reach out,” Vining said.

Gene is remorseful but adamant—he says he never intended to act.

DaVita says: “Cases like this are extremely rare and involve fewer than 0.001% of our patients each year.”

Still, his words carry real consequences. Instead of getting dialysis three times a week in a center, he’ll wait hours on end in the ER, going less often than needed and starting, Wanda says, to decline.

“So it’s kind of scary to think that you’re going to lose a parent,” said Wanda.

Wondering as he leaves the hospital: Will he pay for what he said with his life?

“Let me get back into the regular facility is all I want and let me go live the few years I got left,” Pelloquin said.

And doctors tell us that patients who get dialysis in a hospital setting, instead of an outpatient center, have a shorter life expectancy. And then, of course, the cost of emergency services is paid by the taxpayer in his case.

As far as next steps, experts say it’s often murky to whom you can turn to appeal a decision like this.

Click here for resources from St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute.

It is an issue we will continue to track.

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