Can airlines refuse to fly a dying passenger?

opinion

By David Burns

updated 1:52 p.m. ET July 9, 2008

Can an airline refuse to transport a dying passenger? That wasn’t just an academic question for Allegiant Air, which recently had to make a decision for a customer who wanted to fly from Bangor, Maine, to Orlando.

Terminal cancer patient Dennis Hill had been in Maine last month to say his final farewells to his family. While there, his health deteriorated, and doctors in Bangor recommended he fly back to Florida instead of driving.

Allegiant refused.

Can it do that? Yes, and here’s why.

If you have a disability, you should understand your rights about airlines refusing you transportation or requiring a personal care attendant before letting you board. There are legitimate cases when airlines can do so, as much as they may pull at our heartstrings.

Refusal of transportation and personal care attendants are two of the subjects outlined in the Air Carrier Access Act, and its implementing regulation, Part 382. Whether or not you think denying Hill was the right thing to do, these provisions exist to protect the rights of the customer with the disability, his or her safety, fellow customers, the crew and the airline.

We will never know what the basis was for the expert recommendations to Allegiant — Hill’s privacy is protected by HIPAA — but we have to assume it was valid.

I suspect many of you don’t know what MedLink is or what they do. MedLink is one of the most reputable medical advising services in the industry, and it is used by a large number of domestic and foreign airlines, including Allegiant.

From my former role in the airline industry, I have years of personal experience working directly with MedLink; in addition to working with airlines on issues such as Hill’s, MedLink physicians help guide airline personnel during in-flight medical situations to stabilize ill passengers and prevent emergency landings.

MedLink doctors typically know their stuff, and if they felt Mr. Hill was unable to travel, my experience tells me they probably made the right call.

Back to the subject at hand, there are five essentials outlined by the regulation pertaining to refusing transportation to an airline customer:

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1. An airline cannot refuse transportation just because a person’s disability results in appearance or involuntary behavior that might offend, annoy or inconvenience other passengers or crewmembers.

2. The airline cannot place limits on the number of disabled customers on a particular flight, although they can ask for advance notice for large groups traveling together.

3. Airline personnel can refuse to provide transportation on the basis of safety, or in a situation that would violate a Federal Aviation Administration regulation.

4. If a customer is refused transportation, the airline must follow-up with a written explanation within ten calendar days of the event.

5. Just because airline personnel are concerned that a customer with a disability will be unable to use inaccessible lavatories, or that he or she will need extensive personal assistance while in flight, that doesn’t give the airline the right to deny them transportation.

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