A measure that would dole out nearly $457,000 in state funds to pay legal fees for a doctor who was accused of killing patients stranded at a New Orleans hospital after Hurricane Katrina is one step from final legislative passage.
The dollars would be divided, with about $145,000 going to the Dr. Anna Pou Defense Fund and the other $312,000 going to the LSU Healthcare Network for reimbursement of legal costs, under the bill (House Bill 341) approved by the Senate Finance Committee.
The House already has approved the bill, which heads to the full Senate for debate.
Rep. Patrick Connick, R-Marrero, said Pou was asking for a partial reimbursement of her legal expenses, which he said top $700,000 and counting. Pou appeared in the committee for discussion of the bill.
Former Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti had Pou arrested for allegedly killing patients at Memorial Medical Center after Katrina struck in 2005. Pou was never indicted and denied the accusations. The charges have since been expunged.
Several lawmakers on the committee apologized for the accusations against Pou. Senate President Joel Chaisson, D-Destrehan, spoke in favor of the bill, calling Pou a hero.
“What happened to her should never happen to anyone,” Chaisson said. “This is just a small measure through which we can say we’re sorry to Dr. Pou.”
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