Jerry Bain and Wife Sue Bain, Plaintiffs/appellees v. Dr. Wayne Wells, Defendant, and National Medical Enterprises…

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals and entered summary judgment for the hospital defendants, holding that their policy of housing HIV-infected patients with non-infected patients without warning or consent complied with current health care standards and therefore was not outrageous conduct as a matter of law. The Court further held that Jerry Bain's negligent infliction of emotional distress claim failed because he offered no evidence of actual exposure to HIV or a medically recognized channel of transmission; under Carroll v. Sisters of Saint Francis, actual exposure is required to establish proximate cause in fear-of-AIDS claims and remains consistent with the general negligence approach adopted in Camper v. Minor. Absent actual exposure, public policy imposes no legal duty to protect against the irrational fear of contracting AIDS. No separate opinions were filed.