Wisconsin Makes Threats Against Healthcare Workers a Felony

Wisconsin Makes Threats Against Healthcare Workers a Felony Offenders could go to prison for 6 years, but is that enough to prevent harassment and violence? Sophie Putka medpagetoday

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers (D) signed a bill into law on Wednesday that makes threatening a healthcare worker a felony.

Under the amended law, threats against a healthcare provider will be similar to other "special circumstance" batteries, which involve actual bodily harm and are punished more severely when the victim or perpetrator has a particular professional status. In Wisconsin, for example, battery against a firefighter or juror has more serious consequences, as do batteries perpetrated by people in prison or jail.

On Tuesday, Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) signed a bill into law, which will also punish people who threaten violence against healthcare workers, though this would be considered a misdemeanor, not a felony. While Maryland and New Jersey have introduced legislation targeting threats (not just violence) against healthcare providers, Wisconsin's law is the first of its kind to make a threat a felony.

Since the start of the pandemic, many healthcare workers have been harassed and attacked on the job, and professional groups and unions have been asking for more protection at work. Nurses and other frontline workers are often the targets of such violence, but some have said that making threats a felony is not enough to prevent workplace violence. ...