OT...........Are there any lawyers in the house?????
Ok.......I will try to get right to the point, however this has been going on for over a year.
We have been dealing with bedbugs in our apartment and our landlord hasn't done much about it. (this situation has been taken care of in court.)
I have lymphedema in both of my legs. I started treatment for it last August. My first day of treatment, the lymph specialist noticed all of the bites on my legs. I told her of the bedbug problem. She left the room, then came back and said her office manager said I can't come back for treatment until the bugs have been exterminated, and she wants a letter from the exterminator saying it has been done. (like I said, getting the landlord to hire an exterminator was like pulling teeth without Novocaine!) She notified my primary care doctor, whose office manager said the same thing, that due to the bugs, I cannot be seen in the office to prevent the possibility of bringing the bugs with me and passing them along to other patients as well as staff members.
Although I can completely understand their reasons, I also have medical needs. Where can I go for them? I can't always go to my local hospital's ER. for everything! Since I had to stop my lymphedema treatment, my legs and weight have ballooned to over 400 lbs and I am getting a wheelchair because I can barely walk. If I had been getting my treatment, I wouldn't be so big.
My lawyer I had used for fighting my landlord, (I stopped paying rent and was being evicted) is only specialized in housing situations, bu he said that what my doctors were doing may be illegal. Due to the bugs, I haven't been allowed to see my doctor, and the last time I saw her was last August!
Can my doctor(s) refuse to treat me due to the bugs? As I mentioned, I have allot of medical needs, more so now due to my out of control lymphedema. I have been with this doctor for a few years and don't really wish to find another. Plus, what is to prevent this from happening with any future doctors?
Sorry for the long post. I am moving to a new apartment next month, (and trying my darnedest to not bring the little buggers with me!) but now I am struggling with eve worse health problems, thanks to me being refused for treatment.
Is refusing to medically treat me due to a bug infestation leagal? Thanks for any advice.
We have been dealing with bedbugs in our apartment and our landlord hasn't done much about it. (this situation has been taken care of in court.)
I have lymphedema in both of my legs. I started treatment for it last August. My first day of treatment, the lymph specialist noticed all of the bites on my legs. I told her of the bedbug problem. She left the room, then came back and said her office manager said I can't come back for treatment until the bugs have been exterminated, and she wants a letter from the exterminator saying it has been done. (like I said, getting the landlord to hire an exterminator was like pulling teeth without Novocaine!) She notified my primary care doctor, whose office manager said the same thing, that due to the bugs, I cannot be seen in the office to prevent the possibility of bringing the bugs with me and passing them along to other patients as well as staff members.
Although I can completely understand their reasons, I also have medical needs. Where can I go for them? I can't always go to my local hospital's ER. for everything! Since I had to stop my lymphedema treatment, my legs and weight have ballooned to over 400 lbs and I am getting a wheelchair because I can barely walk. If I had been getting my treatment, I wouldn't be so big.
My lawyer I had used for fighting my landlord, (I stopped paying rent and was being evicted) is only specialized in housing situations, bu he said that what my doctors were doing may be illegal. Due to the bugs, I haven't been allowed to see my doctor, and the last time I saw her was last August!
Can my doctor(s) refuse to treat me due to the bugs? As I mentioned, I have allot of medical needs, more so now due to my out of control lymphedema. I have been with this doctor for a few years and don't really wish to find another. Plus, what is to prevent this from happening with any future doctors?
Sorry for the long post. I am moving to a new apartment next month, (and trying my darnedest to not bring the little buggers with me!) but now I am struggling with eve worse health problems, thanks to me being refused for treatment.
Is refusing to medically treat me due to a bug infestation leagal? Thanks for any advice.
Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? I say, what difference does it make--I paid for a full glass,so either way I am getting jipped!!!
I am not trying to be mean Miss Kitty, but I read your post about this last time and you said something about not moving because no one would take all of your cats if I am not mistaken. Is that correct? If so, I must say you really need to put your health before your animals. I do understand the love you have for your cats, I have one (ironically her name is Miss Kitty). You cannot continue to live in those cir****tances. That is just nasty. I am itching just sitting here thinking about it. The legal ramifications of whether you doctor will or will not see you is the least of your worries at the moment. You need to find another place to live and then worry about the doctors. Good luck and God Bless!
S 254/C168/G150
"Patience is the companion of wisdom." St. Augustine
We found another apartment that says they will allow cats. (I didn't tell them how many. I abide in the "Don't ask, don't tell" method) We hope to be moving this coming weekend. We are leaving everything behind, except for expensive electronic stuff. I agree with you that these living conditions are completely nasty! And it's true that you can have a squeeky clean place and still have them. My place not be "squeeky" clean, but it is clean. I just can't wait to get out of here!
Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? I say, what difference does it make--I paid for a full glass,so either way I am getting jipped!!!
I'm not a lawyer, but was once in a situation that had me looking up landlord/tenant law. To refuse the landlord rent, you need to go through the courts and pay the rent in escrow. The court will collect the rent, but not give it to the landlord until the situation is rectified, and the landlord cannot evict you, because you are indeed paying rent. To do a standoff like you're mentioning may not look good against your rental history. Make sure this lawyer of yours is doing things the correct way.
Now, for your bedbugs, I'm not sure what rights they have to refuse you service. I'm sure that the ER cannot, or the health department, but you owe it to yourself to find a solution and fast. This shouldn't take so long that your health suffers as a result. If you cannot get it resolved, then get yourself removed from said apartment and start fresh, with or without the cats.
Now, for your bedbugs, I'm not sure what rights they have to refuse you service. I'm sure that the ER cannot, or the health department, but you owe it to yourself to find a solution and fast. This shouldn't take so long that your health suffers as a result. If you cannot get it resolved, then get yourself removed from said apartment and start fresh, with or without the cats.
Valerie
DS 2005
There is room on this earth for all of God's creatures..
next to the mashed potatoes
Yeah, that does make logical sence. I never looked at it that way. I hope to be moving out this weekend, leaving those nasty things behind me. Thanks for your post.
Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? I say, what difference does it make--I paid for a full glass,so either way I am getting jipped!!!
FleurDeLis
on 2/27/12 4:06 pm
on 2/27/12 4:06 pm
Landlord here. My heart sank when I read you stopped paying rent. MA is one of the most tenant friendly states in the US--unless you don't pay your rent. When you did that you took the law into your own hands. Judges really, really don't like that.
Eviction reporting services will pick that up and most big places and good landlords check court records looking for things like that. It will show up on your credit report as a judgement as well.
If you were in a single home in my jurisdiction it would be your responsibility to exterminate but in a multi-family the landlord has the obligation. It is like that in most places but not all.
Your chances of bringing the bugs with you is excellent. Plan on throwing out all of your upholstered furniture and anything with wood in it unless you can wrap it in air tight plastic bags and lay it in the sun (like in a hot car****il it gets over 130 degrees for a few hours. Our local homeless shelter opened up with beautiful wooden beds but once the bed bug**** they could not get rid of them until they got rid of the wooded headboards and went to metal. Landlords even get nervous when a tenant buys a new mattress. Most stores pick up the old ones and put the possibly infected old mattress right in with the new ones they are delivering.
You may have to start almost completely over again.
Put your mattresses and box springs in covers approved for this use. Make sure they do not get torn during your move. Making covers out of plastic yourself does not work. Never ever pick up anything from someone else's tree lawn or garbage. For the same reason, mark your discarded furniture as having bed bugs so someone doesn't see nice looking furniture that you discard and bring it home with them.
Exterminators will change in the garage when they get home and wash their clothes immediately in the hottes****er possible. A lot of tenants do not realize this means you have to turn the temperature gauge up on the water heater, not just use the ho****er setting on the washing machine.
Visit an exterminator who specializes in landlords for more information. (Hint: most of all exterminators business is with landlords.)
It also means you do not move things from an infected room to another room. Keep things in air tight zip lock bags. The tiniest hole is your enemy. There are special dish like things you can put your bed's legs in with fluid to drown the bugs. In the old days they used kerosene for this. Do not put the mattress on the floor or allow linens to touch the floor.
I got rid of them by using something our exterminator gave me. They cannot give you their strongest stuff or use it in an occupied space. I had to get the tenant out and spray every two weeks. All the carpets were steam cleaned professionally. You can't do that on your own because the bugs can feel the heat coming and get out of the way. Then all the cracks and seams in the walls and along the baseboards wre sealed and a light dusting of diatomeceous earth went into the walls and outlets as well as the carpets. Too much and the bugs see it and avoid it.
The only quick and effective way is to get a professional who has special heating equipment that can raise the temperature of your apartment high enough that it kills them all. Yoou cannot do this yourself. Problem is, if you do it now not only does it costs thousands to do it right, but there is nothing to stop them from coming back from next door. You may have them in your car as well and re-infect your home yourself. Some dogs are trained to sniff out the bugs but even they are not 100% perfect.
My exterminators best advice? Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum.
You can pick this up in a theatre seat, a motel, and they hitch a ride in the clothes and bedding manufactured overseas. Always wash anything as soon as you get it.
I find it hard to believe a physician could do this to you. Around here if they did that without referring you to another doctor it would be patient abandonment and it is unethical. At the very least the clinics of a major teaching hospital should be able to care for you.
You may think you got rid of them, but they can live a long time without a meal. Their life cycle is such that you could be bite free a few months, think you got rid of them, and then they are back.
There is no guarantee your new place won't have them. If it starts up again at your new place and your apartment seems to have more of them, and it only started after you moved in, they are going to know where they came from.
They only way to get rid of them for good is to close down the banquet and starve them out. That can take over a year.
One landlord I know swears that using pet flea collars around the unit works. It is supposed to contain an insecticide that works. He also uses diatomecious earth and has a license to do this. You could harm the cats doing that, which is another good reason to board them out while this is going on.
See if your renters insurance covers your losses for this. The tenant organizations in your area should also have s0ome good resources.
I hear you can still get DDT in Mexico. The only other chemical that works first time is illegal in the US. My state tried to get special permission to use it and the EPA said no.
Eviction reporting services will pick that up and most big places and good landlords check court records looking for things like that. It will show up on your credit report as a judgement as well.
If you were in a single home in my jurisdiction it would be your responsibility to exterminate but in a multi-family the landlord has the obligation. It is like that in most places but not all.
Your chances of bringing the bugs with you is excellent. Plan on throwing out all of your upholstered furniture and anything with wood in it unless you can wrap it in air tight plastic bags and lay it in the sun (like in a hot car****il it gets over 130 degrees for a few hours. Our local homeless shelter opened up with beautiful wooden beds but once the bed bug**** they could not get rid of them until they got rid of the wooded headboards and went to metal. Landlords even get nervous when a tenant buys a new mattress. Most stores pick up the old ones and put the possibly infected old mattress right in with the new ones they are delivering.
You may have to start almost completely over again.
Put your mattresses and box springs in covers approved for this use. Make sure they do not get torn during your move. Making covers out of plastic yourself does not work. Never ever pick up anything from someone else's tree lawn or garbage. For the same reason, mark your discarded furniture as having bed bugs so someone doesn't see nice looking furniture that you discard and bring it home with them.
Exterminators will change in the garage when they get home and wash their clothes immediately in the hottes****er possible. A lot of tenants do not realize this means you have to turn the temperature gauge up on the water heater, not just use the ho****er setting on the washing machine.
Visit an exterminator who specializes in landlords for more information. (Hint: most of all exterminators business is with landlords.)
It also means you do not move things from an infected room to another room. Keep things in air tight zip lock bags. The tiniest hole is your enemy. There are special dish like things you can put your bed's legs in with fluid to drown the bugs. In the old days they used kerosene for this. Do not put the mattress on the floor or allow linens to touch the floor.
I got rid of them by using something our exterminator gave me. They cannot give you their strongest stuff or use it in an occupied space. I had to get the tenant out and spray every two weeks. All the carpets were steam cleaned professionally. You can't do that on your own because the bugs can feel the heat coming and get out of the way. Then all the cracks and seams in the walls and along the baseboards wre sealed and a light dusting of diatomeceous earth went into the walls and outlets as well as the carpets. Too much and the bugs see it and avoid it.
The only quick and effective way is to get a professional who has special heating equipment that can raise the temperature of your apartment high enough that it kills them all. Yoou cannot do this yourself. Problem is, if you do it now not only does it costs thousands to do it right, but there is nothing to stop them from coming back from next door. You may have them in your car as well and re-infect your home yourself. Some dogs are trained to sniff out the bugs but even they are not 100% perfect.
My exterminators best advice? Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum.
You can pick this up in a theatre seat, a motel, and they hitch a ride in the clothes and bedding manufactured overseas. Always wash anything as soon as you get it.
I find it hard to believe a physician could do this to you. Around here if they did that without referring you to another doctor it would be patient abandonment and it is unethical. At the very least the clinics of a major teaching hospital should be able to care for you.
You may think you got rid of them, but they can live a long time without a meal. Their life cycle is such that you could be bite free a few months, think you got rid of them, and then they are back.
There is no guarantee your new place won't have them. If it starts up again at your new place and your apartment seems to have more of them, and it only started after you moved in, they are going to know where they came from.
They only way to get rid of them for good is to close down the banquet and starve them out. That can take over a year.
One landlord I know swears that using pet flea collars around the unit works. It is supposed to contain an insecticide that works. He also uses diatomecious earth and has a license to do this. You could harm the cats doing that, which is another good reason to board them out while this is going on.
See if your renters insurance covers your losses for this. The tenant organizations in your area should also have s0ome good resources.
I hear you can still get DDT in Mexico. The only other chemical that works first time is illegal in the US. My state tried to get special permission to use it and the EPA said no.
Thank you for some great advice. I can't believe these mattress stores that remove your old one puts it on the same truck as the new mattresses! That's so gross! Also, I would never use an old matress found on the curb or anything like that. That's just too nasty! I have, on a few occasions, taken book cases and coffee tables, but lesson learned--not anymore! I have been to court and the landlord just wants possession of the apartment and isn't too worried about the rent at this point. We aren't bringing any furniture with us. There is a local church near by that runs a thrift store/furniture shop who may be able to help us with the basics, like livingroom chairs, dressers, kitchen table, and maybe box springs. (no matresses though, unless they are brand new!)
Thanks again, and I will definately be using allot more care with not letting my bed linnens and/or curtains touch the floor and stuff.
Thanks again, and I will definately be using allot more care with not letting my bed linnens and/or curtains touch the floor and stuff.
Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? I say, what difference does it make--I paid for a full glass,so either way I am getting jipped!!!
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