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Hundreds demand action from state legislators over hepatitis scare

March 25, 2008 11:42 AM CDT

Hundreds of people packed into a Las Vegas hearing room Monday night to share their concerns over the Hepatitis C scare in Southern Nevada. More than a dozen others joined the meeting via teleconference from Carson City.

Members of the public addressed the legislative committee on health care and Governor Jim Gibbons who joined the meeting on the phone from Carson City. Many demanded action, with some of them requesting that the doctors and nurses accused in the health scare be arrested and others asking for the Governor to be recalled.

Many of those who spoke said they were treated at one of the 50 surgical centers now under investigation. Some say they are still waiting for test results to see if they've contracted Hepatitis C or HIV. Others say they already know their fate.

"Today, I just got the results for me and my wife and one of us is positive," one speaker said.

The speakers questioned the actions of the doctors and nurses who put their health in jeopardy.

One person said, "These guys have committed crimes against 40,000 people that we know of."

Another said "We're supposed to look up to these people and they're ripping us off."

The legislative committee says it will consider all the comments made at Monday's public hearing. They will decide whether to mandate tougher and more frequent inspections of Nevada's medical centers. The committee will hold its next meeting in April.