Health Highlights: Aug. 7, 2014

Health Highlights: Aug. 7, 2014

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Injured Alzheimer’s Caregivers Can’t Sue Patients: Court

Alzheimer’s disease patients are not liable for injuries they may inflict on paid in-home caregivers, the California Supreme Court ruled in a 5-2 decision.

The case involved a home health aid who was injured while trying to restrain a client, the Associated Press reported.

In Monday’s ruling, the court said people hired to care for Alzheimer’s patients should know that agitation and physical aggression are common in the later stages of the disease. Therefore, it would be inappropriate to permit caregivers who are injured by clients to sue their employers.

“It is a settled principle that those hired to manage a hazardous condition may not sue their clients for injuries caused by the very risks they were retained to confront,” Justice Carole Corrigan wrote for the majority, the AP reported.