'We need to really look at this.' Lawmaker considers hospital safety bill after deadly crash

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A Texas state senator wants to make hospitals safer following a deadly crash inside the emergency room lobby at St. David's North Austin Medical Center in February and is now considering filing a bill after a KXAN investigation revealed these types of accidents are not uncommon.

"We'll sit down with the hospitals and kind of get their take on exactly how we go about tackling and resolving this particular problem," said State Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas. "I'm committed to it."

It's been nearly eight months to the day since a drunk driver drove her car into the Austin ER, killing herself and seriously injuring five people, including all four members of the Bernard family. At the Texas Capitol, West had a message.

"We re-emphasize to the Bernard family: What happened to you is a tragedy and it shouldn't happen again in the state of Texas," West said. "And, I'm going to do everything I can in my power to make sure it doesn't happen again."

The Dallas Democrat is taking notice of KXAN's investigations, which found more than 300 similar crashes across the country in the past decade -- a number West called surprising and "alarming."

"So, all of that's taken into consideration," he said.

Earlier this year, KXAN traveled to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute near College Station to see how crash-rated security barriers, called bollards, can stop a speeding car. After the Austin crash and during our investigation, St. David's installed a dozen bollards. While experts say these devices can save lives, KXAN found no local, state or federal requirement for critical infrastructure, like hospitals, to have them -- even though medical facilities carry extra risk, with patients in distress driving right up to the entrance.

"Do you think hospitals should be required to install crash-rated security bollards?" KXAN investigative reporter Matt Grant asked West.

"Given what happened to the Bernard family," West said, "we need to really look at this particular issue."

The Austin City Council is also looking into this issue. An ordinance requiring crash-rated bollards at new hospitals, stand-alone emergency rooms and urgent care clinics is being finalized. In July, after watching KXAN's investigation, Councilmember Mackenzie Kelly introduced a resolution, to authorize the drafting of the ordinance, which will go back to the council for a vote on Dec. 12.

"That's amazing," Kelly said in a text message when told about the potential for a statewide bollard bill.

KXAN's investigation also sparked a bollard review at all federal facilities in the southwest. In June, Congressman Lloyd Doggett's office asked the General Services Administration to look into this following our reporting. That review is still ongoing.

West will make a decision on whether to file legislation to create a uniform statewide bollard standard after speaking with hospital officials, he said. He also wants to research what other states have done.

KXAN checked and previously found California updated its law in 2022 to allow insurance company discounts for businesses that install bollards.

Over the past decade, the Storefront Safety Council, which tracks crashes, worked to help pass local ordinances requiring crash-rated “vehicle impact protection devices,” like bollards, in business parking lots in at least five cities and counties. Three were sparked by deadly crashes:

• A 6-year-old was killed at a dentist’s office in Midfield, Alabama in 2017
• A 73-year-old was killed at an ice cream shop in Artesia, California in 2014
• A 4-year-old was killed at a daycare center in Orange County, Florida in 2014

West also wants to meet with the Bernard family during the legislative session. He said what happened to them should concern all lawmakers.

"You do a cost-benefit analysis: Life over a few dollars," West said. "And, you know where I'm coming down on that. I think life is more important than a few dollars."