Imposing a duty on mental health providers to warn unnamed “neighbors” about a patient’s vague threats of violence would be “utterly untenable” and could “destroy” generally accepted principles about patient privacy and the doctor-patient relationship, an attorney representing a hospital argued Wednesday before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

The case stemmed from allegations that mental health providers failed to warn about a patient who had made numerous threats against unnamed “neighbors.” The family of a woman ultimately killed by the patient argued the providers had a duty to warn at least those on the patient’s floor about the threat.

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