Were you or a family member diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease after receiving care at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico? Your hospital dates, symptoms, and laboratory results may help determine whether a hospital exposure was involved. Patients who developed pneumonia during a September 2026 stay or after discharge may have important information to share.
Pritzker Hageman’s Legionnaires’ disease lawyers would like to hear from patients and families dealing with a serious illness after care at Presbyterian. If the illness required intensive care, breathing support, or rehabilitation, or resulted in a death, call 1-888-377-8900, text 612-261-0856, or request a free consultation. You do not need to know where the exposure happened before contacting us.
What was reported about Legionella at Presbyterian in September 2026
In an early September report by KRQE, republished by AOL, Presbyterian Healthcare Services said a patient who had received care at Presbyterian Hospital tested positive for Legionella infection. Environmental testing then detected the bacteria in a small number of hospital locations.
Presbyterian said it had taken safety precautions, was carrying out remediation, and was working with the New Mexico Department of Health to determine whether the environmental findings were connected to the patient’s infection.
At that time, the hospital said no additional associated cases had been identified, it had not found evidence of a hospital-wide water supply problem, and it considered the risk low based on the testing and precautions then in place.
Those statements describe the early September findings. While they do not establish whether later infections occurred or where any later infection originated, and finding Legionella in a hospital also does not, by itself, prove that the hospital caused a particular patient’s illness, our investigations lead us to believe there may be multiple later cases that could be associated with Presbyterian Hospital.
Were you or a loved one sickened by Legionnaires’ Disease?
Why illness during a hospital stay or after discharge matters
According to the CDC’s information about Legionnaires’ disease, symptoms usually begin 2 to 14 days after exposure, although they can appear later. A person exposed during a hospital stay may therefore become sick while hospitalized or after returning home or transferring to rehabilitation.
If you developed pneumonia or received a positive Legionella test after care at Presbyterian, write down your admission and discharge dates and the date symptoms first appeared. Include the rooms or units you stayed in, if known, and any other healthcare facilities, hotels, or places you visited before becoming ill.
The CDC’s healthcare-associated case definitions recognize that an infection may warrant investigation even when a person spent only part of the 14 days before symptoms in a healthcare facility. These surveillance categories help investigators organize cases. They do not decide legal responsibility or prove where an individual infection began.
How Legionella can spread in a hospital
Legionnaires’ disease is a serious form of pneumonia. The CDC explains how Legionella spreads: people usually become infected by breathing in tiny water droplets containing the bacteria. Building plumbing, showers, faucets, and other systems that use water can provide opportunities for exposure if the bacteria grow and spread.
Less commonly, contaminated drinking water can enter the lungs when a person accidentally inhales it while swallowing, a process called aspiration. Simply drinking water is not the usual route of infection. In general, Legionnaires’ disease does not spread from person to person.
People age 50 or older, current or former smokers, and people with chronic lung disease or weakened immune systems are among those at increased risk. These risk factors do not show where an individual was exposed. Identifying a specific source requires evidence.
Pneumonia may require specific Legionella testing
Legionnaires’ disease symptoms can include fever, cough, shortness of breath, headaches, and muscle aches. Confusion, nausea, or diarrhea can also occur. Seek prompt medical care for symptoms of pneumonia, and emergency care for severe trouble breathing.
Tell your treating clinician about your hospital stay and any known Legionella concerns. The CDC’s clinical guidance recommends considering Legionella testing for pneumonia in several circumstances, including severe illness requiring intensive care, a recent overnight healthcare stay, or a connection to a setting with known Legionella concerns. Symptoms and chest imaging alone cannot distinguish this infection from other causes of pneumonia.
The CDC recommends a urine antigen test paired with testing of a lower respiratory sample, such as sputum, using culture or a molecular method. The usual urine test detects only one type of Legionella, so a negative result does not exclude every Legionella infection. Your clinician should decide which tests and treatment are appropriate. Treatment should not be delayed while waiting to collect specimens.
If you have already been discharged, ask whether your records include a Legionella test and what the result showed. A diagnosis made at a different hospital can still be relevant to reviewing an earlier exposure. Keep a copy of the actual laboratory report, not just a general diagnosis of pneumonia.
Records to preserve after a serious illness
Our guide to what to do after a Legionnaires’ disease diagnosis explains the importance of preserving your history and records. For an illness following hospital care, useful information includes:
- Admission, discharge, and transfer records, including dates and room or unit information.
- Legionella laboratory reports, pneumonia diagnoses, imaging reports, and treatment records.
- A timeline of the first symptoms, intensive care, breathing support, and rehabilitation.
- Letters or messages about possible exposure, water precautions, or follow-up testing.
- Medical bills, missed work, and records of continuing care or assistance you need.
Ask whether your clinician or laboratory reported the infection to public health officials. You can also contact the New Mexico Department of Health’s reporting and surveillance service at 1-833-796-8773 to share a diagnosis and possible exposure history. Reporting can help officials recognize related illnesses; it does not establish that a particular facility caused them.
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How a possible hospital exposure is investigated
Our review of a potential hospital Legionnaires’ disease claim examines more than the fact that someone was hospitalized. Relevant evidence can include the confirmed diagnosis, where the patient spent time before symptoms, environmental test results, and the timing and location of other illnesses. Other possible exposure sources must also be considered.
The CDC’s guidance on finding additional healthcare-associated cases describes reviewing medical charts and laboratory records, including records involving recently discharged patients. That is why a diagnosis made after discharge may matter even if it was not included in an early public announcement.
A legal investigation may also examine water management plans, maintenance and testing records, and how a facility responded to positive results. The CDC recommends comprehensive water management programs for healthcare facilities to reduce Legionella risk. A positive water test is a reason to investigate, not an automatic finding of negligence.
Determining liability for Legionnaires’ disease requires evidence connecting an exposure, an illness, and a responsible party’s conduct. If the evidence supports a claim, compensation may address medical expenses, lost income, and other harm. Families who lost a loved one can ask about a potential Legionnaires’ disease wrongful death claim. Available claims and recovery depend on the facts and applicable law.
Questions from patients and families
No. Timing can help identify possible exposures, but it must be evaluated with the diagnosis, environmental evidence, and other places you spent time. A hospital may also treat someone who acquired Legionnaires’ disease elsewhere.
Yes. You can request a review of your own illness without knowing other patients’ identities or diagnoses. The investigation can assess whether other cases or public health findings support a connection.
That timing does not rule out an earlier hospital exposure. Save records from each facility and tell your clinician and attorney where you received care before symptoms began. The full timeline matters.
Talk with a Legionnaires’ disease lawyer about your illness
If you or a loved one suffered a serious Legionella infection after receiving care at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, we can review what happened and explain what evidence may be needed. Tell us when you were there, when symptoms began, and where the infection was diagnosed.
Call Pritzker Hageman at 1-888-377-8900, text 612-261-0856, or fill out a quick confidential request for a free consultation. Our Legionnaires’ disease compensation guide explains the kinds of losses a supported claim may address.
Additional Information About Legionnaires’ Disease
- Legionnaires’ Disease Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Where Does Legionnaires’ Disease Come From?
- Legionnaires’ Disease: Symptoms and Diagnosis
- What to do if You Contract Legionnaires’ Disease
- Legionnaires’ Disease: Determining Liability
- Legionnaires’ Disease: Lawsuits and Compensation
- Legionnaires’ Disease: Wrongful Death Cases
- Finding a Legionnaires’ Disease Lawyer
- Filing a Legionnaires’ Disease Lawsuit
- The Importance of Water Management Plans
We have obtained 100+ separate verdicts and settlements greater than $1 million:
We obtained this result on behalf of three people sickened in a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak at a resort hotel.
We obtained this settlement on behalf of six people impacted by a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak linked to a hotel hot tub.
Our client contracted Legionnaires’ disease at a hotel and was hospitalized for eight weeks.
We obtained this settlement on behalf of the family of a woman who died after contracting Legionnaires’ Disease.
We obtained this result on behalf of clients who contracted Legionnaires’ disease from a hotel HVAC cooling tower.
On behalf of a client sicked from contaminated water at a senior care facility.
Our client contracted Legionnaires’ disease at a hotel and was hospitalized for over a month.
On behalf of a women hospitalized for over two months from a contaminated hotel hot tub in Myrtle Beach.
We obtained this settlement for a woman sickened with Legionnaires’ disease after being exposed in a hotel hot tub.
We obtained this settlement for the family of a 52-year old man who died of Legionnaires’ disease linked to a hotel.
We collected this on behalf of a client who contracted Legionnaires’ disease from contaminated water at a hotel.
We recovered this settlement for the family of a 50-year old man who died of Legionnaires’ disease after being exposed to legionella bacteria at a hotel.
Collected on behalf of the family of a man who died as a result of Legionnaires’ Disease contracted while staying at a Wisconsin resort.
We obtained this on behalf of a man hospitalized after Legionella bacteria exposure at a hotel.
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