Florida Supreme Court Upholds $10.3 Million Medical Malpractice Award

The widow of a man who suffered a heart attack and died when his Palms West Hospital doctor failed to give him the anti-clotting drug Retavase will receive the $10.3 million previously awarded, according to a ruling by the Florida Supreme Court this week.  The award amount was being disputed due to the $1 million medical malpractice cap put in place in Florida months after the man’s death.

The court referred to a decision rendered in July when it determined the award cap could not be applied retroactively.  The man died in 2003, however, the lawsuit was not filed until 2005.  The defense argued the time of lawsuit should be used and thus, the cap limits should apply.

The award amount had also been upheld by the Fourth District Court of Appeal in 2009 saying, “It is therefore well settled that retrospective laws are generally unjust.” […]

Pennsylvania Hospital to Pay $2.2 Million in Birth Injury Lawsuit

UPMC Hamot and several of its doctors have settled a lawsuit filed in 2008 against a woman alleging a “botched” delivery resulted in cerebral palsy and other medical problems for her child.  The childbirth was in 1998.

The woman went to the hospital in February 1998, after going into labor two months prematurely.  The lawsuit claims the medical staff failed to respond appropriately to indications that the fetus was in distress.  Neither the hospital nor the doctors admitted any wrongdoing.

The child will not be able to live independently and suffers from cognitive impairment, seizures and motor and language delay.

According to The Erie Times-News, the $2.2 million will be placed in a special-needs trust and paid out over time to cover the costs of the child’s medical care over her lifetime.
About Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Munley Law is a Pennsylvania accident and injury law firm that represents car accident victims and their families throughout the state of Pennsylvania and the Northeast, […]

Family of Injured Kentucky Nursing Home Patient to Receive $1 Million Settlement

According to an article in the Lexington-Herald Leader, a Fayette, Kentucky Circuit Court jury awarded the family of a nursing home patient $1 million for negligence resulting from a January 2009 incident.  The Alzheimer’s patient, in her late 80s, at Lexington’s Cambridge Place Nursing Home suffered extensive injuries in a fall after she went missing from her room.

The lawsuit alleged the woman suffered broken bones in her face, bleeding in her brain, and a serious cut on her forehead, and various other injuries, after she fell from her Merry Walker, a walker that includes a seat, and was later found severely injured in an equipment storage room.

The case was previously reviewed by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the attorney general’s office. An adult-protection worker found that the woman was a “victim of caretaker neglect and had been exposed to an extreme safety risk.”  […]

California Hospital Settled Wrongful Death Lawsuit for $250,000

Hospital gives woman lethal dose of blood thinning medication in wrongful death case

Community Regional Medical Center of Fresno, CA settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed brought against them by a family after their mother died.  The woman mistakenly received an excessive dose of a blood-thinning medication.  The settlement amount of $250,000 is the cap on the amount available in California.

The woman entered the hospital in December 2010 complaining of pain and numbness in her left arm.  She was then admitted to the hospital and underwent routine surgery.  She later died, and her death certificate listed Heparin toxicity “as a significant condition contributing to death.”  Her medical records showed she was given 50 times the ordered amount of the blood thinner.

The hospital released a statement saying, “The settlement is a fair one. And along the way, we’ve instituted improved safeguards on medications.” […]

Ohio Family Awarded $4.2 Million in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

The family of an Ohio woman who died of a heart attack after being treated at Wheeling Hospital (WV) in 2009 has been awarded $4.2 million by an Ohio County jury.  The lawsuit was filed against Dr. Stephen Heirendt and EMPG of West Virginia, Inc.

The woman went to Wheeling Hospital, complaining of chest pains, where she was treated by Heirendt.  The suit claimed that the doctor did not follow appropriate standards of care, ultimately leading to her heart attack 11 days later.  The woman was 43-years-old.

The family was awarded $1.5 million for sorrow and mental anguish, $1.5 million for loss of services, $300,000 for loss of household services and $872,000 in lost wages.

If you or a loved one has been harmed by a form of medical negligence, you may have a medical malpractice claim.  […]