Friday, April 4, 2014
Med Mal Allegation: Hospital Froze Woman to Death
A med mal filing in California accuses a hospital of negligently placing a live patient in a morgue freezer and freezing her to death. Originally, the family sued for mishandling of a corpse, an exception to limitations on negligent infliction of emotional distress. New evidence, however, caused the family to sue for wrongful dealth. The case was originally dismissed, but was reinstated by an appellate court. The hospital expressed remorse, but does not comment on pending cases. CNN has the story (video).
--CJR
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/tortsprof/2014/04/med-mal-allegation-hospital-froze-woman-to-death.html
Unfortunately, due to the limitations on general damages in medical negligence claims, the family, if they prevail, will be entitled to a maximum recovery of $250,000. This leads medical malpractice carriers in California to put the "settlement value" on these claims even lower.
Posted by: Steven Sweat _ Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney | Apr 7, 2014 6:57:34 PM