Family keeping up fight against Indiana malpractice cap
An Evansville couple is keeping up a decadelong legal fight over their claims of medical malpractice in their daughter's birth that left her a quadriplegic and unable to speak.
Medical malpractice
Articles
Talks continue toward compromise med-mal reform deal
With medical errors on the rise in Indiana and many states ruling caps on malpractice damages unconstitutional, plaintiff and defense lawyers and state officials continued to negotiate behind the scenes toward compromise legislation that could increase Indiana’s $1.25 million cap on medical malpractice awards.
Steele: Deal close on medical malpractice reform bill
Plaintiff and defense lawyers and state officials are close to an agreement on legislation to reform Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act, a key state senator said Tuesday.
Ruling in favor of doctors in med mal case upheld
The trial court properly tendered a jury instruction in a medical malpractice case that advised the jury that physicians are not liable for an error in diagnosis or treatment when exercising reasonable care, the Indiana Court of Appeals held Thursday.
The waiting game delays medical malpractice claims going to court
Lawmakers recently received conflicting diagnoses for review panels that evaluate medical malpractice claims. Some see them as broken, while others say they represent an ideal system that just needs some TLC.
Hospital group favors raising limit on medical malpractice damages
Proposals to increase the state-imposed $1.25 million cap on damages in medical malpractice cases have some unlikely supporters: Indiana hospitals.
COA reiterates Indiana has no private right of action in child abuse cases
Despite a mother’s assertion that she was actually filing a medical malpractice complaint, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled her complaint was a private right of action for failure to report child abuse, which is not recognized in Indiana.
Panel sets hearing on medical malpractice caps
A General Assembly panel this week will study whether caps on damages in Indiana’s medical malpractice statute should be changed.
Committee plans medical malpractice checkup
Whether Indiana should allow Hoosiers to recover more than $1.25 million in medical malpractice lawsuits is one of the key questions lawmakers will be exploring next month. Some lawyers who represent plaintiffs and defendants in such cases say it’s probably time the cap on damages was raised.
Cook deluged by blood-clot filter lawsuits
Patients from around the country have filed 100 lawsuits against Bloomington-based Cook, alleging that some of its blood-clot filters have broken apart, moved or poked through the blood vessel where they are implanted, the inferior vena cava, which brings blood from the lower body back to the heart.
COA: Declaratory judgment wrongly denied in malpractice case
A trial court wrongly denied a plaintiff’s motion for a declaratory judgment arising from an inability to select a panelist to review a malpractice dispute on behalf of a woman who died after a stroke.
Justices reinstate med-mal suit against doctor in stillbirth
The Indiana Supreme Court reinstated a medical malpractice case against a Richmond doctor accused of failing to meet the standard of care in examining a pregnant woman whose child subsequently was stillborn.
Judge concerned about doctor’s contradictory affidavit
An Indiana Court of Appeals judge found it troubling that a member of a medical review panel that unanimously found defendants breached their duty of care to a patient could later issue an affidavit in which he changed his mind relating to a doctor accused of medical malpractice.
Divided Supreme Court declines to take med mal case
The Indiana Supreme Court by a vote of 3-2 decided this week to not take the case of a man who sued for medical malpractice those who treated his now-deceased wife. The lower court and Court of Appeals found no existence of a physician-patient relationship between the on-call hospital specialist and the wife, the issue that caused two justices to dissent.
Judgment for Planned Parenthood stands, but not for minor’s ID provider
A woman who gave her son’s 17-year-old girlfriend another person's ID and posed as her mother to help her obtain an abortion was not properly dismissed from a lawsuit brought by the pregnant girl’s mother, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Friday. Summary judgment in favor of Planned Parenthood of Indiana was proper, the court held.
Woman may pursue negligence claim against pharmacist
The Indiana Court of Appeals sidestepped the question of whether a previous decision is valid when determining that a woman who brought a medical malpractice claim against a hospital can pursue a negligence claim against the hospital’s pharmacist. The plaintiff did not present that negligence claim before the medical review panel.
Medical malpractice bill killed in Senate
A proposal to allow clear medical malpractice claims to go directly to court rather than through medical review panels was defeated Monday in the Indiana Senate.
COA affirms denial of plaintiff’s request for deposition fee reimbursement
A doctor named as a defendant in a malpractice lawsuit was not required to pay more than $2,000 toward the deposition fees of the plaintiff’s expert, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.
Appeals panel reinstates med-mal case
A trial court erred in granting summary judgment to a hospital and a doctor who performed a hysterectomy during which an arm board became unattached. After the patient’s arm dangled for much of the surgery, she was diagnosed with nerve damage in her arm.
Changes being considered for medical malpractice claims
More medical malpractice cases could be filed directly in state trial courts without first having to go through the exhaustive and mandatory medical review process under legislation pending in the Indiana Senate. A proposal in the Indiana House of Representatives aims to raise the caps on damages and insurer liability.