Lawsuit Bankrupts Brain Surgeon

I recently heard a story from a friend that his neurosurgeon brother in law had lost a medical malpractice suit and the jury had awarded $ 18 million to the plaintiff. This neurosurgeon had performed back surgery and the plaintiff had developed foot drop ( a common and generally non-disabling complication of back surgery in which one foot does not lift fully while walking and therefore drags. As a work-around, one can wear a device that keeps the foot supported while walking).

Certainly, it was an unintended and untoward outcome and we need to have reasonable checks and balances to ensure patient safety. Thus, this plaintiff should have been owed some retribution for the mishap. But he was claiming that his quality of life was so significantly altered, that he was owed 18 million dollars!

And he found a smart, charismatic and convincing trial lawyer to fight on his behalf. This lawyer was a great orator and an ace debater. He succeeded in convincing the jury by using all the weapons in his command.

The neurosurgeon was devastated (his malpractice insurance would cap out and certainly not cover such a ridiculous amount) and he was then on his own! He would never earn 18 million dollars even if he gave them every penny he earned till he was 118 years old!!

We hear about hospital bills bankrupting people all the time. What about trial lawyers? And the real victim here is a brain surgeon--literally!!

According to recent reports:
Obama's latest proposal "incorporates the best ideas from Democrats and Republicans, including some of the ideas that Republicans offered during the health care summit, like funding state grants on medical malpractice reform," Obama said this week.
The president agrees with medical profession that defensive medicine, doctors ordering unnecessary tests to protect themselves, is pushing up the cost of health care.
Obama is only proposing to give the states $25 million for planning grants and demonstration projects, not national reform.

If the president ever shows some genuine interest in real tort reform--which will require a significant change in his alignment with the trial attorney lobby; that will be the change I can believe in!

Otherwise, I am starting to think it was just the change in my pocket that he was talking about all along!