Medical Malpractice Damages Caps Harm Injured Patients

Caps on medical malpractice damages fail to protect the rights of the victims of physician negligence.

2012-11-21

November 21, 2012 (Press-News.org) Recently, some have made the argument that New Jersey is experiencing a shortage of physicians due to the price of medical malpractice liability insurance premiums. Those making the claims have contended that doctors trained in New Jersey are leaving the state for other areas with cheaper premiums. After making this conclusion, they then argue that tort reform is the answer to keeping qualified doctors in New Jersey to care for our residents.

Unfortunately, these arguments are misguided and fail to take the rights of those harmed by medical malpractice into account. According to the Institute of Medicine, 98,000 people die annually in the United States as a result of preventable medical errors. This statistic has led the American Association for Justice to conclude that preventable medical errors would be the "sixth leading cause of death in America," if the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention included it as a category.

In addition to the tragic fatalities, in 2003, 181,000 patients sustained serious injuries because of medical negligence, according to the Congressional Budget Office. In total, there are approximately 15 million cases in which a patient is harmed due to medical negligence every year, according to the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

When considering the large number of patients injured or killed by hospital or physician negligence each year, most would be hard pressed to contend that limiting their rights to just compensation in light of these preventable errors is the appropriate solution.

New Jersey Medical Malpractice Caps

Nevertheless, some continue to press for reforms to the medical malpractice system, arguing caps on damages are the best fix. Medical malpractice caps are imposed on a state-by-state basis and they limit the amount a victim of medical malpractice may recover for his or her injuries.

In New Jersey, punitive damages have been capped in medical malpractice cases. Punitive damages are defined as those that are awarded "because of aggravating circumstances in order to penalize and to provide additional deterrence against a defendant to discourage similar conduct in the future." In New Jersey, victims of medical malpractice are limited to punitive damages that are five times the compensatory damages award or $350,000, whichever is greater. Compensatory damages are those that are awarded specifically to cover the loss suffered by the injured party.

In New Jersey, there are currently no caps on non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering. Studies have found that when such caps are established, the consequences are particularly disastrous for women, the elderly and the most severely injured patients. One study conducted by Harvard Medical School found that non-economic damages caps led to gravely injured patients' awards being reduced seven times those of individuals with only minor injuries. These significant reductions can have serious, lifelong consequences for these patients, who often require continuous medical care after the medical malpractice injury.

If you or a loved one has been injured due to physician negligence, consulting with a skilled, New Jersey medical malpractice attorney will ensure your rights are protected and just compensation is received.

Article provided by Nagel Rice, LLP
Visit us at www.nagelrice.com

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Lose the Tobacco or Lose Custody? North Carolina's Family Court Judges Saying "No Smoking" to Parents

2012-11-21

More and more judges around the state - and around the country - are telling parents to put away the cigarettes before spending time with their children. Although exact numbers aren't available for how many custody cases involve the smoking of one parent or someone in their household, as new information arises about the dangers of secondhand smoke, it is becoming increasingly common for judges to consider smoking when making custody and visitation/parenting time decisions. Why does smoking matter? In a word: health. Judges, like everyone else, are privy to the countless ...

NHTSA Reports Alcohol-Related Fatal Accident Data

2012-11-21

In connection with the larger campaign to reduce drunk driving, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the 2010 alcohol-impaired-driving fatal crash statistics. The percent of large trucks involved in these accidents was three percent of the categories, which included "passenger car, light truck, large truck, motorcycle, bus and other." NHTSA noted that 2 percent of truck drivers involved in fatal accidents had blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08 to 0.14. Of that number half had BAC of greater than 0.15, or almost more than twice the ...

Unwanted Texas Foreclosures Prevented by Filing for Bankruptcy

2012-11-21

During the past nine months, the housing market has continued to exhibit its volatility across the country, leading to both large rises and falls in the number of foreclosure filings initiated each month. In May 2012, the U.S. saw a rise in the number of foreclosure filings. This increased action came in the wake of many banks and mortgage providers delaying foreclosure proceedings in response to heightened criticism regarding a failure to properly verify documents before initiating the proceedings. Since May 2012, the number of foreclosure filings has continued to ebb ...

Medical Linen Service Angelica Corporation Discusses the Problem of Rising Superbugs

2012-11-21

Medical linen service Angelica Corporation would like to discuss the problem of rising superbugs, particularly their tendency to spread in hospitals. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (or MRSA) is perhaps the most prevalent of the superbug issues. MRSA is a bacterium that causes a whole host of infections known commonly as staph infections. If caused by MRSA, they will be extremely difficult to treat because they have developed a resistance to our usual antibiotics. Hospitals tend to have particularly higher rates of these infections. One reason is that ...

Plumb Xpress Plumbing & Drain Offers Emergency Plumbing in Smyrna

2012-11-21

Plumb Xpress Plumbing & Drain, an Atlanta plumbing company, offers emergency plumbing services to the residents of Smyrna. During the upcoming holiday season, plumbing accidents can occur at the most undesirable times, and Plumb Xpress wants to reassure the residents of Smyrna that they can rely on Plumb Xpress to fix their emergency plumbing problems. No matter the issue, Smyrna residents can count on the experienced Atlanta plumbing team at Plumb Xpress. With years of experience, Plumb Xpress can fix a myriad of issues, from leaking and burst pipes to water heater ...

Atlanta Granite Countertop Company Premier Surfaces Partners with SubZero Wolf for Charity

2012-11-21

Atlanta granite countertop company Premier Surfaces is proud to announce a partnership with SubZero Wolf for a recent charitable contribution to Gwinnett Tech. The Gwinnett Tech Kitchen & Bath Program recently received a brand new kitchen display from this partnership, one of Premier Surface's many philanthropic projects in the community. With this new display the students at Gwinnett Tech will get an interactive visual to help create a better learning environment that will foster more creative thinking while showing the best of real-world applications. It is ...

Roswell Painters The Painting Company Offer Interior and Exterior Home Painting

2012-11-21

Roswell house painter The Painting Company understands that painting is a disruption in your life. The scaffolding, the drop clothes and even the smell of the fresh paint interrupt your daily life. It gets even worse if you have two different painting contractors in Roswell trying to coordinate painting the interior and exterior of your home. Thankfully, The Painting Company has a solution. They do both. Using this Roswell painting company, home and business owners can rest assured that once the job is started, The Painting Company will get it done quickly, efficiently ...

Have A Home for the Holidays, Says Nashville Bankruptcy Law Firm Clark & Washington

2012-11-21

Nashville bankruptcy lawyers Clark & Washington believe that having a home to go to is one of the most important aspects of the holiday season and that financial troubles shouldn't keep people out of their homes during this time of year. Sadly, many Nashville families are facing foreclosure before and during the upcoming holiday season. Tennessee residents facing foreclosure can stop the loss of their home by filing for chapter 13 bankruptcy. Filing for bankruptcy can stop the foreclosure proceedings and help to keep you in your home. Choosing to file for personal ...

Your Kitchen Supplies Company Kitchen Inspire Encourages Everyone to Stock

2012-11-21

Kitchen supplies company Kitchen Inspire would like to encourage everyone to keep their kitchens fully stocked, so that you have always got what you need, when you need it. There are few things as frustrating as setting out to cook a large dish, with all the preparations made, and finding out that you are missing just one required tool. Or, perhaps you have one of those tools, but it is in use in some other part of the recipe. You might be able to find some sort of substitute, but at best will require a lot of extra time and effort and at worst the finished product will ...

Samson Trailways Offers Wi-Fi on a Wide Range of Atlanta Buses

2012-11-21

Atlanta bus charter Samson Trailways would like to announce that they now offer wireless Internet on a wide range of their Atlanta buses. In today's world, access to Wi-Fi is no longer a luxury that corporate transport can afford to do without. In response to this necessity, Samson Trailways has charter buses in Atlanta that keep you and your group connected at all times. Now, company trips are no longer limited to the confines of the bus. With Wi-Fi on the list of basic corporate travel comforts, emails can be sent, details can be checked, and the lines of communication ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

People who are autistic and transgender/gender diverse have poorer health and health care

Gene classifier tests for prostate cancer may influence treatment decisions despite lack of evidence for long-term outcomes

Association of waist circumference with all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities in diabetes from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2018