A West Virginia couple is challenging a state law that places caps on medical malpractice awards. A jury verdict awarded the couple $1.5 million in damages in the medical malpractice case, but because of the law the award was reduced to only one-third of the original amount.
The medical malpractice lawsuit was filed after the husband was admitted into a West Virginia hospital. There he was given a combination of medications which appear to have caused him to develop rhabdomyolysis, which is a breakdown of muscle fibers caused by injury to muscle tissue.
After the couple sued, the case went to a trial before jury. The jury ruled in the couple's favor, awarding $1.5 million to the couple for pain and suffering as well as a $129,000 award to cover lost wages and related medical expenses.
With West Virginia's cap on awards in medical malpractice lawsuits, most awards cannot exceed $250,000, and awards in severe cases are capped at $500,000. In this suit, the husband was awarded a total of $1 million for pain and suffering, while his wife was awarded $500,000. Because of that state's cap, the award was reduced to $500,000 to be shared among the couple.
The law capping medical malpractice awards, established in 1986, originally set a cap of $1 million, but it was later reduced. The cap does not consider multiple plaintiffs, which means that no matter how many plaintiffs are named in the case, the group of plaintiffs must split the award, which is $250,000 in most cases or $500,000 in those cases that are considered severe.
The couple in this case, which has been appealed to West Virginia's Supreme Court, argues that the state's cap on medical malpractice awards goes against their right to a trial by jury, which in turn could stop the jury from making the final decision in a case.
Representatives for physicians and the insurance industry support medical malpractice award caps claiming that such caps keep the costs of malpractice insurance low and prevent physicians from moving to another state.
Similar caps in Georgia and Illinois were recently declared unconstitutional, so it will be very interesting to see what the court says about the constitutionality of medical malpractice award caps in West Virginia.
If you, or someone you know, may have been a victim of medical malpractice, contact the Law Offices of Dr. Bruce G. Fagel at (800) 541-9376 or click here to visit our website.
