Personal Injury Law

Fatal brain injury caused by a doctor with a history of medical malpractice leads to new legislation

By Steven M. Levin and John J. Perconti

The mother of a 22-year-old victim of medical malpractice has recently sponsored a new law requiring doctors to make past medical malpractice settlements and verdicts against them public. The mother claims that her son was given an unnecessary surgery causing a brain injury that made him partly-paralyzed, half-blind and psychotic after his brain was jostled by the neurosurgeon. The surgeon claimed that the patient would make a full recovery after rehab but his injuries ultimately resulted in his death. When the patient's mother learned that the surgeon had done the procedure only once before and had a malpractice settlement and claims in another state, she decided to take action. The law stipulates that only settlements or final judgments will be publicized on the internet database. The Colorado bill was passed into law in early January 2008.

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Full post as published by Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog on January 10, 2008 (boomark / email).