Understanding Your Rights to Medical Malpractice Compensation in New York
Medical malpractice could cause various losses, including costly medical care along with lost wages, and non-economic damages such as suffering and pain. A qualified New York attorney can help you learn about your rights to claim compensation.
The first step is to determine if you sustained injuries due to a medical error. You can then bring a malpractice lawsuit.
Medical expenses
The expense of medical treatment to treat injuries is the most obvious. This category of damages has limitations set by law of the state which is outlined in the liability insurance policy of a healthcare provider. Some states have also set up injured patient compensation funds in order to offset the perceived costs of litigation and help providers lower their liability insurance costs.
Victims are entitled to compensation in addition to medical expenses if the negligence is deemed to be the cause. These are known as special or economic damages. They cover the costs of any medical procedures (past and in the future) which are required to treat the injuries resulting from the negligence, as well as any lost income because of being unable to work due to the injury.
In medical malpractice cases, pain and suffering damages are also common. This category of damages is a bit different for each claimant and is considered to be subjective. It covers any physical pain, emotional stress as well as other physical effects associated with the negligence. For example the plaintiff may be paid for a mistake by a doctor that caused her to miss an important cancer screening appointment.
Additionally, punitive damages are also possible in certain instances. These are meant to punish an individual doctor for the most egregious behavior, like leaving a dirty sponge inside the patient’s body after surgery.
Suffering and pain
In medical malpractice cases it is a matter of pain and suffering. It is one of the types of non-economic damages. The compensation is for the mental and physical trauma the victim endured as a result the negligence of the doctor. The symptoms could be minor such as discomfort or anxiety or they could be more severe such as loss of enjoyment in life as well as depression, embarrassment or anxiety.
It is difficult to assign an amount on suffering and pain, jury instructions usually leave it up to the jurors. They can use their judgment, background and experience to determine what they consider fair and reasonable. The amounts that are awarded in malpractice lawsuits can vary.
Your medical malpractice attorneys attorney (browse this site) can assist you in proving the severity of your suffering using demonstrative evidence. Photographs, X-rays and X-rays as well as models, home movies, diagrams, and sketches can all help a jury see the extent of your injuries as well as how they have impacted your daily life.
If a negligent doctor caused the death of a victim family members can seek damages through wrongful death lawsuits or survival statutes. In the case of wrongful death, laws generally permit the spouse and children to collect the same amount of compensation as they would’ve received if the patient had lived. The amount that a victim can receive is usually restricted by the state’s cap on pain and suffering. It’s important to have a seasoned medical malpractice lawyer on your side in order to get the compensation you deserve.
Loss of wages
You may be able to recover lost wages in the event that you miss work because of medical malpractice. This includes your base salary, bonuses, commissions and employment benefits. It also includes any pay raises or increases in pay. Your lawyer will go through your pay stubs from the past to calculate your earnings per hour before the injury, and after that, subtract your missed work to arrive at your total lost earnings. Your lawyer can also assist you in determining the future loss of earnings by using a present value calculation. This is an analysis of financials that analyzes the effects of your injuries in the future on your ability to earn money. This is usually done by a specialist commissioned by your attorney.
You can also seek non-economic damages, such as the pain and suffering due to the negligence. The jury will decide the appropriate amount of compensation, which can vary from case to case. Some states have a limit on these damages. However they have been declared inconstitutional by numerous courts.
Seven-figure settlements usually result in serious permanent injuries or wrongful deaths caused by extreme healthcare neglect. Settlements with high values can be awarded for among other things, surgical errors that cause amputations and brain damage to infants and mothers and also anesthesia mistakes that lead to comas. Punitive damages, intended to punish bad behavior, may also be available in certain situations.
Damages for future medical treatments
In a case of medical negligence the plaintiff may pursue economic or non-economic damages. The first is based on measurable losses like the future or past medical expenses. The latter are more difficult to quantify, and includes the suffering and pain as well as loss of enjoyment of life. In a medical malpractice lawsuit, the jury will need to hear testimony from experts in order to judge the kind of losses.
It is fairly easy to prove medical expenses from the past by submitting actual bills that were sent to the injured person by their health care providers. The attorney representing the plaintiff will present medical evidence to prove what treatments are likely to be required in the future, and how much they cost now. The amount of medical care needed can also be affected by the age of the victim at the time of the malpractice.
Damages to future wages can be proved by showing the impact of the injury on a patient’s capacity to work and earn in the future. This can be supported by expert testimony or studying similar cases in the past.
Pain and suffering is a umbrella word that describes the mental and physical discomfort and distress which patients suffer because of medical malpractice. The type of damages are typically based on testimony from the victim and other witnesses, as well as evidence like photographs, videotapes and written reports.