Nothing is more heartbreaking than a medical treatment turning into a fatal tragedy. A Johns Hopkins Medicine study reveals that medical errors rank third in the leading causes of US deaths. The torment caused by substandard healthcare cannot be comparable to any monetary value. However, Indiana law aims to recognize damages incurred and emphasize loss recovery.
What is the cost of human error?
Indiana leads the way of all states in setting favorable standards for patients seeking a settlement. However, there are limits to the compensation a victim can receive. Despite these limitations, Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act shows an increasing trend for the state’s damage caps in recent years. From the long-standing $1.25 million, it rose to $1.65 million in 2017. By 2019, it reached $1.8 million.
Moreover, the Indiana Department of Insurance’s Patient’s Compensation Fund (PCF) serves as another mechanism to recover damages. If proven that the victim’s situation is eligible, the PCF covers payment exceeding the insurance coverage of the negligent doctor or healthcare facility. To demonstrate, the accused medical party may be responsible for the first $500,000. Thus, the PCF shall cover the remaining $1,300,000 to meet the total cap.
In the wake of tragedy, an Indiana medical malpractice victim can push for these types of damages:
- Economic Damages: These are financial losses with concrete calculations. These include medical treatment costs, future medical bills, lost wages, potential earnings and other missed employment opportunities caused by immobility from sustained medical harm.
- Non-Economic Damages: There are two categories for these incomputable losses: physical, such as scarring and mutilation, and mental such as anxiety, depression, fear, anger, embarrassment, loss of consortium and other destructive emotions.
Whatever damages are under consideration, the injured party’s time is of the essence.
How soon should a plaintiff file a medical lawsuit?
Sooner rather than later.
The statute of limitations is the required time to work on a medical lawsuit. Indiana courts allot two years from when the patient discovered the medical malpractice.
There is no harm in patients taking swift legal action for wrongs done to them.