Medical Malpractice Resulting in Wrongful Death

Medical Malpractice Lawyers in Washington, D.C., Maryland, & Virginia

It may seem like common sense that hospitals would not charge for errors such as leaving objects inside of patients after surgery, or amputating the wrong limb, but unfortunately, when it comes to medical billing practices, common sense and reality are rarely one in the same. New Medicare/Medicaid regulations may save tax dollars, and provide a legal foundation for malpractice victims.

Medicare and some health insurance companies have decided to put their foot down on avoidable medical errors and refuse to pay for them. In the case of the new Medicare regulations, not only will Medicare stop paying for the mistakes, but hospitals will no longer be able to bill patients for them. Effective in October, 2008, Medicare will no longer pay for, and hospitals can no longer bill you for:

• Object mistakenly left in a patient during surgery
• Bedsores
• Preventable air embolism
• Complications from incompatible blood transfusions
• Catheter-associated urinary-tract infections
• Vascular catheter-associated infection
• Surgery-site infection after coronary-artery-bypass graft surgery
• Patient falls

What this means to you

If you have been the victim of a hospital error, which is recognized as unbillable by Medicare, you have a better chance of winning in a medical malpractice lawsuit. It means that the tide is turning, and that a minimal standard of care is being recognized and expected. It means that there is a tangible list of errors for which you cannot be legally billed. That list is expected to grow.

Some hospitals are making voluntary changes

The American Hospital Association now asks its member to refrain from charging from 28 errors including:

• Surgery on the wrong patient
• Surgery on the wrong body part
• Wrong surgical procedure
• Leaving a foreign object inside of a patient
• Discharging an infant to the wrong person
• Death or disability of the mother in a low-risk pregnancy
• Death or serious disability in an infant associated with jaundice
• Artificial insemination with the wrong donor sperm or wrong egg
• Abduction of a patient
• Sexual assault of a patient
• A death or significant injury of patient or staff from physical assault
• Care ordered by someone impersonating a physician, a nurse, a pharmacist or other licensed health-care provider

When left unattended, the ramifications of medical malpractice can affect your health, your credit, and your financial future. Mistakes and errors, which you may feel that you should not have to pay for, may still be billed, and those bills can haunt you for years to come. If you have been the victim of medical malpractice, and have been billed for medical errors, simply refusing to pay will not clear you of your debt. You need the help of an experienced medical malpractice attorney.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice in Washington, D.C., Maryland or Virginia, please call or email one of our experienced medical malpractice attorneys today. We will examine your case at no cost. Our accident attorneys are committed to ensuring justice for you - the victim.

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