Will I Get Limited or Capped Damages In My Medical Practice Case?

When a patient is harmed by the action or inaction of a physician or any other health care personnel, there remains only one remedy to justice. And that is to file a medical malpractice case. Common causes that may lead one to file such a claim are surgery errors, medical misdiagnosis, and childbirth-related injuries among others.

After suffering from medical negligence, you may wonder how much your medical malpractice claim is worth. Each case is different and no one can give information of how much a case is worth without the case details.  However, one sure thing is that the court will limit your damage awards.

Limited Or Capped Damages In Alaska Medical Malpractice Cases

While most states have laws limiting the compensation a patient is to receive. Experienced medical malpractice lawyers better explain deeper information regarding limits or caps. Thus, if you have a medical malpractice case and wondering how to go about your financial or even physical recovery, you can contact attorneys and law firms in Wasilla Ak to offer advice. Even when you have filed a successful medical malpractice claim in Alaska, you will have a limit or a cap on the amount to receive. Such limits or caps are generally imposed for various reasons. Some includes:

• To have balanced jury awards and ensure a doctor can afford a malpractice insurance premium, which in one way assists in providing quality health care.

• Reduce a considerable amount of insurance premium for medical doctors

• Discourage malicious medical malpractice lawsuits

Unfortunately, such limits or caps are somehow made at the expense of patients who may have suffered at careless medical professionals’ hands.

In Alaska, the medical malpractice damages cap only applies to non-economic damages. Meaning, a plaintiff can get paid all the expenses related to economic losses. These may include any expense spent on past and future medical care, lost wages, and the capacity to earn any income in the future either due to temporary or permanent disability, scarring, among other losses that can be quantified. When it comes to non-economic damages, this includes pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and other damages that may not be quantified.

What Amount Is Limited Or Capped?

According to Alaska medical malpractice laws, the caps on damages are as follows:

• Non-economic damages: A figure of $250,000 is applied in all medical malpractice cases

• The figure may shoot up to $400,000 for medical malpractice cases involving death or any injury causing a permanent disability which proves to be over 70% debilitating.

States keep on reviewing such amount imposed. Thus, it’s advisable to seek a lawyer’s help if you have a medical malpractice case. It is essential to note that the state may have some exceptions that could raise the amount.

Non-economic damages are the only damages that may greatly benefit an injured patient for the injuries sustained due to medical personnel’s negligence, unlike when one gets paid for medical expenses spent on lost wages that may not have much value. That are only meant to take one back to the position they were in before the injury occurred.  

Is There A Cap On Punitive Damages?

Most of the states have a cap on punitive damages. Alaska is no exception. However, the amount a plaintiff is to receive on punitive damages is always left at the judge’s discretion. In Alaska, punitive damages should not exceed 3 times the amount of compensatory damages or $500,000. The amount to receive may also be affected by:

• Punitive damages awarded to a plaintiff in other similar cases

• Any likelihood that another patient may have to undergo such suffering

• Whether the defendant was aware of the egregious conduct

• The financial capability of the patient

• Whether the defendant had other criminal cases

When filing your medical malpractice claim, remember the statute of limitations that gives you two years to file a lawsuit from the date you suffered your injuries. But, in some cases, this may mean two years from the time you discovered that you had been injured due to medical malpractice. Your lawyer can take you through the discovery process on medical malpractice lawsuits and help you prove that you never discovered the harm or could not have even discovered the time within the duration of two years. That is when an exception may apply.

If you or your loved one has suffered under the hands of a negligent doctor, you will receive your economic damages and capped non –economic damages. If the doctor had gross negligence, your injuries would likely include punitive damages. However, the process may not be easy. You will require the help of an experienced medical malpractice lawyer to guide you. For more information on caps imposed on medical malpractice damages, you can contact an experienced medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your situation.