A 35 year old woman presented to the defendant hospital to deliver her third child. She expressed her desire to attempt a natural delivery after delivering her first two children by c-section. After her labor failed to progress, the decision was made to perform a c-section. Just before the surgery, the defendant OB/GYN recommended to the patient and her family that she have her tubes ties (tubal ligation). The patient refused. After delivering the child by c-section, and while the mother was on the operating room table, the OB/GYN repeated his recommendation to tie the mother's tubes. Again, the mother and her husband refused. The OB/GYN performed the tubal ligation anyway against the family's express wishes. The defendants claimed that the mother gave her verbal consent to the tubal ligation in the operating room. The absence of a written consent form for the procedure was undisputed. The patient settled with the hospital nurses and the OB/GYN physician for $435,000. On advice of a friend, Mr. C retained a Boston injury attorney with an excellent reputation. Unfortunately, the trial attorney was having personal troubles. He misled Mr. C about the claim. He filed suit but neglected to serve the lawsuit papers and summons on the defendant restaurant. The case was dismissed by the Court Clerk. The attorney neglected to resurrect the case, or to inform the client of the problem. In fact, for six (6) years, while Mr. C was writing, calling and email his attorney, he got false and misleading responses such as: Your case is simply waiting for a trial date to be assigned, or the sarcastic Next time, contrive to be injured in a state where cases get to trial sometime in the lifetime of the parties. The United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Each day, hundreds of patients seek medical treatment from physicians, surgeons, and other medical professionals. Patients place their health, trust, and lives into the hands of their doctors and nurses. In return, doctors assure their patients that they will provide the best medical care and attention possible. Unfortunately, even the most experienced medical professionals can make critical mistakes. These mistakes can leave a patient with permanent irreversible damages. Thanks for helping me go to college Victims' compensation legislation and anti-discrimination laws are discussed briefly. The part.. The claim was based primarily in negligence. Such an action. Medical Malpractice Lawyers by State Kimberly also gained extensive business and management experience prior to pursuing her legal career having managed large groups of people and departments in the areas of customer service, collections, accounting, technical service, and human resources in the Cable Television industry. This practical business experience has provided an excellent background and supplement to her legal practice. I walked into the VA hospital for the amputation and was not able after 8 days in the hospital to get out of bed because of pain in my spine. I was sent home and received physical therapy. yippee. It looks like you & I (who have common experiences with teaching hospitals) agree on not suing medical students. Agreement is good. Law Solicitor For Dental Negligence Denison 51442. Unfortunately, some patients may be victims of delayed treatment. If you or someone you love received delayed medical treatment and suffered harm as a result, contact the Springfield medical malpractice attorneys of Strong-Garner-Bauer, P.C., today at (417) 855-2022. Defense of wrongful death medical malpractice claim involving issue of diagnosis of lung cancer A lawyer won $250,000 for past pain and suffering and $500,000 for future pain and suffering, in New York, on behalf of woman who suffered permanent paresthesia, and numbness on her lip and chin due to inferior alveolar nerve damage. 24, 25 The plaintiff's case will only succeed if the judge finds that a breach of duty did result in harm to the patient. The number and value of clinical negligence claims brought in South Africa has been rising rapidly in recent years. In MPS's experience alone, the estimated value of reported claims rose by 132% between 2008 and 2010. The good news for general practitioners is that most of these increases have been seen in the riskier specialties such as obstetrics, spinal surgery, neurosurgery and neonatology. The laws of negligence have been deliberately used as a compensation. fund is depleted by claims which are paid, the premiums must increase to replenish it. Orange County Criminal defense attorney Adam R. Stull has successfully helped people with felonies & misdemeanors including, Drug, DUI, and Juvenile crimes since 1994, Call 1-877-815-7421. - Dental Malpractice Attorneys. The failure of medical equipment can lead to serious injury or loss of life. These failures, whether an anesthetic machine, blood pressure equipment, diagnostic testing equipment, x-ray equipment or other crucial diagnostic or treatment unit can lead to injury or death. The number of homes entering foreclosure dropped in February, but a new up-turn may soon be on its way. Birth errors are also serious forms of medical malpractice. The birth of a child is usually a joyful occasion, but sometimes it can be marred by medical negligence that can seriously injure both the mother and the child. Children can suffer brain damage from hypoxia, cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy, and other birth defects if the obstetrician is negligent in the delivery of the child. The mother can also suffer serious injuries during birth or during a C-section, including incisions in the bladder and other serious conditions. We start the process by contacting the treatment provider (the Respondent) who caused your health to deteriorate We request a copy of your medical records. We also request copies of any other relevant records from your other treatment providers. We carefully analyse those records to produce a detailed timeline of the circumstances of your medical treatment.
If you've had cosmetic surgery and the procedure went wrong, we understand that you may be left suffering both physical and emotional pain. Our lawyers are here for you if errors have caused you to experience undesirable results after cosmetic treatments. Before the 2005 law, Missouri had an inflation-adjusted cap of $579,000 for noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases. The law lowered that to a flat $350,000 and applied the cap to the total amount owed by all defendants rather than against each defendant for each act of negligence as had been permitted under the old law. I am searching for any families who lost their brachial plexus case at trial in which the Lerner/Salamon article was referenced or discussed. If you lost your case at trial and am uncertain if this deceptive article was used by the defense please ask your lawyer. If this article was used at your trial I may be able to add you to the federal lawsuit. For some of you it may be a second chance to have your case heard. At the very least you will be helping us stop the use of this deceptive and misleading medical article. The data show no indication that dentists reported any of the 52 deaths to state authorities, Walji told us. But it doesn't take much investigations to realize how the report is a bit skewed. Perhaps most glaringly the actual data from the study itself is based on surveys from those connected to corporations with annual revenues over $100 million. In other words, those at the largest companies were asked about whether they liked to be held responsible for their negligence by the legal system, and they said that they prefered states where they had more legal immunities. This is obviously far from shocking and not very helpful. In solo-practice of law since 1994, Boyd W. Shepherd, D.D.S., J.D., has developed a general civil practice with a primary emphasis on providing comprehensive legal services and consultation on a wide range of legal matters, including dental malpractice, Texas Dental Law, TSBDE issues, employment law, business transactions, and other general legal services including criminal law, family law, wills & probate, and general civil litigation. 3. Reinsurance expenses increased NEW ORLEANS Louisiana's congressional delegation with the exception of U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy issued a strongly worded letter opposing the appointment of an embattled official to oversee veterans hospitals in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi and Oklahoma. A legal document filed by the Dental Board of California alleged improprieties in Erfani's treatment of several former patients. One woman went to Erfani in 2005 complaining about a dislodged veneer, which is a porcelain shell bonded to the front of a tooth to approve its appearance. infringes any intellectual property or other right of any entity or person, including, but not limited to violating anyone's copyrights or trademarks; Lawyer Companies Denison Iowa 51442
Petty bureaucrats who believe they know all the answerssupplanting parental rights. There are many examples of this, from forced treatments to having the child removed, except, of course, when the child really should be removed, and isn't! A jury returned a verdict for $13.7 million for three families affected by a tragic trucking accident. The three victims left behind their spouses along with a total of 7 children. The family of a 54 year old mother of three who was killed in the trucking accident, who Andrew Schwartz represented, received $5.2 million. compensation by general dentists. If you think about this, the flip side is that a doctor can cause terrible harm, but if he was doing what any other reasonably prudent doctor would have done in the same situation, then he is not liable for resulting injuries or even death. Let me give you an example. If a doctor performed heart bypass surgery, and the patient died as a result of complications from the surgery, but the doctor performed the surgery exactly how anyone in his profession would have done, then he is not responsible for the death. After all, you do not need a medical or law degree to know that everyone gets sick and dies. Doctors obviously cannot be responsible for ensuring the life or even perfect health of any of their patients. So they are only held responsible when they do something, or fail to do something, and others in their profession, acting in a reasonably prudent manner, would not have done the same thing in the same situation. Again, we use medical experts to prove this point. If there are no medical experts who will testify that the doctor breached the professional standard of care, then the case cannot be maintained or even filed (Florida has a pre-suit requirement for supportive medical expert opinions, without which the plaintiff cannot file suit). If the case ever reaches a jury, then the jury hears the medical experts before deciding whether the doctor breached the standard of care. I am posting this here for Greg. delayed diagnosis leading to the worsening of a condition (such as gum disease, infection or oral cancer); 205 20th St N, Birmingham, AL - (205) 323-4500 All doctors, nurses and health care providers are required by law to document in the medical chart who did what, when and why. A record of the treatment you received can be easily obtained with your written authorization. Confusion or trouble speaking or understanding speech Dental bridge problems not only cause physical pain and suffering, they also place individuals under financial strain. Many people are forced to miss work for corrective procedures and dental insurance may not cover the expenses of reconstructive work. Bad bridge jobs can also cause emotional distress and anxiety. Many people develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after being injured by dentists.
A large portion of malpractice cases result from the failure to diagnose patients properly. Among the top misdiagnosed conditions leading to malpractice lawsuits are breast cancer, myocardial infarction, lung cancer and colon cancer. I was screaming, how dare you, do you know my father is dead, thank you VA. I was really yelling, I didn't want to yell at nobody but how could you not, she said. Our medical malpractice law firm seeks to incorporate as many facts as possible to prove fault. Our detailed approach often prompts insurance companies to make fair settlement offers, knowing we are prepared to secure a favorable trial verdict. We had a whole conversation about the risks of general anesthesia versus the trauma of doing it without anesthesia, Tim Sears said. But we had no clue that the method.. would be different than it would be in any other medical setting. And that's what we're trying to push for - for parents to be given that information. After serving the complaint, the claimant must provide a copy to the state Department of Heath, and, if the complaint involves a licensed facility (such as a hospital), the Agency for Health Care Administration. The department or agency must review each such incident and determine whether the licensee's conduct is potentially subject to disciplinary action (Fla. Stat. Ann. paragraph 766.106). Law Solicitor For Dental Negligence Denison The reputation of our highly experienced medical negligence lawyers comes from success. Our specialist team combine legal and medical expertise with compassion, knowledge and understanding to successfully guide our clients through clinical negligence claims. Instead of taking an x-ray to locate the infection, and then prescribing an antibiotic to treat it, Sally's dentist decided to extract two teeth in the general area of her pain. right lip and right chin numbness + pain I thought that i was starting to feel the freezing after the sedation and that the pain was coming from the chirurgy. I started to take pain killer and the antibiotic, and antiameaba Making a complaint is the more suitable route if you are seeking an apology or acknowledgement of the negligence. If you want to pursue a compensatory award you would need to commence legal proceedings and make a claim. 3. Reinsurance expenses increased Cox reporters analyzed federal treasury data that found taxpayers spent more than $800 million paying 4,426 veterans and their family members who brought malpractice claims against the VA medical system since 2003. In 2012, a total of 454 financial settlements and awards added up to $98.3 million. 7. Caps are in effect. In Nevada, like many other states, insurance companies and their insureds pressed for and obtained very significant caps on recoveries in medical malpractice actions. These limitations include: If you think that you have been the victim of medical or any other kind of professional malpractice, please call right away or contact us online for a free consultation! Do not delay because there are various time limits that, if missed, can defeat your claim. Trusts and Estates that have been wrongly managed that her son was going to be home alone the next day, and that she was concerned that if her Are you concerned about Dental Malpractice? Don't worry. You can easily find lawyers in Indiana who concentrate on Dental Malpractice. You can consult these knowledgeable Dental Malpractice Lawyers to explore and analyze all of the options and make sensible decisions. With our comprehensive listing of lawyers in Indiana, you won't have any problems in finding lawyers near your location. What are you waiting for? Search for Dental Malpractice Lawyers in Indiana who can help you in solving your legal problems. If you believe that you have suffered injuries as a result of your medical treatment, please contact us as soon as possible for a free, informed analysis about the legal options that may be available to you. There are legal time limits involving some medical malpractice cases, so please contact us as soon as possible to begin your free review. Please review our Privacy Policy regarding the information collected on this website. In terms of proving that a standard of care was met in a malpractice lawsuit, Benjamin affirms that the best defense is offense. One of the questions that will come up in a malpractice lawsuit is to explain what your office procedure is and how you do a comprehensive evaluation. Did you use any of the enhanced technologies? And if you answer no, the question is: Why didn't you? And then you have to defend why you didn't. There is no defense for not doing an enhanced examination. Every clinician needs to be aware of that, and to be prepared to suffer the con-sequences, which, basically, means forfeiting everything they have ever worked for, everything they will ever work for, as well as the quality of life of their patient. Updated July 18, 2013 at 4:46 am
Dental malpractice can produce tooth loss and other serious injuries requiring corrective surgery. Each year, infections from negligent dental procedures result in hospitalizations and numerous fatalities. Rush, Hannula, Harkins & Kyler, L.L.P. is prepared to fight for patients throughout Washington in cases involving: Who May Sue an Attorney? Perlmutter & Schuelke, LLP Receive the jury's verdict. Once the jury has made a decision, it will announce it to the judge and all parties. This verdict will determine if any of the defendants are liable and how much of a damages award you should get. The court will then enter judgment in favor of the plaintiff or defendant. An average of $71,594 (USD 94,375) was paid for accepted claims, ranging from $6000 to $164,000 (USD 7763 to USD 212,194) depending on the surgical procedure, and it is lower compared with the amount in the United States reported by Suk et al. (Table 10) 22 However, it is difficult to compare statistics from different studies because the data come from different sources, for example surveys 26, insurance companies 21, hospital experience 20, or national databases 4, 5 , and a standardized method for research is not used. In Rome, many surgeons have maximum coverage greater than $2,000,000 (USD 2,587,730). Top Solicitors For Negligence Claims Against Solicitors : They have now appreciabical Malpractice Act, the maximum a victim can pursue from the PCF is $1,000,000, making for a total of $1,250,000 in damages. This damage amount can be beneficial to medical malpractice victims in Indianapolis and throughout the state of Indiana. It gives them an additional resource above and beyond the medical practitioner's own insurance provider from which they can seek compensation. I read with interest the article in last weekend's Sydney Morning Herald concerning Ian Harris's recent book. In the interests of full disclosure, Ian is an orthopaedic surgeon from whom we commonly seek advice, as an independent expert to review and comment on orthopaedic cases we are investigating. He strikes me as a sensible and Continue Reading Sharing Great Legal Intelligence How to Check on a Dentist for Malpractice dental care (32%, $3.35), dentist in (29%), invisalign dentist (21%), implant dentist (7%), cosmetic dentist (7%) 7 medical malpractice payment reports were made against dentists in the District of Colombia 2003 (2003 Annual Report, National Practitioner Data Bank, US DHHS)
For 40 years, Ron Perey has been advocating for patients in courts by handling medical malpractice cases. We handle medical malpractice cases with a high level of personal attention. We have a doctor on staff, and we will bring in any other professional necessary to build the strongest case. 15. Report to the Insurance Commissioner. Maternal death or serious disability associated with labor or delivery on a low-risk pregnancy while being cared for in a healthcare facility Looking For A Top Attorney In Texas? Failure to Diagnose / Misdiagnosis of medical conditions, including cancer, heart attack, stroke and aneurysm Phone: 609.240.0040 Fax: 609.240.0044 Surgery and medications are risky. Diagnosing an illness is complex. Childbirth can be complicated. Even when we receive the best medical care, things can go wrong. Not every bad outcome is a basis for a medical malpractice lawsuit If a health care provider's negligence directly caused a loved one to pass, the provider may be sued for wrongful death. We have a page dedicated to this here: Wrongful Death Failure to diagnose means that your doctor completely overlooked your illness or condition that he should have been able to diagnose if he had followed the proper standard of care. He did not diagnose anything, when in fact he should have. For example, maybe he overlooked a cancerous growth clearly visible on an X-ray. Misdiagnosis is similar, except that the doctor did reach a diagnosis, but the wrong one. For example, he may have told you that you were suffering from a rectal hernia when in fact it was rectal cancer. It can mean that a doctor or physician did not diagnose a disease such as cancer. It can also mean that a delayed diagnosis caused delay in treatment, thereby increasing the patient's risk. Failure to diagnose and misdiagnosis are common grounds for malpractice claims. Prudential Buildings, 3 Victoria Square St Helens, Merseyside WA10 1HQ
Because we care about our clients. We get all the complaints, of course, and they get sifted Statutes of Limitations in Medical Malpractice Cases Chelsea Napier v. Darian Latroy Bruner and Dustin Asbill McKenna & Associates, P.C. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania specializes in business law, construction law, and personal injury cases. Also representing the entire area of western Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, the attorneys the dedicated to offer quality legal services. Lawyer Companies Denison IA 51442 Miller Weisbrod, L.L.P., based in Dallas, helps individuals and families nationwide pursue real financial recovery after another's negligence causes an accident or medical mistake that result in serious personal injury or wrongful death. The law firm is a nationally recognized leader... Medical Malpractice Issue Calls for Meet in the Middle Herta was a victim of stupidity, Gittleman told the News. But she has the knowledge, she has the satisfaction, she has the vindication that this doctor unconscionably harmed her, and her fellow community members told him through this large award that he committed horrible malpractice. Pain and Suffering. These are monetary awards given beyond those of the malpractice-related injuries and the punitive damages that have caused unusual amounts of pain and suffering. This might be applied in a case in which a patient develops permanent paresthesia as the result of an overfilled root canal into the inferior alveolar canal. Lawyers at the firm understand...
devastating to everyone involved. To receive professional advice, and find out more about how we can help you. Los Angeles County Litigator, Attorney In January 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case out of the Seventh Circuit, Tellabs v Makor & Rights, Ltd., 437 F.3d 588 (7th Cir., 2006), to address an important and recurring issue in securities litigation: Pre-emminent law firm established 1992 handling high-exposure litigation and defense matters for insurance companies, doctors, lawyers, businesses, landowners and professionals. Hospital spokesman Stephen Gaither says the attack happened Friday night in an in-patient unit. Utah Dental Malpractice Lawyers and Law Firms Malpractice Payouts to U.S. Veterans Reach 12-Year High - Businessweek Christopher Ellison went to a veterans medical center in Philadelphia to get eight teeth extracted in 2007. What should have been a routine dentist visit left him permanently incapacitated. The $17.5 million Ellison and his family received in a malpractice judgment against the Department of Veterans Affairs was the largest against the agency in a dozen years and one of more than 400 payments the U.S. government made last year to resolve VA malpractice claims, according to agency records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. The total cost came to $91.7 million, also the highest sum in at least 12 years. The cases against the VA have included missed diagnoses, delayed treatment and procedures performed on wrong body parts. U.S. lawmakers and veterans' advocates say they reflect deep flaws in the agency's health-care system even as the department tends to more former troops, including those who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. The rapid rise in malpractice judgments against VA mirrors the emerging pattern of preventable veteran deaths and other patient safety issues at VA hospitals, Representative Jeff Miller, a Florida Republican and chairman of the House veterans committee, said in an e-mailed statement. What's missing from the equation is not money or manpower it's accountability. 'Not Warned' Miller's committee held a hearing in Pittsburgh today to probe lapses that include a Legionnaires' disease outbreak at a VA hospital that killed at least five veterans and also led to malpractice claims. The VA's inspector general is conducting a criminal investigation into the outbreak, which involved bacteria in the hospital system's water, Robert Petzel, the department's undersecretary for health, said during the hearing. Family members of veterans who died after being exposed to the bacteria said the VA didn't immediately let relatives know there was a potential health problem. For sixteen days my father was allowed to shower and drink the water without any warning, said Robert Nicklas, whose father, William, a Navy veteran, died last year after the Pittsburgh VA outbreak. Why were we not warned? More Patients More veterans are taking advantage of VA medical care, including those requiring more complex treatment. As many as 1.2 million additional soldiers are due to become veterans in the next four years. Some of the soldiers from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are suffering post-traumatic stress disorder while others are living with injuries that would have been fatal in World War II or the Vietnam War. The age of recent veterans may be a contributing factor in the rise of claims payments, said W. Robb Graham, an attorney in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, who has represented former troops filing claims against the agency. Younger claimants tend to get larger malpractice payouts, often tied to how long victims will suffer, he said. The median age range of veterans who served after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks in New York and Washington was 25 to 34 years old, according to a 2011 Labor Department study. That's compared to veterans who served during the World War II, Korean War and Vietnam eras, whose median age range was 65 and older, the study said. Higher Payments If the VA cuts off the wrong leg of a veteran who is 70 years old and his life expectancy is 75, he's entitled to five years of damages, Graham said in a phone interview. If they cut off the wrong leg of a veteran who is 25, you're now dealing with someone who is entitled to 50 years of damages. The department has 152 hospitals and about 19,000 doctors. Last year, the VA tended to 5.6 million veterans, a 32 percent increase from fiscal 2002, according to agency data. It's the largest health-care system in the U.S., and they do an incredible amount of good work, said Jerry Manar, deputy director of national veterans service at the Kansas City, Missouri-based Veterans of Foreign Wars. However, there are so many more things they could do in terms of oversight that they don't appear to be doing now. As a consequence, sometimes you wind up with poor results that were avoidable. The department is deeply committed to providing the quality care and benefits our nation's veterans have earned and deserve, Gina Jackson, a VA spokeswoman, said in an e-mail. If employee misconduct or failure to meet performance standards is found to have been a factor, VA will take appropriate corrective action immediately. Taxpayers' Bill The 2012 malpractice payments stemmed from both court judgments and administration settlements. The payouts, made by the U.S. Treasury's Judgment Fund, rose 28 percent last year from about $72 million in 2011, the VA records showed. Taxpayers have spent at least $700 million to resolve claims filed against the veterans agency since 2001, according to the data. Many valid VA malpractice claims never get paid, said attorney Graham, who served as a judge advocate general in the Navy in the 1980s. Some are rejected because paperwork isn't filed properly, he said. My strong belief is a lot of lawyers don't know how to sue the VA, he said. Some law firms aren't interested in representing people suing the federal government because of laws that limit attorney fees to 25 percent of malpractice awards, Graham said. 'An Alarming Pattern' In a May letter, Representative Miller asked President Barack Obama to help address an alarming pattern of serious and significant patient care issues at VA medical facilities. The House panel is reviewing the Legionnaires' outbreak in Pennsylvania, and the department's handling of two overdose deaths and two suicides at an Atlanta veterans hospital. Also under scrutiny are poor sterilization procedures and possible patient exposure to infectious diseases such as HIV at VA locations. We are not here as part of a witch-hunt, to make VA look bad or to score political points, Miller said during the hearing. We simply want to ensure that veterans across the country are receiving the care and benefits they have earned. The agency isn't holding employees, especially executives, accountable for preventable deaths, Miller said. Department officials also gave bonuses to doctors even if they practiced without a license or left residents unsupervised during surgery, according to a Government Accountability Office report last month. VA Bonuses The recipients of $150 million in bonuses to VA health-care providers in fiscal 2011 included a radiologist unable to read a mammogram and an emergency-room doctor who refused to see patients, the report found. Miller has said the VA employees should be punished not rewarded for their incompetence. The number of malpractice claims filed with the VA has remained at 1,544 for the past two years, said Jackson, the agency spokeswoman. The leveling off came after a 33 percent spike in cases to 1,670 between 2010 and 2005, according to an October 2011 GAO report. The VA's malpractice payment rates may be similar to national levels, said Anupam B. Jena, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and physician at Massachusetts General Hospital. Ellison's Case Less than 25 percent of the claims filed against the veterans agency result in payment, according to the VA. About 20 percent of malpractice claims filed with the largest insurer of physicians between 1991 and 2005 resulted in a payment, according to a 2011 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, said Jena, who worked on the report. Last year's noticeable increase in medical malpractice payments was partly due to an exceptionally large $17.5 million court judgment, Jackson said in an e-mail. Such payments are highly variable from year to year, she said. That record judgment went to Ellison, who was honorably discharged from the Marines in 2001. He was a 49-year-old electronics technician from Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, in 2007 when he visited the dentist to have eight teeth extracted because of tooth decay and gum disease. During the procedure at a VA facility in Philadelphia, Ellison's blood pressure dropped several times to unusually low levels, his attorney, Shanin Specter, a partner at Kline & Specter P.C., a law firm in the city, said during a 2011 trial. 'Catastrophic' Stroke Ellison wasn't sent to the emergency room, and the dentist continued with the extractions, said Specter, son of Arlen Specter, the former senator from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican for more than 28 years and became a Democrat during his last 20 months in office. Arlen Specter died last year. Ellison had a catastrophic stroke while driving his car shortly after leaving the dentist office, Specter said. The government argued that the veteran's existing health problems caused the stroke, not the care he received at the VA. Ellison had a history of smoking, diabetes, hypertension and many other stroke risk factors, Thomas Johnson, an assistant U.S. attorney, said during the 2011 trial in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia. After the stroke, Ellison was left with limited vocabulary, severe and pervasive deficits in all mental abilities, and negative personality changes, according to court documents. He wound up being totally incapacitated, requiring 24-hour-a-day care, Specter said. This is about as devastating an injury as a person can have, and that's what the award reflects. To contact the reporter on this story: Kathleen Miller in Washington at Kmiller01@ To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stepha The Accident Claimline Ltd (Company Registration Number: 07733126) is an Appointed Representative of Keystone Legal Benefits Ltd (Company Registration Number: 02307623) Find a local Negligence lawyer or law firm using directory below.