Nursing home facilities nationwide continue to be hit with large verdicts in negligence cases due to improper treatment of the elderly residents placed under their care, according to a recent Senior Housing News article.
Trans Healthcare Inc. was just slammed with $1 billion in punitive damages and $110 million in compensatory damages regarding the death of a female resident in 2007, the company's fourth major verdict within the state of Florida. The 69-year-old woman suffered multiple falls while at the facility, which did not provide proper supervision, according to the lawsuit.
Other staggering damages against nursing home corporations in recent years include a $91.5 million judgment against HCR ManorCare in August 2011 for failure to properly care for a resident who died shortly after a brief stay at its Charleston, West Virginia facility. Emiritus was found guilty of elder abuse and wrongful death in a lawsuit brought against the company by the family of a former resident who allegedly developed fatal pressure sores at an Emeritus-operated assisted living community.
While neglect was originally defined by the Nursing Home Care Act as a long-term care facility's failure to provide adequate medical or personal care or maintenance, resulting in physical or mental injury or deterioration to a resident, the state of Illinois has broadened that definition to cover all neglectful care, whether it results in an injury or not. Read the full details here:
Nursing Home Slammed with $1.1 Billion Verdict in Negligence Case
Verdicts of this magnitude are generally cited by the media as excessive and examples of the need for tort reform. However, the amount of this $1.1 billion verdict will obviously cause a change in the system which may benefit thousands of families and patients in nursing homes around the country.
If you or someone you love has been injured due to nursing home abuse or negligence, call the professionals at Crandall & Pera Law for a free case evaluation. Crandall & Pera Law is available to help answer your questions and guide you in determining your next steps.