Are Medical Malpractice Caps Costing Injured Colorado Residents?
A recent article in the Legal Examiner, a legal periodical, asks provocative questions as to whether Colorado’s medical malpractice caps on non-economic damages are costing injured Colorado residents who have been the victims of medical malpractice. The often-cited justification for caps on medical malpractice damages is to prevent the premiums for physicians’ medical malpractice liability insurance from rising too quickly. Nonetheless, as the article suggests, Colorado’s damages caps have not had the intended effect. Instead, according to a recent survey by Medical Liability Monitor, increases in malpractice insurance premium rates are similar in states like Iowa that have no damages caps, as opposed to states like Colorado that do have damages caps in most cases. This begs the question as to whether the victims of medical malpractice are the ones really suffering in this scenario.
Caps on Medical Malpractice Damages under Colorado Law
Under Colorado law, medical malpractice suits have a limit on the compensation amount patients can receive, topped at $300,000 for non-economic damages. These damages can include any adverse effects of an injury that can be difficult to quantify, such as damages for pain and suffering, physical impairment, loss of enjoyment of life, stress, loss of consortium, physical impairment, and disfigurement. In addition to this $300,000 cap on non-economic damages, Colorado has a $1,000,000 compensation cap on total damages allowed for medical malpractice cases. However, under certain circumstances such as lifetime incurred medical expenses and loss of future wages from injuries, total damages may exceed $1,000,000 for recovery. Unlike in some states such as Florida where the state’s Supreme Court has found the law for these caps on medical malpractice unconstitutional, neither the Colorado Legislature nor the Colorado Supreme Court has stepped in to address these situations.
Contact Burg Simpson if You Have Been the Victim of Medical Malpractice in Colorado
The experienced attorneys of Burg Simpson have represented numerous individuals who have suffered serious personal injuries caused by doctors and health care providers’ mistakes or have been killed as a result of medical malpractice in Colorado. Our firm has assembled an expert team consisting of our own nursing staff, as well as outside medical experts, to assist us in representing the unfortunate victims of medical malpractice. At Burg Simpson Law Firm, we have Denver medical malpractice attorneys that focus on representing victims of medical malpractice injuries or wrongful deaths by holding those at fault liable for damages. If you have been injured in connection with the medical treatment you received in Colorado, please contact the skilled trial attorneys of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh and Jardine, P. C. at 303-792-5595 or contact us online today.
