According to the Associated Press, the family of a Virginia boy who was birthed in a Hawaii military hospital has reached a $9 million settlement with the facility after he was born with cerebral palsy.
According to the AP, the settlement was recorded in a federal court in Honolulu on January 27, only needing the approval of the U.S. Department of Justice before being awarded.
In a lawsuit, the family of Noah Whitney claims he was born in 2010 at Tripler Army Medical Center with a “catastrophic brain injury” because of negligence on the part of the facility.
The family alleged that healthcare providers failed to respond appropriately to signs and symptoms of uterine rupture in Noah’s mother and took too long to perform a cesarean section.
According to the AP, “Laura Whitney arrived at the hospital on Sept. 7, 2010 with severe lower abdominal pain at about 35 weeks of pregnancy. The pregnancy was closely monitored because of previous miscarriages and the complicated birth of her first child, Evan.”
The lawsuit claimed that Laura was at risk for uterine rapture in connection with future pregnancies following the birth of her first child and that there was a failure to “promptly notify and consult the obstetrician who had been managing” her care.
The family said in the lawsuit that Noah’s brain injury is so severe that he will require 24-hour care for the remainder of his life.
Should I Contact a Cerebral Palsy Attorney?
This story is similar to another story we discussed earlier this month where a Fort Hood family sued the federal government for $6.5 million after their child was born with cerebral palsy.
Does your child suffer from cerebral palsy that was caused by medical negligence? In most cases, cerebral palsy is caused right before or during delivery if a fetus does not receive enough oxygen. This can occur when a healthcare provider fails to order a caesarian section delivery, or improperly uses forceps or a vacuum extractor.
As was mentioned in this lawsuit, cerebral palsy victims often require 24-hour care, as they suffer from intellectual limitations, hearing deficits, vision impairment, behavioral problems, seizures, speaking difficulties and learning disabilities.
Please contact our cerebral palsy attorney at our firm immediately if your son or daughter is suffering, so that we may advise you of your legal rights and get your family the financial compensation to which it is entitled. You can meet with our birth injury attorneys to see what options are available to you. For more information, call our firm at 1 (800) 460-0606 to schedule a free consultation.
[Did You Know: According to the CDC, cerebral palsy is 1.2 times more likely to occur among boys than girls.]
Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – Birth Injury Attorneys
Source: h http://www.ktvu.com/news/ap/defense/lawyers-9m-settlement-for-boys-cerebral-palsy/nc56j/
