Most people don’t think about medical malpractice until it happens to them. In this episode of Bayou Justice, Louisiana medical malpractice attorney, T.C. Wicker, walks through the real barriers Louisiana patients face when navigating the state’s malpractice system, and why so few attorneys are willing to take these cases on.
Frequently Asked Questions About Louisiana’s Medical Malpractice System
- How dangerous is medical malpractice compared to other leading causes of death in the United States? Medical malpractice is estimated to kill between 250,000 and 440,000 Americans per year, making it the third leading cause of death in the country, behind only heart disease and cancer. That figure is three to five times greater than the combined annual deaths from gunshot wounds and vehicle accidents.
- What is Louisiana’s current cap on medical malpractice damages, and how long has it been in place? Louisiana caps total medical malpractice damages at $500,000, a limit that has not been meaningfully updated since the Medical Malpractice Act was passed in 1975. Of that amount, the individual wrongdoer, whether a doctor, hospital, or nursing home, is only required to pay $100,000, regardless of how catastrophic the injury or death.
- How does Louisiana’s medical malpractice cap compare to neighboring and surrounding states? Louisiana stands out as the most restrictive state in the nation. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, and Oklahoma have no damage caps at all. Mississippi and Texas cap only general damages while leaving economic damages like lost income uncapped. Indiana, the state whose 1975 system Louisiana modeled its law after, has since raised its cap to over one million dollars and built in a cost-of-living adjustment.
- Why is it so difficult to find a medical malpractice attorney in Louisiana? Very few personal injury attorneys in Louisiana are willing to take medical malpractice cases because the combination of factors makes them extremely risky from a business standpoint. Cases take longer to litigate, require expensive expert witnesses, are harder to prove under Louisiana’s jury instructions, and the damage cap severely limits potential recovery, making it difficult to justify the time and financial investment.
- What is Louisiana’s mandatory medical review panel, and how does it affect victims? Before a medical malpractice victim in Louisiana can file a lawsuit, they must first go through a mandatory medical review panel, a process that can take three to four years. No other professional group, including attorneys and CPAs, faces this kind of prerequisite. The panel delays access to justice and drives up legal costs for all parties, while doing little to reduce the number of claims filed.
- How does Louisiana’s one-year prescription period impact medical malpractice victims? Louisiana gives malpractice victims only one year to file a claim, one of the shortest deadlines in the country. By comparison, the Louisiana legislature recently extended the filing period for car accident cases to two years. Medical malpractice cases are far more complex, often requiring victims to first discover that negligence occurred, leaving many people with legitimate claims unable to find an attorney in time.
- Is there a relationship between Louisiana’s weak malpractice laws and the state’s poor healthcare outcomes? Patient advocates and legal experts argue the connection is direct. Louisiana consistently ranks among the worst states in the country for healthcare quality, according to sources including U.S. News & World Report. When financial consequences for negligence are minimal, there is little legal deterrent for substandard care, particularly in nursing homes and hospital systems.
- What reforms are being proposed to fix Louisiana’s medical malpractice system? Advocates are calling for several key changes: raising the $500,000 damage cap and indexing it to inflation so it keeps pace with the cost of living, eliminating or reforming the mandatory medical review panel system, and extending the prescription period for filing malpractice claims. Louisianans who want to support reform can visit patientrightsla.com to find their legislators and take action.
