ok personal injury noneconomic cap
Oklahoma Woman Severely Burned by Medical Negligence Speaks Out Against New Tort Reform
A new bill is being considered in Oklahoma that would place a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages for personal injury cases. However, one Oklahoma woman is speaking out against the reform since she sustained severe burn injuries from the waist up due to medical negligence, in 2009 according to OKWatchdog.com. The retired eighth grade teacher, who had endured cancer and chemotherapy, underwent reconstructive surgery, during which a cauterizing tool ignited alcohol that had been used to disinfect the woman.
According to the woman, the cap would only further hurt those who had already suffered so much due to medical negligence in Oklahoma. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO) reports that approximately 100 medical fires occur each year, and result in at least 20 injuries and about two deaths. Because these types of injuries can be so severe and often require lifetime care, a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages would cover only a small fraction of the suffering that some of these patients have been forced to suffer.