Passaic County Nursing Facility To Pay $6.2M Settlement

Passaic County Nursing Facility To Pay $6.2M Settlement

Introduction

Families of the children who were harmed and died in a mishap at a pediatric nursing facility in Passaic County in 2018 due to a viral outbreak will receive a $6.2 million settlement.

As per the court documents, 35 children were infected, and 11 died because of adenovirus, a typically mild illness that affected the weakened immune of the disabled children residing at Wanaque. One of the employees of the facility also got infected.

The families of the plaintiffs have filed the wrongful death lawsuit accusing that the center did not inform the parents about the outbreak and even delayed transferring the children to the hospital for further treatment even after repeatedly pleaded by their family members.

The plaintiff's attorney said that the families of the children are satisfied with the settlement and hope that such an incident does not happen in the future. He added that the children who survived the infection were close to death and spent months at the hospital.

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services investigated the mishap and concluded that the outbreak was the result of the absence of leadership, the lack of an infection control plan and an absentee medical director.

Lawsuits involving hundreds of patients who alleged a now-retired Munster doctor and healthcare providers for performing and billing unnecessary cardiac procedures have been settled for $66.5 million.

The settlement announcement was made by two law firms from Indianapolis and Merrillville, but the terms of the settlement were maintained confidential.

In October 2014, the Indianapolis-based law firm had announced that 20 medical malpractice lawsuits were filed against the doctor and his associates at Cardiology Associates of Northwest Indiana P.C. (CANI) and Community Hospital of Munster.

The defendants were already facing a whistleblower complaint in the Indiana Northern District Court, which got settled without adjudication of liability. The number of claims later grew to nearly 300, with each asserting the same underlying issue.

The multi-million-dollar settlement announcement brought an end to the long-running litigation against the northwest Indiana cardiologist and his associates. However, the scale and specifics of the allegations against the defendants have been stated to be difficult to distinguish.

The settlement amount also includes a partial payment by the Indiana Patient's Compensation Fund. It covers malpractice claims beyond the limit of $250,000 and up to a statutory cap of $1.25 million.

One of the incidents included where the doctors unnecessarily elongated the process of medications for the victim who suffered from an electrical shock. The plaintiff filed a lawsuit with allegations against the defendants of implanting a pacemaker for unnecessary reasons and prescribing a substantial dose of heart medication for unclear reasons.

Another case alleged the defendants of implanting a defibrillator to prevent sudden cardiac death which was also an unnecessary attempt of the defendants to elongate the tenure of treatment. The plaintiff sued the defendants for $3 million in pain and suffering because of the implantation of the unwanted device.