Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in California
My daughter has a baby for which she only has Medi-Cal coverage. In Nov. 2011 she began to notice the baby having what appeared to be seizures. She immediately contact baby's dr. office and they told her they would refer her to a neurologist consultation. She was unable to get the parties involved with approving referral to act on the task for nearly 5 months. They already had seen the baby of several occasions and knew he was delayed in the development of normal babies, such as sitting up, crawling, etc. They maintained he was "normal" at each well-baby check-up. After daily pleadings to get the referral finalized, the baby was seen by a pediatric neuro doc, and was subsequently diagnosed with Infantile Spasms, WEST SYNDROME. The neuro dr was angry about the delay on referral and said even first year medical students would know the baby had a serious problem. The illness has a poor prognosis for baby. The best outcomes happen when the condition is treated aggressively at the first possible signs. What, if any, legal rights or actions does my daughter have in this situation? The baby is being treated by a major team and we were told he would likely be mentally and physically handicapped for his entire life due to the current status of his health condition.
2 Answers from Attorneys
There is a medical malpractice case that should be investigated and begun right away. The family may be enitiled to compensatoion for what it will cost to care for the child through its expected life.
You may have the family telephone me at 800.894-2889.
This should be investigated to determine if there is medical malpractice. I am available to speak to the family if they wish. My phone number is 213-213-1500.
Marsha Barr-Fernandez
Heimberg Law Group LLP
www.heimberglaw.com