Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Texas

Re: Medical Bills

There is no easy way to "make the first surgeon eliminate all of the bills associated with the first surgery." You would have to file a "medical negligence" claim (commonly called "malpractice") against the first doctor for damages and collect from his insurance company, which is not easy. Insurance companies fight these cases vigorously and win the majority of them. The really bad news about malpractice cases is that we live in Texas, a state that, due to our current governor, Rick Perry, and his predecessor, George Bush, is so pro-doctor and anti-patient, there is almost no such thing as medical malpractice anymore. You may know that our legislature, under great pressure from Gov. Perry and the medical lobby, passed Proposition 12 in 2004, and the voters of this state approved it. The practical effect of this legislation is to make it so unlikely that you can find a doctor who is willing to testify against another doctor (which is an essential part of a malpractice claim) that malpractice has virtually ceased to exist in Texas. Also, the caps on damages make it very difficult to recover enough money to pay for the cost of litigation. In short, all medical malpractice cases in Texas require that you, the injured party, prove that the doctor was negligent and that it was this negligence that caused your injury. The case cannot be based upon your feelings, suspicions, or suppositions. It must be based on expert testimony from a doctor that your surgeon was negligent.

The statute of limitations requires that you settle your claim or file a lawsuit on your claim within two years of the date of your doctor's negligence or your claim will be barred forever.