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Family Who Sued Kaiser After Daughter’s Death Fights Law That Limits Malpractice Payout
CBSLA.com) ^ | January 15, 2014 11:20 PM | Stacey Butler

Posted on 01/16/2014 10:15:30 AM PST by BenLurkin

BALDWIN PARK (CBSLA.com) — A family who sued Kaiser Permanente Medical Center after the death of their 10-year-old daughter is outraged over a law that limits the payout in a malpractice suit.

Dekel Zelig said his wife took their daughter, Daniela, to Kaiser in Baldwin Park after the youngster wasn’t feeling well in March 2012.

“She was vomiting, she was nauseous, she had a fever, she didn’t feel good,” Zelig said.

The father said the doctor sent Daniela home without monitoring her blood pressure or taking an X-ray. He said the doctor checked his daughter’s lungs with a stethoscope on top of her jacket.

“She said she’s got the flu, she gave her some Tylenol, they went back home,” Zelig said.

The next morning, however, Daniela’s little brother found her in bed—lifeless.

“She died the next morning in the house,” Zelig said.

Zelig said an autopsy in the morgue revealed the truth.

“He told us she had probably five days pneumonia prior coming to the doctor,” Zelig said.

CBS2’s Stacey Butler reported that the Zelig family decided to sue Kaiser, but most attorneys wouldn’t take their case.

“For the loss of a loved one in terms of the loss of love and comfort…is $250,000. That’s been the law for the last 39 years,” attorney Jin Lew said.

Zelig wasn’t entitled to more money because of the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act, which limits the payout in a malpractice suit if a non-wage earning family member is killed.

“It’s outrageous. It’s unbelievable. It’s a joke. It’s adding insult to injury,” Zelig said.

Zelig and his attorney plan to take the fight against the MICRA cap to legislature.

In a statement, Kaiser Permanente spokesperson Sandra Hernandez-Millett said, “Our deepest sympathies go out to the Zelig family for the passing of their daughter Daniela. Especially following a tragedy like this, we review our care to ensure that we are taking all appropriate steps to provide high quality care. We reinforce our commitment to our patients’ health, to delivering quality care, and to continuous quality improvement.”


TOPICS: US: California
KEYWORDS: kaiserpermanente; malpractice; zelig
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To: BenLurkin
Loosing a child is heartbreaking, how much money does it take to make one feel better. The most I see here is a missed diagnosis. Every time a mistake is made we aren't entitled to a lot of money.
21 posted on 01/16/2014 11:29:20 AM PST by ontap
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To: DemforBush

Concur. Limit the payout to the layers, but don’t cap the actual payout to those type of cases (IE: wrong let/etc.)

In this case, IMHO, there appears to be plenty of blame to go around (family doctor seen?)


22 posted on 01/16/2014 11:30:54 AM PST by i_robot73 (Give me one example and I will show where gov't is the root of the problem(s).)
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To: EricT.

“And they repeatedly called one of my family members to try to bully her into aborting her son....”

O.M.G.

I hope she gave them hell and I’m glad her baby was OK.

No, I’m on the east coast, we don’t have these fine providers on this side of the country.

And thank goodness!


23 posted on 01/16/2014 11:32:31 AM PST by jocon307
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To: Myrddin

I am so sorry about your son.


24 posted on 01/16/2014 11:32:43 AM PST by informavoracious (Open your eyes, people!)
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To: EricT.

I love Kaiser...never have had a problem. My sister and myself were born a Kaiser and my daughters were born at Kaiser. No complaints here...


25 posted on 01/16/2014 11:34:14 AM PST by halo66
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To: spel_grammer_an_punct_polise

I have never read or heard anything about Jim Henson having AIDS, so I looked him up on wikipedia.

There seems no reason to think that he had AIDS or had any underlying issue that would have led him to contract it. He was married and had 5 children, he was not a hemophiliac, and was not a drug addict.

Here is the final statement from wiki re: the cause of death “The official cause of death was first reported as Streptococcus pneumoniae, a bacterial infection.[4] Bacterial pneumonia is usually caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, an alpha-hemolytic species of Streptococcus. Henson’s cause of death, however, was organ failure resulting from streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (caused by Streptococcus pyogenes).[33] S. pyogenes is the bacterial species that causes strep throat, scarlet fever and rheumatic fever. It can also cause other infections.”

There is a longer discussion about it, his wife is quoted to the effect that his Christian Science upbringing might have had some influence on his reluctance to seek care earlier.

However, it does appear I was wrong about the type of disease he had (this medical stuff and there’s plenty of links in the piece - is a little beyond me), as he was sick for sometime before he died.

Sometimes young (or in Henson’s case younger) people do die of diseases and there is no good explanation for why it happened. Sadly I’ve known a few people to whom this happened. It’s very difficult on them and their families.


26 posted on 01/16/2014 11:41:31 AM PST by jocon307
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To: spel_grammer_an_punct_polise
As I recall, he died of pneumonia as a result of AIDS. Nothing would have helped him if that is true.

You recall incorrectly. Henson died as the result of a streptoccal infection. He'd had symptoms for a couple of weeks and ignored them.

27 posted on 01/16/2014 11:47:08 AM PST by DoodleDawg
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To: BenLurkin

Caps on malpractice payouts is one of the GOP’s proposals for reducing the cost of health care. The child’s death is a tragedy but a multi-million dollar malpractice payout is not going to bring her back.


28 posted on 01/16/2014 11:49:42 AM PST by DoodleDawg
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To: DemforBush

Problem is, greedy plaintiff lawyers are shameless in their demands for “care, comfort and society” awards.

The MICRA caps are a good thing — and a similar cap is needed for all wrongful death actions.


29 posted on 01/16/2014 11:51:20 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: Osage Orange
I had just started a new job and didn't really have time to take off. It was really bad timing for a case of pneumonia.
30 posted on 01/16/2014 11:53:14 AM PST by Myrddin
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To: DoodleDawg; informavoracious

Please see my post #29


31 posted on 01/16/2014 11:54:16 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: spel_grammer_an_punct_polise

Not true. I was there.

He had overwhelming pneumococcal pneumonia and went from healthy to dead in about 6 hours.

If he had AIDS, it’s news to all the people at New York Hospital who took care of him.


32 posted on 01/16/2014 11:58:37 AM PST by Jim Noble (When strong, avoid them. Attack their weaknesses. Emerge to their surprise.)
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To: informavoracious
I am so sorry about your son.

Me too. There was nothing to be done about it aside from warning others about the danger of Z-Pak for cardiac patients. Vanderbilt University published a study about the danger just 5 hours after my son passed. Z-Pak extends to the QT interval and in some patients that extends to the point of sudden cardiac death. There were 235 documented cases in the study. We coughed up $5,000 for his basic cremation and a memorial service. The only thing a "settlement" might offer is funds to properly inter his ashes. My brother-in-law died in Jan 2012 and took the "spare" space with my mother-in-law. We had to pay for his cremation/interment ahead of my son. It was a bad start to 2012.

33 posted on 01/16/2014 12:02:18 PM PST by Myrddin
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To: spel_grammer_an_punct_polise

I think that you may be thinking of someone else.


34 posted on 01/16/2014 12:07:32 PM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: Osage Orange

Kaiser was NEVER the best. They ALWAYS have been known as a cheap and cheesey HMO.


35 posted on 01/16/2014 12:15:07 PM PST by CodeToad (When ignorance rules a person's decision they are resorting to superstition.)
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To: BenLurkin
...the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act, which limits the payout in a malpractice suit if a non-wage earning family member is killed.

Interesting.

FMCDH(BITS)

36 posted on 01/16/2014 12:22:23 PM PST by nothingnew (I fear for my Republic due to marxist influence in our government. Open eyes/see)
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To: Myrddin
Myrddin said: "Kaiser isn't all bad."

Perhaps.

Many years ago they misdiagnosed my brothers appendicitis and prescribed a laxative. That advice is counter to what I, as a Boy Scout, knew of first aid. We didn't administer a laxative.

Twelve hours later my brother was operated on and had his ready-to-burst appendix removed.

Years later an ambulance was rear-ended in a nearby town. The driver of the ambulance was transported by the second ambulance to a Kaiser hospital despite the driver's vehement protestations.

X-rays at the hospital showed no injuries, so the driver was released to go home. Several days later the ailing driver was diagnosed with a fractured spine using the x-ray taken by Kaiser.

I know of another Kaiser patient who was recovering from Guy-Barre syndrome, which can cause total paralysis. Although he almost died one time when the nurse failed to notice that his trach tube had become detached, he was still appreciative of the otherwise excellent care provided by Kaiser during his treatment and rehabilitation.

The lesson I learned from this is that one must be thoroughly convinced of the diagnosis independent of Kaiser before one should submit to their procedures.

I have selected alternatives to Kaiser my entire adult life and will continue to do so.

37 posted on 01/16/2014 2:02:33 PM PST by William Tell
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To: Jim Noble

The information was provided by the MSM back when I was listening to the MSM.


38 posted on 01/16/2014 2:43:46 PM PST by spel_grammer_an_punct_polise (What we need is to sucker the fedthugs into a "Tiananmen Square"-like incident on the National Mall!)
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To: CodeToad
Well....I dunno.

Frankly I never had it...but seems to me back in the late 70's early 80's folks swore by Kaiser Insurance.

Now....when I was still in SoCal in the mid-90's they sucked....at least according to my co-worker's.

39 posted on 01/16/2014 4:13:04 PM PST by Osage Orange (I have strong feelings about gun control. If there's a gun around, I want to be controlling it.)
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To: Jim Noble

6 hrs?


40 posted on 01/16/2014 4:14:23 PM PST by Osage Orange (I have strong feelings about gun control. If there's a gun around, I want to be controlling it.)
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