The value of every medical malpractice claim depends heavily on its own facts, the patient’s injuries, and the long-term consequences. Some malpractice claims settle for relatively modest amounts, while catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases may involve high-dollar settlements or verdicts.
Factors that Affect the Value of a Case
There are numerous factors that make up the value of a medical malpractice case. The severity of the injuries is presumably the most important.
Cases involving permanent disability or wrongful death often involve significantly larger damages than cases involving temporary injuries or short-term complications.
The value of the claim may also depend on:
- The patient’s age
- The patient’s earning ability
- Future medical care needs
- Whether the injury is permanent
- The impact of the injuries on a patient’s daily life
- The cost of ongoing treatment and rehabilitation
- Available insurance coverages
There may also be other factors that influence your case value, including New Mexico’s non-economic damages caps.
What Damages Can a Medical Malpractice Claim Provide?
Medical malpractice damages are generally divided into economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages compensate for measurable financial losses such as:
- Hospital bills
- Surgery costs
- Rehabilitation expenses
- Future medical care
- Lost income
- Reduced earning capacity
Non-economic damages compensate for personal losses that are harder to measure financially. These damages may include:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Disability
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Disfigurement
Non-economic damages can make up a huge portion of a malpractice award, often 1.5x or greater than the economic damages award. This makes sense because malpractice incidents often cause serious personal and emotional hardships that do not have a precise dollar value but affect a patient’s life in profound ways.
Wrongful death claims may also involve damages related to funeral expenses and loss of financial support and companionship.
Non-Economic Damages Caps
New Mexico caps non-economic damages, which can significantly limit the value of your claim. These caps are based on the provider type. For independent healthcare providers, the cap on non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, is limited to $750,000. The cap for hospitals and outpatient facilities is much higher and scales over time. Currently, the limit is $6,000,000.
Importantly, there are no caps on economic damages, meaning you can recover full compensation for the financial consequences related to malpractice.
Hospitals and Insurers Will Challenge High Value Cases
Insurance coverage and the defendant’s available assets may also affect the practical value of the case. Medical malpractice claims are often heavily defended because the potential damages can be substantial.
Hospitals and insurers frequently dispute liability and minimize the extent of the injuries involved. These tactics help reduce their financial exposure but may leave you with an undervalued case.
The best way to determine the money you can recover after a malpractice event is to consult an experienced attorney. An attorney can help you evaluate your losses and work with experts to quantify how your injuries impact you now and will impact you in the future.