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Damages in Bardstown Medical Malpractice Cases

For any negligence case in Kentucky, including a medical malpractice case, a person is always entitled to recover damages for four basic things. These include medical bills, future medical bills, any lost income, and both past and future pain and suffering.

The damages available in a Bardstown medical malpractice case can be both overwhelming and complex. To ensure that a proper case is built to pursue such damages, it is critical that you contact a Bardstown medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible.

Types of Damages

The first of four damages an individual can recover in a Bardstown medical malpractice case is for all of the person’s medical bills. Second is any future medical bills that the person has that are related to the injury or that are going to be related to this injury. These damages are easy to prove, as the person just has to calculate their medical bills and have a doctor determine the projected cost of the future medical bills. For more information contact our Bardstown personal injury lawyer.

The third thing a person is entitled to recover is any lost income or any impairment to their ability to earn income. This covers any lost wages for days that a person missed at work, and will also cover costs in the future. For example, if an individual lost an arm, an expert could evaluate what the loss of an arm could do to a person’s ability to earn income.

Finally, a person is entitled to recover both past and future pain and suffering. Theoretically, this is supposed to be an amount of money that makes it worth having gone through what the person has gone through so as to make it worth it to the person.

Noneconomic

The noneconomic damages in a Bardstown medical malpractice case are unique in that they are harder to quantify. It is not as easy as showing a medical bill or loss of income. Also, these damages are going to be individualized depending upon the person.

It may require a lot of testimony from family members and friends who can attest to how an individual normally acted and now cannot act because of said injury. It is a unique situation for each individual person.

Punitive

Punitive damages are allowed if a person can show something more than negligence. A person has to show that somebody acted with malice. That is not normally the case in medical malpractice cases. There are other cases, for example, where a doctor that is sexually abusing patients or has an addiction problem may be performing surgeries impaired. This is unlikely, but if it is the case, an individual can recover said damages in their Bardstown medical malpractice case.

Calculating Damages

Damages in a Bardstown medical malpractice case are calculated by category. If it is medical expenses, attorneys get certified copies of the medical bills, regardless of if they have been paid or whether or not there was insurance. It is important to know the amount of the bill. When it comes to the loss of income, economists are hired that have the ability to do the calculations.

For both the past and future medical expenses and the loss of income, impairment, and disability income, expert testimony can help figure those out.

On the pain and suffering side, generally, calculations are done by looking back at other cases of similar situations in the past. It is up to the jury to decide.

Statute of Limitations

In Kentucky, medical malpractice cases have a one-year statute of limitations from the date of the injury. Therefore, to pursue the appropriate damages from their medical malpractice case in Bardstown, it is critical that they contact a lawyer immediately. There is a caveat that if the person is continuing to be treated with the same doctor for that injury that statute can be extended. It is one year, because if the person can get treatment for one year, they should not have to rely on any exceptions.

There is a caveat that if the person is continuing to be treated with the same doctor for that injury that statute can be extended. It is one year, because if the person can get treatment for one year, they should not have to rely on any exceptions.

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