Articles and Blogs

The Journal of the American Medical Association recently reported data breaches have affected 29 million medical records. Of that number, approximately 60 percent of the breaches between 2010 and 2013 resulted directly from theft. These statistics reported by JAMA should leave many hospital administrators nervous about the possibility of future data breaches. A hospital’s... READ MORE

In WI v. Going Places Travel Corp., Nos. 2014AP1859-62 (April 14, 2015), the Wisconsin Court of Appeals affirmed a $3.8 million restitution order and nearly $842,000 in forfeitures against companies (“Travel Services”) stemming from multiple misrepresentations and failures to disclose required information when selling travel club memberships to Wisconsin residents. In this case, Travel... READ MORE

In Bank of New York Mellon v. Carson, 2015 WI 2015 (Feb. 17, 2015), the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that Wis. Stat. § 846.102, the statute governing the foreclosure of abandoned properties, authorizes circuit courts to compel mortgagees to bring an abandoned property to sale after the expiration of the five-week redemption period. The... READ MORE

On Tuesday, March 31, the Supreme Court of the United States issued an opinion denying individual Medicaid providers the ability to sue state officials in court for failing to reimburse them appropriately under §1396a(30)(A) of the Medicaid Act. In a 5-4 decision, the Court rejected the providers’ argument that the Act or the Constitution... READ MORE

In Indiana Patient’s Compensation Fund v. Holcomb, the Indiana Supreme Court addressed a question of first impression regarding whether Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act’s cap on attorney fees from a Patient Compensation Fund (“Fund”) award also applies to reduce the Fund’s liability. Holcomb was an adult wrongful death medical malpractice case in which the trial... READ MORE

The Fourth District of the Appellate Court of Illinois reaffirmed that claims by a physician that a hospital’s failure to renew his privileges caused actual and intentional harm to his professional reputation are barred by the Illinois’s Hospital Licensing Act. Only claims alleging an actual or deliberate intention to physically harm the physician or others trump a hospital’s... READ MORE

This month’s announcement of the recent Anthem Data Breach sent shockwaves through the health care industry with some experts referring to 2015 as the “year of the health care hack.” Those who collect and store health data have been racing to strengthen security protocols and to understand their risk exposure. In a first-of-its-kind case in... READ MORE

Recently, a federal District Court for the Northern District of Indiana ruled that pharmacists in Indiana are not subject to patient lawsuits for their refusal to dispense certain prescriptions but can be sued by prescribing physicians for related claims or face administrative actions by the state for improperly refusing to fill a prescription.  Therefore, pharmacies and pharmacists should carefully determine when they... READ MORE

The Indiana Court of Appeals recently ruled the trial court erred in dismissing a patient’s Intentional Infliction of Emotion Distress (“IIED”) claim based on the lack of subject matter jurisdiction.  In this claim, the patient was admitted to the hospital while unconscious and under the influence of phencyclidine, a medication commonly known as the... READ MORE

On September 5, 2014, the Indiana Court of Appeals issued an opinion affirming the trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the hospital defendant.  Plaintiff asserted teaching hospitals have a duty to specifically identify on its consent forms (both by name and qualification) all medical personnel, including interns and residents, that may... READ MORE