Wisconsin jury award is largest since caps dissolved

Physicians and hospitals are pushing to reinstate caps on noneconomic damages before the legislative session ends in March.

By Amy Lynn Sorrel, AMNews staff. Feb. 27, 2006.

A Wisconsin jury delivered an $8.4 million verdict award, including $4.25 million in pain and suffering damages -- the largest award in a medical liability case since the state Supreme Court tossed out caps on noneconomic damages in July 2005.

If caps were still in place, the jury could have awarded only $445,775 in pain and suffering, also known as noneconomic damages.

A Dane County jury on Jan. 31 found Madison, Wis., general surgeon Paul Huepenbecker, MD, and Dean Health System negligent in performing acid reflux surgery on Jessica Greenfield. The woman sued after she suffered gastrointestinal problems that left her disabled after the surgery.

In a statement, Dean Hospital System denied the allegations that the doctor was negligent and said it was evaluating the possibility of an appeal. "Clearly the recent removal of the caps for noneconomic damages allowed for a significant award for pain and suffering," the hospital said.

The medical community said the award confirms its fears that growing awards in medical liability cases will encourage more lawsuits and lead to rising insurance premiums. Doctors and hospitals have expressed an urgency that legislators support reinstating a cap on the pain and suffering damages that juries can award.