Most people trust their doctors unequivocally, and for good reason. However, unsettling claims have been made about a group of doctors accused of Pennsylvania medical malpractice in relation to unnecessary and dangerous surgeries performed at UPMC hospital. The suit alleges that a dozen doctors practicing at UPMC recommended and performed overly complex surgeries that cost more than less aggressive treatments. Some of the surgeries resulted in serious and life-long injury for the patients.
The lawsuit unsealed a ‘whistle-blower’ suit involving the same defendants in which the accused paid the Justice Department $2.5 million in order to avoid admitting fault. Several parties have come forward to report that the unnecessary surgeries or treatments that they received from their doctors at UPMC injured them for life. Many of the plaintiffs suffer from paralysis or chronic pain after going through with a recommended surgery or treatment from the accused doctors. This suit is on-going and hospital negligence is alleged on behalf of UPMC for overbilling in connection with the doctors’ treatment plans.
There must have been hundreds of patients treated by these doctors are UPMC over the years. That thought is staggering in connection to the allegations made by patients in which doctors are accused of over-treating and thus over-billing insurance companies and patients. Many more people could have been affected that have yet to come forward. Medical malpractice claims seek reparations for unnecessary injuries a patient suffers at the hands of doctors and related parties.
The injuries that patients sustained are severe and to think that they could have been easily avoided by a different treatment plan is a harrowing thought. Many more patients may have been affected. This lawsuit seeks to recover damages that patients sustained due to medical malpractice.
Source: post-gazette.com, “Overly complex surgeries alleged in lawsuits against former UPMC surgeon,” July 29, 2016