Massachusetts Personal Injury News
$5M Cerebral Palsy Settlement for Florida Woman
A Florida woman who sued Evac Ambulance was awarded $5 million in a settlement, WESH reported today.
Margarita Chess had a premature baby boy, which she claimed Evac Ambulance deprived of oxygen resulting in a cerebral palsy. She sued Evac for injuries her son received during the premature birth in an ambulance while she was 6 months pregnant in 2006. The birth occurred while she was en route to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando.
The boy suffered brain damage from lack of oxygen, leading to cerebral palsy.
A jury found Evac Ambulance negligent for accepting transport and for the care it provided, while Evac argued that paramedics couldn’t refuse the emergency-room doctor’s order.
Chess was awarded $10 million, but since Evac Ambulance didn’t have enough resources to pay for the settlement, a mediation settlement of $5 million was awarded instead. This allows the Evac Ambulance company to stay afloat and to pursue a claim against its insurance company, court records say.
