NY Medical Malpractice Law

New York legislation to change the state’s medical malpractice law did not pass before the end of the current session. Lavern’s Law is named after Lavern Wilkinson, a 41-year-old mother who died in 2013 of a curable form of lung cancer. By the time she filed a malpractice complaint, the statute of limitations had run out.  Another cancer patient, Elissa McMahon was treated for what doctors told her were benign uterine fibroids in 2012.  Two years later, her new doctors told her that she had advanced uterine cancer that had spread to her liver and spine and that the disease should have been caught in 2012. As in Wilkinson’s case, it was too late to file a malpractice suit.

Statutes of limitations are dependent upon the cause of action and vary from state to state. The passage of Lavern’s Law in New York would have changed the statute of limitations to begin when an error is discovered, not when the medical mistake occurred. Sponsored by Helene E. Weinstein, A00285 “amends the civil practice law and rules, in relation to accrual of causes of action for medical, dental and podiatric malpractice.”

Oncology lawsuits often allege failure to diagnose and/or failure to treat.  Oncology experts consult and testify in medical negligence cases such as McMahon’s.  They are knowledgeable on applicable laws and skilled in evaluating alleged misdiagnosis and/or mistreatment. These experts can be counted on to present an unbiased and professional assessment to the court as to whether doctors met the medical standard of care for oncology.