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New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer Jeff Bloom reacts to the rejection of Lavern’s Law by the NY State legislature

After Lavern’s Law was left to die by the NY legislature, NYC medical malpractice attorney Jeff Bloom was quoted in Politico saying “The fact that once again the Senate leadership has caved to the will of hospital executives is a slap in the face to the men and women who are injured by careless medical errors and through no fault of their own find out too late to hold anyone accountable”. Jeff Bloom, a senior partner at our firm and the attorney for Elissa McMahon, whose doctors allegedly failed diagnose her uterine cancer, added: “[Senate Majority Leader John] Flanagan should look Lissy McMahon, her son Jack and other victims in the eye and explain why he is protecting negligent doctors rather than letting them have their day in court.” (For more info on the rejection of the Lavern’s Law by the NY legislature see our previous blog.)

The Lavern’s Law bill was not the only health care bill that didn’t make the cut in Albany.  HIV and AIDS advocates were expecting a $70 million in funding for housing that didn’t go through despite a previous announcement by Governor Cuomo that $200 million would be spent to fight the epidemic. A Cuomo task force dedicated to end the HIV epidemic also recommended passing the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act and the Reproductive Health Act but neither of them made it through the Senate. The Senate also blocked two bills facilitating the distribution of medical marijuana and a universal healthcare bill.

A bill proposing a cap of $250,000 for pain and suffering in medical malpractice cases didn’t make it to the Assembly and another bill that would have relaxed the rules excluding hearsay as admissible evidence made it to the Assembly but was blocked by the Senate.

A bill requiring a separate consent from patients or their loved ones to allow video recording of patients in hospitals and a bill  demanding tightened oversight of nurses and other licensed professionals also failed to pass. These two bills were created after a TV show filmed patients without their consent or the consent of their family at NY Presbyterian Hospital.

Advocates for organ donation won a few bills and also  lost a few as well including one requiring vehicle transporting organs to be listed as emergency vehicles.

A bill that would have protected patients from being given  psychotropic drugs without their consent or the consent of their family also failed.

A bill requiring pharmaceutical companies to evaluate the impact prescription drug prices have on the cost of health insurance and health care didn’t make it either.

Another bill making it easier for patients to get mail order prescription also didn’t make the cut.

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