Massachusetts Accepts Loss of Chance Doctrine

On Wednesday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court acknowledged, for the first time, that the loss of chance doctrine was good law in that jurisdiction:

“Where a physician’s negligence reduces or eliminates the patient’s prospects for achieving a more favorable medical outcome, the physician has harmed the patient and is liable for damages,” the court said in a decision written by Chief Justice Margaret Marshall.

Damages will be awarded proportionate to the diminished survival rate caused by the physician’s negligence.  The full story is here.

–CJR