Alabama High Court Denies Immunity for Hospital, Upholds $3.2M Verdict

The Alabama Supreme Court has upheld a jury’s $3.2 million medical malpractice judgment involving a Montgomery hospital.

The court ruled on Feb. 28 that the university-affiliated Health Care Authority for Baptist Health that ran the hospital did not qualify for the legal immunity granted to state entities.

The court in a 6-3 decision rejected the hospital’s request for rehearing.

The case dates back to 2005 when a 73-year-old woman was treated in the emergency room of Baptist Medical Center East. She tested positive for a dangerous drug-resistant bacteria, but the results were not communicated to her treating physician. She later died.

The court in 2011 had tossed out the judgment, saying that immunity should be extended to Baptist Health because of its relationship with the University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System.

But the Supreme Court found that even though the authority running the public hospital was created by the legislature, the authority is not entitled to state immunity because the functions of the hospital, unlike those of law enforcement, are not unique to government. The court also found that the legislature anticipated public hospitals being sued by specifically acknowledging in the law their right to defend themselves.