Newborn Jaundice: $46.5M Jury Verdict for Breach of Standard of Care

An Arkansas jury rendered a $46.5 million verdict against a family physician and a hospital in the case of an infant who sustained irreversible brain damage and permanent disability as the result of untreated newborn jaundice.

According to published reports, the child's parents alleged that the family physician managing her care and the hospital where she was born were negligent in their failure to properly manage and treat her newborn jaundice. The child had jaundice and high blood levels of bilirubin in the first 24 hours of life, yet did not receive phototherapy treatment or undergo repeat blood testing before discharge to home. The plaintiffs further alleged that the child developed kernicterus as a result of the untreated jaundice, which led to severe brain damage. The child is unable to walk, speak, or feed herself; she...