Baltimore hospital hit with 104 lawsuits alleging unnecessary stenting
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Earlier this year, 585 patients received word from SJMC that their cardiac stent procedures may have been unwarranted and a 19-page lawsuit was filed in Baltimore by Murphy PA and the Law Offices of Peter G. Angelos, PC, against Midei.
On Sept. 30, attorney Jay Miller and his firm Miller, Murtha & Psoras in Lutherville, Md., filed the suits against SJMC. “The lawsuits were filed because of St. Joseph’s absolute refusal to be fair to the very patients they sent letters to informing them that they had a stent placed that was not needed,” Miller said in a press statement.
Miller alleged that while SJMC admitted their wrongdoing and warned cardiac patients that their blockages may have been insignificant and non-severe, he said the facility said that “they would absolutely take care of all those who received stents they didn’t need.
“This was a public relations ploy,” he urged. “They [SJMC] have simply refused to engage in meaningful settlement discussion,” Miller noted. “The lawsuits were filed as a direct result of SJMC’s unwillingness to accept responsibility for their conduct.”
The Baltimore Sun reported that stenting procedures brought in an estimated $222 million to Maryland hospitals in the past fiscal year alone. Drug-eluting stents cost hospital labs approximately $2,500 per stent.
Miller said he and representatives from SJMC and Mid-Atlantic Cardiovascular Associates, along with Midei, met for more than 20 hours to discuss the cases; however, he said that “SJMC is not willing to accept responsibility and is not willing to compensate their patients.”