Legal News

Stories about physicians and other healthcare professionals involved in lawsuits—as either a plaintiff or a defendant—or accused of breaking the law. Various legal updates or unusual stories in the news may land here.

Over a dozen lawsuits claim Ozempic and Wegovy caused patients to go blind
The lawsuits, filed in multiple states, contend there's a causal link between semaglutide and a rare condition called NAION that leads to diminished eyesight. Plaintiffs want the popular weight-loss drugs to add a warning label.
Nursing homes fined $15M for staffing fraud after guilty verdict
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the judgment, which was issued against two facilities in Pennsylvania. The nursing homes fraudulently billed Medicare and Medicaid for working hours despite staff not being on the floor.
Patient sues surgeon and Allina Health for allegedly removing the wrong organ during surgery
In court documents, an unnamed Minnesota woman said that in 2022, she was admitted to an Allina Health hospital and scheduled for the removal of her infected spleen, only for an error to result in her left kidney being removed instead.
Lavish kickback scandal costs California health system $32M
Community Health System and Physician Network Advantage, an affiliated technology consultancy firm, were accused of bribing physicians for patient referrals in the form of paid vacations, expensive gifts and business meetings held at strip clubs.
Johnson & Johnson MedTech ordered to pay $147M for antitrust violations
The company told Cardiovascular Business it respectfully disagrees with the jury's decision and is evaluating all possible legal options going forward. The Association of Medical Device Reprocessors, meanwhile, celebrated the news.

Healthcare AI newswatch: UnitedHealth lawsuit, humanized medical AI, mobile AI care clinics, more

A federal judge has vacated five of seven complaints against UnitedHealth Group—yet is allowing the AI-implicated suit to advance.

Vandalism broken window property destruction

Hospital delays opening after vandals sledgehammer holes into walls

The grand unveiling of a new Trinity Health System hospital in Ohio has been delayed after vandals smashed up the place. The incident is currently under investigation.

Judge orders HHS agencies to restore health information

A Tuesday ruling gave the FDA, CDC and HHS until midnight to undo the mass deletion of webpages stemming from Trump executive orders.

Cancer patient in pain for months discovers surgical sponge in neck, lawsuit claims

Frank Kryzak has filed a lawsuit against Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital after an exploratory surgery allegedly left him in a mysterious state of agony for four months.

Family of heart patient who died after missing medications in jail settles lawsuit

A 54-year-old heart transplant recipient was unable to take doctor-prescribed medications during his brief stay at a local jail. He died a few days after being released.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) HQ

HHS offers update on comms pause as rapid policy shifts continue

A spokesperson told HealthExec that "several types of external communications" are no longer subject to any pause, including urgent public health alerts.

Medical malpractice gavel diagnostic error mistake stethoscope

Should emergency medicine malpractice protections extend to consultant radiologists?

A California appeals court recently ruled in favor of on-call radiologist Peymam Kangavari, MD, after he was accused of overlooking a bowel obstruction on X-ray and ultrasound images.

Musk’s DOGE granted access to CMS records in search of ‘big money fraud’

The pseudo-government organization led by billionaire Elon Musk has been given read-only access to payment, contract and staffing records at the agency.

Legal News

Over a dozen lawsuits claim Ozempic and Wegovy caused patients to go blind

Nursing homes fined $15M for staffing fraud after guilty verdict

Patient sues surgeon and Allina Health for allegedly removing the wrong organ during surgery

Lavish kickback scandal costs California health system $32M

Johnson & Johnson MedTech ordered to pay $147M for antitrust violations