Detroit News - 3/2/00Home care extended for disfigured boy Judge orders Beaumont to continue payments
for injuries from hospital fire at birthThe family of a 2-year-old boy badly burned in a 1997 fire at Beaumont Hospital has filed suit against the hospital and two doctors. Craig and Sherry LaPorte of Sterling Heights say their son, then 2 months old, was burned when the bedding of his neonatal care unit caught fire as a doctor used an electric cauterizing tool to insert a feeding line.
An Oakland County judge ordered Beaumont Hospital to keep paying for in-home care for the 2-year-old boy severely burned and disfigured. Circuit Judge Gene Schnelz issued a temporary restraining order Wednesday against the hospital, which had stopped paying for half of Nathan LaPorte's at-home care as of Wednesday morning.
Their attorney, Geoffrey Fieger, contends cutting off the boy's at-home care is in retaliation for the family refusing to accept a $300,000 settlement. "It's clear. They offered to pay $300,000 to settle. We said no and they said they would cut off home health care," Fieger said Wednesday. Lawyers for Beaumont will appear for a hearing March 15 to determine if stopping payment for the boy's care violates an agreement with the LaPortes.
Ilene Wolff, spokeswoman for Beaumont, said the hospital only agreed to pay for at-home care for five months -- not indefinitely. She also said the care was needed for complications due to Nathan's prematurity, not his fire injuries.
The fire was ruled accidental, she said. "We, of course, will comply with Judge Schnelz's" ruling, Wolff said. Nathan was born 16 weeks premature, one of a set of quadruplets, in July 1997. According to the lawsuit filed in October, Dr. Winston Chan and Dr. Alan Biddinger were performing a routine intravenous insertion into Nathan's neck when oxygen being fed to the infant caught fire from an electric cauterizing device.
The baby suffered burns to his legs, face, arms and lungs and had to spend nearly two years in the hospital. He joined his siblings at home in June and now requires round-the-clock care. Craig LaPorte attended Wednesday's hearing and said he's confident the judge will ensure Nathan's care at least until the lawsuit is resolved. "Our agreement was obvious," he said.
Update: Detroit Free Press - 3/23The hospital now is required to continue the $10,000 monthly payments until April 3. The family's insurer, Blue Cross & Blue Shield, pays another $10,000 a month, according to hospital attorney Keefe Brooks.
On April 3, U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmonds is expected to rule on whether the hospital should continue paying throughout a trial to determine whether the accidental burning has anything to do with Nathan's current condition.
Trial date pending.