The overall amount of compensation handed out by the State Claims Agency (SCA) for hospital and medical negligence claims amounts to more than half a billion euro from in the last two years.
A response to a Dáil question included previously unreleased figures. Minister for Health Simon Harris provided the figures which indicate that the amount of of compensation paid out by the State Claims Agency (SCA) in 2018 was €268.45m for hospital and medical negligence cases – an increase of €18.6 million – or 7.5% – on the €249.77m paid out in 2017. This leaves the total amount of compensation for hospital and medical negligence handed over in 2017-18 to €518.2m.
The figures were released by the State Claims Agency (SCA) for a response to a Dáil Question from Michael McGrath T.D., Fianna Fáil’s Finance spokesman. It also said that the highest sum handed over in 2018 for was €15.5m to an individual suffering with cerebral palsy.
Injury compensation legal actions made in relation to birth/pregnancy negligence or cerebral palsy accounted for seven of the top ten hospital or medical negligence payouts in 2018. The figures indicate that, in the 7 cerebral palsy cases, a complete amount of €60.3m compensation was paid out in order to give adequate treatment for the people involved for the rest of their lives.
The other entries in the top ten were cases involving cluding a pay-out of €6.3 million for a clinical procedure at surgery and a separate payout of €5.9m under the same auspices.
The lowest amount handed over in the top ten was €4.37m relating to a clinical procedure in the Gynaecology service.