re: #109 jcm

Insurance companies and hospitals will settle, it’s cheaper to pay out a couple hundred thou, than to spend a million or two to win the case in court.

Absolutely correct. And part of the big rise in health care costs is all the expensive tests doctors order - not because they think the tests will aid them in treating the patient, but will be able to be used to defend them should they get sued.
One of my best friends (and internist for 34 years in NYC) had only ONE lawsuit brought against him for the sum of $100,000.00 He told his insurance company that he had done nothing wrong and they told him that either he agreed to settle for the $100,000 (which was half the limit of the insurance companies’ liability - this is obvously a couple of decades ago) or they would not represent him and would not cough up the dough up to the $200,000.00 limit of his insurance and said “read the fine print in our contract with you.”
Yep, if the doctor didn’t agree to a settlement that the insurance company would fund, that would also
“settle” the matter, they were under no liability to continue to protect him or pay for any damages at all if he retained a private attorney.
Nice effin’ work if you can get it and have NO moral scruples whatsoever.