How Much Is Your Kidney Worth To You?

Here’s the scenario: you have one diseased kidney and one good one. Your doctor says the diseased kidney must be removed to save your life. Surgery is scheduled. When you regain consciousness they tell you “Sorry but we removed the wrong kidney. We took out your good one and left you with the diseased one. Good luck.” So due to medical malpractice you are left with a death sentence unless you get a donor. And, depending on what state you live in, your legal remedies are probably limited and capped. Despite these kinds of real life mistakes that happen across the country, we continue to see the health care industry lobbying Congress to enact more “tort reform” to end so-called frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits.

The facts of this scenario actually happened in Minnesota. And what consequences did the negligent physician face, you ask? He was barred from inpatient surgery, but could regain full surgical privileges if the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice later determines he is competent. The suspension was ordered in part because the same doctor had also previously taken a biopsy of another patient’s pancreas instead of his diseased kidney. One would think that a licensed urologist would know the difference between a pancreas and kidney, not to mention right from left. Luckily for this patient, he lived in Minnesota which is one of the few states which has refused to enact caps on medical malpractice lawsuits so he can pursue his rights in court for full compensation for what was done to him. If he had been a resident of the majority of other states, his recovery would be limited to the amount a bunch of politicians decided was “fair”.

So, how much is your kidney worth to you?