Here’s a sad, true story. On September 17, construction worker Timothy Hill of Willston, Vermont was struck in the head with a shovel. He did not seem seriously injured and soon left the job site in his pickup. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Hill lost consciousness behind the wheel. His truck jumped a curb on Route 2 in Williston and plowed into a roadside food stand, injuring five people. One of the people struck, Barbara Gregory, died five days later. A second, Brian Marcelino, was seriously injured. Three others were treated for minor injuries.
Accidents happen. Construction is a business with potential and kinetic hazards. Even with hard hats, steel-toed shoes, safety glasses and leather gloves, accidents – like the kind that befell Mr. Hill – will happen. He could not have foreseen that he would pass out behind the wheel. In one newspaper report, he recounted that the last thing he remembered was feeling odd and trying to pull over.
If ever there was a blameless, no-bad-guy tragedy, this is it. There will be lawsuits. There will have to be lawsuits.
Why? Because Ms. Gregory died five days later, because Mr. Marcelino was badly injured. No amount of money can bring Ms. Gregory back, but in the days before her death, I’m sure she ran up an impressive hospital bill. Mr. Marcelino, whom we all hope will fully recover, will likely run up an even larger bill.
I’m not privy to the insurance standing of either person, but I don’t think I run the risk of contradiction by predicting that the kind of medical treatment these two folks needed would quickly outstrip the health care coverage of the average American. Should Mr. Marcelino’s family go bankrupt paying his bills? Should Ms. Gregory’s heirs?
Who should be sued? The owner of the roadside stand was clearly blameless. Perhaps an attorney can make the case that Mr. Hill should not have gotten behind the wheel so soon after being struck on the head. That argument might win in court, but to what end? I doubt Mr. Hill can pay the hospital bills any more than the Gregory and Marcelino families.
No, the only way these bills are going to be paid is by finding an entity with deep enough pockets to pay the cost – and that will be Mr. Hill’s employer. The news has not identified which construction company Mr. Hill works for, but they will be sued, and they – or their insurance company – will very likely pay.
Let me emphasize that none of the plaintiffs will bear ill-will toward Mr. Hill’s employer. The lawsuit will just be another outgrowth of the accident, a tragedy not of the magnitude of Ms. Gregory’s death or Mr. Marcelino’s injuries, but a tragedy just the same.
If this accident had occurred 50 miles further north, there would be no need for lawsuits, because 50 miles north of Williston is Canada. The national health care program there would have cared for Ms. Gregory, Mr. Marcelino and the less-injured people and everyone could concentrate on grief and convalescence.
I find it odd that the same politicians who at this minute are blocking health care reform in America are the same ones who call most loudly for “tort reform.” They claim we are an overly litigious society; that we sue at the drop of a hat. The lawyers representing the Gregory family and Mr. Marcelino are not, however, lurid caricatures of “ambulance chasers.”
On the other hand, it would be wrong to call any lawsuit rising from this accident a search for justice. There is no justice to be found here. In the end, I’m sure the construction company’s insurer will pay the bills and that won’t be justice, but it will be the least unjust outcome.
The construction company’s premiums will rise and in this economy, with rates of construction already down, that will hurt. Perhaps Mr. Hill and/or some of his co-workers will be laid off. Perhaps his employer will shut down altogether, putting everyone out of work.
I don’t think Americans are as litigious as some politicians make us out to be. Yes, there are some frivolous suits in the courts. Always have been, always will be. But because our system of financing health care lacks any shred of common sense, the courts stay very busy with legitimate and tragic suits, like the ones that will rise from the accident on Route 2.
How much does that cost us, as a society? This week, the Senate Finance Committee voted down two versions of a public option for health insurance. Without some means – like a public option – to hold the insurance industry accountable, this kind of tragedy will be replayed, again and again.
An American Tragedy
Here’s a sad, true story. On September 17, construction worker Timothy Hill of Willston, Vermont was struck in the head with a shovel. He did not seem seriously injured and soon left the job site in his pickup. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Hill lost consciousness behind the wheel. His truck jumped a curb on Route 2 in Williston and plowed into a roadside food stand, injuring five people. One of the people struck, Barbara Gregory, died five days later. A second, Brian Marcelino, was seriously injured. Three others were treated for minor injuries.
Accidents happen. Construction is a business with potential and kinetic hazards. Even with hard hats, steel-toed shoes, safety glasses and leather gloves, accidents – like the kind that befell Mr. Hill – will happen. He could not have foreseen that he would pass out behind the wheel. In one newspaper report, he recounted that the last thing he remembered was feeling odd and trying to pull over.
If ever there was a blameless, no-bad-guy tragedy, this is it. There will be lawsuits. There will have to be lawsuits.
Why? Because Ms. Gregory died five days later, because Mr. Marcelino was badly injured. No amount of money can bring Ms. Gregory back, but in the days before her death, I’m sure she ran up an impressive hospital bill. Mr. Marcelino, whom we all hope will fully recover, will likely run up an even larger bill.
I’m not privy to the insurance standing of either person, but I don’t think I run the risk of contradiction by predicting that the kind of medical treatment these two folks needed would quickly outstrip the health care coverage of the average American. Should Mr. Marcelino’s family go bankrupt paying his bills? Should Ms. Gregory’s heirs?
Who should be sued? The owner of the roadside stand was clearly blameless. Perhaps an attorney can make the case that Mr. Hill should not have gotten behind the wheel so soon after being struck on the head. That argument might win in court, but to what end? I doubt Mr. Hill can pay the hospital bills any more than the Gregory and Marcelino families.
No, the only way these bills are going to be paid is by finding an entity with deep enough pockets to pay the cost – and that will be Mr. Hill’s employer. The news has not identified which construction company Mr. Hill works for, but they will be sued, and they – or their insurance company – will very likely pay.
Let me emphasize that none of the plaintiffs will bear ill-will toward Mr. Hill’s employer. The lawsuit will just be another outgrowth of the accident, a tragedy not of the magnitude of Ms. Gregory’s death or Mr. Marcelino’s injuries, but a tragedy just the same.
If this accident had occurred 50 miles further north, there would be no need for lawsuits, because 50 miles north of Williston is Canada. The national health care program there would have cared for Ms. Gregory, Mr. Marcelino and the less-injured people and everyone could concentrate on grief and convalescence.
I find it odd that the same politicians who at this minute are blocking health care reform in America are the same ones who call most loudly for “tort reform.” They claim we are an overly litigious society; that we sue at the drop of a hat. The lawyers representing the Gregory family and Mr. Marcelino are not, however, lurid caricatures of “ambulance chasers.”
On the other hand, it would be wrong to call any lawsuit rising from this accident a search for justice. There is no justice to be found here. In the end, I’m sure the construction company’s insurer will pay the bills and that won’t be justice, but it will be the least unjust outcome.
The construction company’s premiums will rise and in this economy, with rates of construction already down, that will hurt. Perhaps Mr. Hill and/or some of his co-workers will be laid off. Perhaps his employer will shut down altogether, putting everyone out of work.
I don’t think Americans are as litigious as some politicians make us out to be. Yes, there are some frivolous suits in the courts. Always have been, always will be. But because our system of financing health care lacks any shred of common sense, the courts stay very busy with legitimate and tragic suits, like the ones that will rise from the accident on Route 2.
How much does that cost us, as a society? This week, the Senate Finance Committee voted down two versions of a public option for health insurance. Without some means – like a public option – to hold the insurance industry accountable, this kind of tragedy will be replayed, again and again.
© Mark Floegel, 2009