JUNE 5, 2012 · 5:30 PM
Fall River family settles against clinic
Fall River family settles against clinic — Boston.com June 5, 2012
FALL RIVER, Mass.—The family of a Fall River man who died hours after visiting a health clinic with chest pains has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed against the clinic’s operators and two employees for $2.5 million.
The suit said 33-year-old Eric Dupre went to the Prima Care walk-in clinic in Somerset in June 2006. He was sent home after his EKG was read within normal limits and died there 12 hours later.
The suit was filed in 2008 by his widow and the couple’s two children. The suit alleged negligence by Prima Care as well as by a doctor and physician’s assistant.
The Herald News ( http://bit.ly/LwfVgC) reports that the case was settled on May 23 following mediation. Prima Care, the doctor and the physician’s assistant, denied negligence or wrongdoing.
——
Information from: The Herald News,http://www.heraldnews.com/
© Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
JUNE 5, 2012 · 1:26 PM
Prima Care settles $2.5M lawsuit
Prima Care settles $2.5M lawsuit — The Herald News June 5, 2012 by Kevin P. O’Connor
http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x1842813951/Prima-Care-settles-2-5M-lawsuit
The family of a 33-year-old Fall River man agreed to a $2.5 million settlement from Prima Care, closing a case filed after the man’s death. Eric Dupre of Fall River went to the Prima Care walk-in clinic at 67 GAR Highway, Somerset, with chest pains on June 20, 2006. He was sent home after his EKG was read within normal limits. He died at home 12 hours later, according to the lawsuit filed in Superior Court.
By Kevin P. O’Connor
Posted Jun. 5, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated Jun 5, 2012 at 5:03 AM
FALL RIVER
The family of a 33-year-old Fall River man agreed to a $2.5 million settlement from Prima Care, closing a case filed after the man’s death.
Eric Dupre of Fall River went to the Prima Care walk-in clinic at 67 GAR Highway, Somerset, with chest pains on June 20, 2006. He was sent home after his EKG was read within normal limits. He died at home 12 hours later, according to the lawsuit filed in Superior Court.
The suit was filed in 2008 by Michelle Dupre, the widow of Eric Dupre, and by their two children, Riley and Zachary Dupre. The suit alleged the death of Eric Dupre was the result of negligent treatment by Prima Care and the doctor and physician’s assistant involved, Dr. James Stubbert and Amber Mello.
The case was settled on May 23 following mediation. In the settlement, Prima Care, the doctor and the physician’s assistant denied negligence or wrongdoing.
With the settlement, approved by Superior Court Judge Richard Moses, the insurance company for Prima Care was ordered to pay $1 million to plaintiffs by Monday with another $1.5 million paid to an annuity company by Friday.
The settlement orders that Halstrom Law Offices of Boston, which represented the Dupre family, receive a fee of $670,000 for its legal work and $37,559.08 for expenses.
A payment of $1.5 million will be sent to an annuity company to be paid out to the Dupre family in installments until the year 2040. Michelle Dupre will receive an immediate payment of $292,440.92. The annuity company will make payments to the family members monthly and annually. The two children will get four annual payments of $100,000 per year beginning when they are 22 and a payment of $2,500 per month from ages 26 to 30. There will be a lump sum payment at age 30 of $460,000 to Riley Dupre and of $385,000 to Zachary Dupre.
Besides the initial payment of $292,440.92, Michelle Dupre will get a monthly payment of $2,585, guaranteed for 20 years, beginning in 2020. She will also receive a $100,000 lump sum payment in 2022.
As part of the settlement, both sides promised to refrain from comment on the matter. A call to Prima Care’s corporate leaders was not returned.
Frederic N. Halstrom, a partner at Halstrom Law also declined comment, but warned people to approach the medical industry with caution.
“A hundred thousand people a year die in a hospital,” Halstrom said. “Don’t always believe what the health care providers tell you.”
He added: “There is a trend today to push people down to mid-level practitioners (nurses and physician assistants). They are making life-and-death decisions. The business model is for PAs and nurses to make decisions, not medical doctors. We tell people, demand to see a doctor, demand to see a doctor.”
Email Kevin P. O’Connor at http://koconnor@heraldnews.com