If a loved one dies in a nursing home in Hollywood, Homestead, Miami, or anywhere in the South Florida area, Florida’s wrongful death laws may apply if that fatality was caused by nursing home negligence or recklessness. A wrongful death claim allows families to recover compensation for pain and suffering, final medical bills, memorial costs, and more.
If a loved one has died because of the COVID-19 virus, the last thing on your mind may be filing a claim. However, legal claims for COVID-19-related fatalities can help hold nursing homes accountable and can help you financially recover following the loss. These claims, whether by families or as part of class action lawsuits, can help implement changes in the nursing home industry.
The Importance of Filing a Wrongful Death ClaimPersonal loss such as a death in the family can impact your finances considerably. Final medical bills, especially for COVID-19, can be significant. The hospitalization costs, medical treatments, and experimental medications can be costly. The cost of a funeral alone can add up to thousands of dollars. In addition, while there is no price tag on the pain and suffering you face for losing an elderly loved one, you may need counselling, therapy, or medical support to process your grief, and these medical services do cost money.
Compensation helps pay for medical costs, final costs, funeral expenses, counseling, and other bills. In addition, a legal claim can often push industries and nursing homes to make significant changes to help prevent similar tragedies in the future. A few years ago, when nursing home residents died in 2017 due to inadequate air conditioning systems at several facilities following hurricane Irma, legal claims were one factor which helped push for the introduction of new regulations which require all nursing homes to now have adequate air-conditioning and climate control systems which have back-up systems.
Proving a Wrongful Death Claim in South FloridaTo prove a wrongful death claim against a nursing home, you must first be an immediate family member. You must also be able to prove that the death of your family member was preventable and was caused by recklessness or negligence. An attorney can help you find documentation and evidence of negligence, even in cases where a nursing home tries to hide facts.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be difficult to tell whether you have a wrongful death claim or not. If someone close to you has died at a nursing home, your best option is to consult with a nursing home abuse and negligence attorney in Hollywood for your area. An attorney can tell you whether you have a claim. An attorney can also establish how much your claim may be worth and who the liable parties may be.
If you have lost a family member due to COVID-19 and think it may be linked to nursing home negligence, contact Flaxman Law Group at 1-866-352-9626 (1-866-FLAXMAN) for a free accident consultation with an experienced and compassionate nursing home abuse and negligence attorney.