Houston Heart Surgeon Wins $6.4 Million Defamation Case Regarding Peer Review
By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law
On March 29, 2017, a Houston heart surgeon was awarded $6.4 million in damages after a jury found that Memorial Hermann Health System (Memorial) defamed his reputation. The suit arose out of a peer review proceeding against Dr. Miguel Gomez. He claimed that the peer review was not about the quality of health care, but was to retaliate against him for moving his lucrative practice to a competing hospital.
Dr. Gomez sued Memorial in 2012, contending the hospital launched a “whisper campaign” to smear his reputation to keep patients from following him to his new location.
Hospitals […]