Cleveland-based University Hospitals filed a motion May 11 to dismiss a lawsuit against the institution resulting from a failure at its fertility clinic earlier this year that destroyed more than 4,000 eggs and embryos, WKYC 3 reports.
Here are three things to know about the motion.
1. The motion, filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, claims lawyers representing patients did not file an affidavit of merit from a medical expert explaining why the lawsuit against the hospital has legal relevance, as required under state law, according to the report. Therefore, plaintiffs should not be awarded financial damages as outlined in their lawsuit against UH, the report states.
2. More than 4,000 eggs and embryos were destroyed in March after a human error at the UH Fertility Center, which is housed in the Beachwood, Ohio-based University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center, caused the temperature in the freezer where the eggs were stored to drop drastically. Roughly 950 patients were affected by the incident, according to WKYC 3. Some of the patients filed lawsuits against UH, which a judge later consolidated into a single lawsuit.
3. In a May 14 statement to Becker's Hospital Review regarding its motion to dismiss, UH said it "continues to offer clinical and emotional support to patients affected by this difficult situation."
"With regard to the legal proceeding ... when a lawsuit is filed, Ohio law requires that all medical claims be accompanied by an affidavit of merit. In this matter, the plaintiffs' attorneys did not file the necessary documentation. So we have asked the court to dismiss the claims that were not properly supported when filed — in keeping with Ohio law," the statement continued.