Chapter 671

Medical Torts

CHAPTER 671

MEDICAL TORTS

Part I. General Provisions

Section

671-1 Definitions

671-2 Repealed

671-3 Informed consent

671-4 Notice of damages

671-5 Reporting and reviewing medical tort claims

671-6 Administration of chapter

671-7 Professional liability insurance; coverage for

telehealth

Part II. Medical Inquiry and Conciliation

671-11 Medical inquiry and conciliation panels; composition,

selection, compensation

671-11.5 Waiver of filing fee

   671-12 Review by panel required; notice; presentation of

inquiry; request for a more definite statement of

the inquiry

671-12.5 Certificate of consultation

    671-13 Medical inquiry and conciliation panel proceedings;

voluntary settlement

    671-14 Same; persons attending proceedings of panel

    671-15 Panel termination

  671-15.5 Expungement of records; malpractice insurance rates

671-16 Subsequent litigation; excluded evidence

  671-16.5 Arbitration; subsequent litigation

  671-16.6 Submission of inquiry to an alternative dispute

resolution provider

   671-17 Immunity of panel members from liability

671-18 Statute of limitations tolled

671-19 Duty to cooperate; assessment of costs and fees

671-20 Annual report

Part III. Patients’ Compensation Fund–Repealed

671-31 to 37 Repealed

Case Notes

As chapter rationally furthers legitimate state interest of assuring the provision of affordable health care to Hawaii’s citizens by requiring participation in medical malpractice dispute resolution such that the high cost of litigation may be avoided, plaintiff not denied equal protection of the laws. 89 H. 188, 970 P.2d 496 (1998).

Section 671-12(a) requires only that a claimant set forth facts upon which the claim is based and include the names of all parties against whom the claim is or may be made who are then known to the claimant; nowhere in §671-12 does it require plaintiffs to name all known negligent health care providers; having filed the requisite medical claim conciliation panel claim, participated in the required hearing, and rejected the panel’s finding of no actionable negligence, plaintiffs satisfied this chapter’s statutory prerequisites for filing suit in circuit court. 111 H. 74, 137 P.3d 980 (2006).

Where defendant was a Hawaii nonprofit organization, which served as the parent corporation of four affiliated hospitals in Hawaii, including Kapiolani, a wholly-owned subsidiary of defendant, defendant was a “health care provider” in the context of this chapter. 121 H. 235 (App.), 216 P.3d 1258 (2009).

Plaintiff’s claims of neglect, abuse, and failure to provide a safe home against care home defendants did not constitute “medical torts” within the meaning of §671-1; thus, plaintiff was not required to submit plaintiff’s claims to a medical claim conciliation panel (MCCP) pursuant to §§671-12 and 671-16 as a condition for plaintiff to file suit against defendants, and the circuit court erred in dismissing plaintiff’s suit based on plaintiff’s failure to submit plaintiff’s claims to a MCCP. 128 H. 405 (App.), 289 P.3d 1041 (2012).