Islington fails to recoup care costs Local authorities cannot
recoup care costs from organisations held responsible for causing
injuries, a judge ruled in a test case last week.
The Court of Appeal ruled that Islington Council could not sue
University College Hospital, London, for the £81,210 it spent
caring for
a woman injured due to hospital negligence.
The woman, known as Mrs J, had a severe stroke in February 1998
after a member of staff at University College Hospital told her she
did not need to take blood-thinning tablets.
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The council paid for her care until she received compensation from
the hospital in September 2003.
The judge, Lord Justice Buxton, said: "It is difficult to see any
good reason why Islington rather than UCH should pay for Mrs J's
care."
But he added it was up to parliament rather than the courts to
decide whether the law of negligence needed to be altered.
