$32.5 Million Settlement for Boy Left with Severe Brain Injury After Reading Hospital Birth

In September 2018, Miranda Garcia went to Reading Hospital in Berks County, Pennsylvania, to deliver her child. During labor, signs of an intra-amniotic infection developed -- a condition commonly called chorioamnionitis. According to the lawsuit filed by Ross Feller Casey, the obstetrics team failed to administer antibiotics when those warning signs appeared and did not respond adequately to indicators of fetal distress.

The delayed emergency Cesarean section that followed allowed oxygen deprivation to progress long enough to cause hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, a form of brain damage resulting from inadequate blood and oxygen flow to a newborn's brain. Compounding the harm, the hospital team also failed to administer therapeutic hypothermia -- the only accepted intervention for limiting HIE injury -- in the critical window after birth.

By the time the family filed suit in 2022, the boy's condition had become extensive. He developed spastic quadriplegia, cannot speak, has cortical blindness, and requires a feeding tube and around-the-clock nursing care. The lawsuit named Reading Hospital and obstetrician Dominic Cammarano as defendants.

Trial began in April 2024 at the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. After opening arguments, the parties reached a $32.5 million settlement. Reading Hospital agreed to pay without admitting fault or liability.

Attorneys Matt Casey, Jennifer Russell, and Scott Vezina represented the family for Ross Feller Casey. The $32.5 million figure was reported at the time as a record-level medical malpractice settlement in Pennsylvania.