Laws vary from state to state, but the elements of a health care liability claim for medical malpractice or medical negligence are generally:

• a physician or health care provider is a defendant;

• the claim or claims at issue concern treatment, lack of treatment, or a departure from accepted standards of medical care or health care, or safety, professional, or administrative services directly related to health care;

• the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care;

• the defendant breached its duty of care by not meeting the required standard of care; and

• the defendant’s act or omission proximately caused the plaintiff’s injury (was the primary cause of the injury).

In Connecticut, medical malpractice claims are governed by both statutory and common law. To establish a medical malpractice claim, the plaintiff must demonstrate that a health care provider, such as a physician, owed a duty of care to the patient, breached that duty by failing to adhere to the accepted standards of medical practice, and that this breach was the proximate cause of the patient's injury. Connecticut law requires that before a lawsuit can be filed, a reasonable inquiry confirming that there is grounds for a good faith belief that negligence has occurred must be made. This is typically supported by a written and signed opinion of a similar health care provider, indicating that there appears to be evidence of medical negligence. The statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims in Connecticut is generally two years from the date the injury is sustained or discovered, but no more than three years from the date of the act or omission constituting the alleged negligence, with certain exceptions allowing for extended time in specific circumstances.