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 Nebraska, medical malpractice claims are governed by the Nebraska Hospital-Medical Liability Act. Under this Act, a health care provider can be held liable for medical malpractice if they fail to meet the standard of care expected of them, resulting in injury to a patient. The elements of a medical malpractice claim in Nebraska include establishing that the health care provider 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. Additionally, Nebraska imposes a cap on total damages for medical malpractice claims, and plaintiffs are required to file a claim within the statute of limitations, which is generally two years from the date of the act or omission giving rise to the injury. It is also required that a pre-suit medical review panel must review the claim before it proceeds to court, unless this step is waived by both parties.