In 1998, Sidsel Størmer (23) was born at Ullevål hospital with a serious eye disease. The disease is not properly followed up by the health service, and Sidsel is visually impaired forever. The state states that she is entitled to compensation as a result of inadequate treatment, and will be reimbursed for the extra costs she has due to the visual impairment, for the rest of her life. – In reality, I have not received the compensation I have been awarded, Sidsel says today. When the state calculated how much Sidsel would receive in compensation, it was taken for granted that she would invest the money in a way that increases the value by 5 percent each year. The expected return was deducted from the amount actually paid out. – If I do not achieve the return they expect me to, then I will not get the compensation I am entitled to, Sidsel says. Everything costs extra when you are visually impaired – The compensation is there so that I can live my everyday life. Every single thing you do, from going to the store to working full time, costs extra when you are visually impaired, says Sidsel. After she was awarded compensation, a significant amount of money came into Sidsel’s account. But this payment is not large enough to cover her costs for many decades to come. The state reckons that an expected future return on the payment is part of the compensation. Only when you combine the actual payment, and the expected return on this, do you have enough money to cover Sidsel’s expenses through a long human life. Sidsel has just finished a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at Cambridge University in the UK. Photo: Carl Størmer In addition to making everyday life go up with a visual impairment, Sidsel and her family must be active in money management. – I’m not an investor. Being disabled in itself means a lot of extra work. When you are also asked to manage money, it is anti-social, since you have to spend a lot, a lot of time on it, says Sidsel. It is difficult to get a sum of money to grow steadily by 5 percent a year, when you adjust for inflation. For example, the Petroleum Fund has achieved an annual return of 4.6 percent since its inception in 1998, according to its own website. Going forward, Norges Bank expects the Petroleum Fund to achieve a return of a modest 2 per cent each year. Change is coming, but not for Sidsel? Since Sidsel was paid compensation, the state has changed its practice, and now expects recipients of patient injury compensation to manage an annual return of 4 percent. This is also excessively optimistic, says lawyer Mari Grefslie, who specializes in patient injury cases. Her experience is that many people are unable to invest their compensation in a way that ensures a high enough increase in value. Lawyer Mari Grefslie believes that many in practice do not receive full compensation in patient injury cases. Photo: Lars Erik Skrefsrud / news – The starting point is that the injured party is entitled to full compensation, so that you do not come out worse than if the injury had not occurred. When it is assumed that the compensation will grow in value by 4 percent, the patient does not receive full compensation, Grefslie says. In October last year, the Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness proposed that the state in the future should lower the expected annual return in patient injury cases to 2.5 per cent. If this happens, the compensation payments to patients will be much larger. The law that stipulates this has so far not been changed, despite the fact that the consultation deadline for the proposal expired six months ago. – This case has a high priority for the government, and we will in a very short time establish a regulation. We want to take political control over this to correct imbalances that have developed in the system over time, says State Secretary Hans-Petter Aasen (Sp). State Secretary Hans-Petter Aasen (Sp) promises change, but not for patients who have already been paid compensation. Photo: Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness Aasen believes that the state should expect a lower return in patient injury cases in the future, to ensure that people actually receive the compensation they are entitled to. At the same time, he suggests that a change in the law will not mean more money for Sidsel and others who have been paid compensation with an expected return of 4 or 5 percent. This is despite the fact that a patient injury compensation must cover expenses throughout life. – It will not be unnatural that this will apply to all cases where compensation is to be determined after the date of entry into force, says Aasen. Sidsel disagrees with the Secretary of State, and believes that a possible change in the law should also have consequences for patients who have already received compensation. – If they carry this out, they acknowledge in a way that they have made a mistake in relation to people who have received compensation before. And then I think it’s a big injustice if it does not have consequences. Thoughts or tips? Do you have thoughts about the case you have read or tips for other cases about patient injury compensation? Feel free to send me an e-mail!
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Sidsel (23) must beat the Petroleum Fund to get the compensation she is entitled to – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
