Compensation for Moral Damages arising from Medical Treatments in Iranian and American Law

Medical errors included diagnostic error, medication error, surgical error and also infections associated healthcare can causes creation economic and moral damages to the patient. In the meantime, uncertainties about how to evaluate and compensate moral damage as a result of these mistakes, has forced different legal system to adopt different approaches. This article will try to examine, Iranian and American law approach for moral damage due to medical errors with a comparative attitude. In this regard in Iranian law although article 14 of the criminal procedure code of 2013 generally accepted moral damage as mental injuries or indignity and personal, family or social credit and it has ended to the previous ambiguities in this regard; note 2 of this article prohibit monetary compensation for such damages by prohibiting regulation about moral damages in respect of crimes involving blood money including medical errors. However, non-financial compensation such as the required apologize will still be available in Iranian law. In American law, in contrast, courts have issued multiple vote, have accepted monetary and non-financial compensation for different moral damages related to medical errors specially pain and suffering, emotional injuries, grief and sadness caused by the death of one’s relatives, apparent deformation of the body and loss of consortium. In this country, the task of evaluation and determination of moral damages has been left to the jury. However, determining of the high amount for moral damage and subsequently increasing actions of defensive medicine by physicians and also increasing costs for professional liability insurance called a civil liability crisis, have forced the legislator to reform in many states. Determining of capping non-economic damages related to medical errors should be considered the most important manifestation of such reforms in American law.