FREDERICTON -- A tentative settlement of more than $1.2 million has been reached in a class-action lawsuit against a New Brunswick hospital over the use of unsterilized biopsy forceps over a 14-year period.
In 2013, the Miramichi Regional Hospital urged nearly 2,500 women to get tested for hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV after discovering the problem.
At the time, the Horizon Health Network said that while the forceps were sterilized at the end of every day, some forceps were only cleaned and disinfected before being reused during the day.
Lawyer Maddy Carter says the individual payments will be between $350 and $1,000, depending on the number of people who submit claims and are still alive at the time of payment.
The settlement must still be approved by the courts, and a hearing date has been set for March 20, 2018.
Carter says the settlement is not an admission of guilt by the hospital or health authority, and none of the allegations in the suit has been proven in court.
