Spine and orthopedic providers, device manufacturers and healthcare organizations have faced legal challenges across malpractice, product liability, fraud, cybersecurity and employment disputes this year.
Publicly disclosed awards and settlements total at least $48.7 million across 12 cases covered by Becker’s. Because several cases remain pending or were resolved for undisclosed amounts, that figure represents a minimum.
This roundup is based on Becker’s reporting and is not intended to represent every legal, regulatory and compliance case reported in 2026.
Malpractice: Publicly disclosed verdicts and settlements totaled $39.3 million across three cases. A Florida jury awarded $27 million after a delayed diagnosis of spinal cord compression left a patient partially paralyzed. Melbourne, Fla.-based Holmes Regional Medical Center, part of Rockledge, Fla.-based Health First, was found 75% at fault; the system said it plans to appeal.
At Orange, Calif.-based UCI Health, the University of California Board of Regents paid $11.5 million after a routine knee procedure left a patient’s leg amputated when a severed artery went undetected. During the litigation, the plaintiff’s legal team alleged UCI Health had destroyed surgical video and internal staff messages.
A third case came out of Northern Light Maine Coast Hospital in Ellsworth, where a jury awarded $750,000 after a surgeon reviewed the wrong X-ray and delayed a revision surgery.
Device litigation: Abbott is defending a lawsuit over an Eterna spinal cord stimulator that a patient alleges was improperly programmed and worsened her pain. Similar lawsuits have also been filed against Abbott, Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Nevro over spinal cord stimulation systems, alleging device malfunctions and repeat surgeries. In June, a federal judicial panel consolidated the Boston Scientific cases into multidistrict litigation.
Separately, Alphatec Spine is defending a lawsuit alleging a pedicle screw fractured during a 2023 spinal fusion at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, requiring a second surgery. It is the company’s second pedicle screw fracture complaint this year after a federal court in Arizona allowed a similar case to proceed in January.
Compliance and fraud: Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare Health System agreed to pay $3.7 million to resolve allegations it billed federal healthcare programs for medically unnecessary spine surgeries. Des Plaines, Ill.-based Illinois Bone & Joint Institute paid $4 million to settle a class-action lawsuit related to a 2024 data breach.
SpineFrontier’s former CFO pleaded guilty to paying more than $540,000 in bribes to induce surgeons to use the company’s products. Meanwhile, Florida Orthopedics and Neurosurgery in Palm Springs was sued by Allstate over an alleged billing kickback scheme.
Employment disputes: A former CEO of Des Moines, Iowa-based Iowa Orthopedic Center won a $1.3 million arbitration award related to his termination, while former NFL quarterback Tyrod Taylor reached an undisclosed settlement in his malpractice lawsuit against orthopedic surgeon David Gazzaniga, MD, after seeking at least $5 million in damages.
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