New Health Care Liability Action Opinion: Tennessee Supreme Court Holds That Expert Witness Is Not Qualified to Testify under Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-26-115(b) Because Witness Did Not Meet Licensure Requirements

The Tennessee Supreme Court released its opinion today in Young v. Frist Cardiology, PLLC, No. M2019-00316-SC-R11-CV (Tenn. Apr. 20, 2020).  The syllabus from the slip opinion reads:

We granted review to determine whether a doctor is qualified to testify in a health care liability case as an expert witness under Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-26- 115(b) when the doctor was not licensed to practice medicine in Tennessee or a contiguous state within one year of the alleged injury or wrongful conduct, but was practicing under a licensure exemption. Section 29-26-115(b) provides that a doctor is competent to testify as an expert witness only if the doctor is licensed to practice medicine in Tennessee or a contiguous state and the doctor was practicing medicine in Tennessee or a contiguous state during the year before the date of the alleged injury or wrongful conduct. We hold that under Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-26-115(b), a doctor, who was permitted to practice medicine in Tennessee under a statutory licensure exemption but was not licensed to practice medicine in Tennessee or a contiguous state during the year before the date of the alleged injury or wrongful conduct, does not meet the requirements of section 29-26-115(b) to testify as an expert witness in a health care liability action. We reverse and remand this case to the trial court for further proceedings.

Here is a link to the slip opinion:

http://www.tncourts.gov/sites/default/files/young.vickie.opn_.pdf

NOTE: This opinion highlights why it is so important to make certain that an expert medical witness meets the qualifications under Tennessee's Health Care Liability Act.  This is a correct decision in my opinion. 

Also, the Court noted that the requirements of section 29-26-115(b) can be waived upon remand.  It is very likely that the trial court will grant such a waiver.