Douglas McPherson v. Shea Ear Clinic, et al.

This case involves an ear clinic, a patient, and his physician. The patient did not have health insurance, but he was enrolled in a type of discount plan that contracts with healthcare providers to secure reduced rates on medical services for the plan’s members. The patient scheduled a treatment with the ear clinic, and he believed that the clinic and his physician participated in the discount plan. The patient underwent pre-surgery testing before learning that neither the clinic nor the physician accepted the discount plan. The patient refused to pay full price for the treatment, and it was never performed. However, the patient was billed for the pre-surgery testing. The patient filed suit against the clinic and his physician for breach of contract, but the trial court dismissed his complaint for failure to state a claim. The patient appealed to this Court, and we reversed. We also instructed the trial court to address the patient’s concerns that the court had not accommodated his hearing disability as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act. On remand, the Tennessee Supreme Court assigned a senior judge to preside over the case, and it appears that no oral proceedings took place thereafter. However, the patient attempted to join Shelby County, various county officials, and officers of the court as defendants, claiming that he had been damaged by the county and court’s failure to accommodate his disability. The patient also amended his complaint to add claims for medical malpractice and fraud against the clinic and his physician. The trial court denied the patient’s petition for joinder of the claims against the additional defendants. The court granted summary judgment to the clinic and physician on the breach of contract and medical malpractice claims, and the claim for fraud was dismissed for failure to state a cause of action. For the following reasons, we affirm.