A Hamilton County jury returned a unanimous $10 million medical malpractice verdict against TriHealth, Inc. on May 1, 2026. The verdict came in the death of 69-year-old grandmother Terri Price, who died of septic shock after sepsis treatment orders went unfilled in Good Samaritan Hospital's geriatric psychiatric unit. The Cincinnati case was tried by plaintiff attorneys Charlie Rittgers and Matt Nakajima of Rittgers Rittgers & Nakajima after nearly six years of litigation.
Case at a Glance
- Verdict: $10,000,000
- Case Type: Medical Malpractice / Wrongful Death
- Court: Hamilton County Common Pleas Court, Ohio
- Verdict Date: May 1, 2026
- Plaintiff: Estate of Terri Price (represented by daughter Jennifer Wiesner)
- Defendant: TriHealth, Inc. / Good Samaritan Hospital
- Plaintiff Attorneys: Charlie Rittgers and Matt Nakajima, Rittgers Rittgers & Nakajima
What Happened to Terri Price?
Terri Price was a 69-year-old grandmother who, by her family's account, had been healthy and active until late March 2020. According to her daughter Jennifer Wiesner, Price began acting out of character that month, becoming confused and paranoid. The family initially suspected anxiety.
On March 22, 2020, Price was admitted to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. Because UC Medical Center reportedly did not have an open bed, she was transferred to TriHealth's Good Samaritan Hospital. UC personnel sent Price with documentation noting an active infection and a diagnosis of "neurocognitive disorder due to a medical condition."
At Good Samaritan, Price was placed in the geriatric psychiatric unit. Her family was not permitted to visit. Within six days, she was dead.
Why the Jury Held Good Samaritan Liable for Medical Malpractice
Court records and trial testimony indicate that Good Samaritan physicians ordered IV fluids, sepsis antibiotics, and potassium for Price as her condition declined. According to the plaintiffs, those orders sat unfulfilled hour after hour, with no nursing notes documenting why they were never administered.
“These orders were placed, and Terri sat on the psychiatric unit for hour after hour without receiving the treatment these doctors ordered,” Rittgers told reporters after the verdict. "This care is some of the worst care I've seen in my career."
Price suffered a perforated bowel, went into septic shock, and died on March 29, 2020. The plaintiffs argued that once a rapid-response event occurred, Price should have been moved out of the psychiatric unit and into a medical unit equipped to treat acute infection. She was not.
The jury, which included three members with ties to the medical field, returned its verdict unanimously.
What the Plaintiff Attorneys Argued
Rittgers and Nakajima built the case around documentation gaps and a transfer-protocol breakdown. Physician orders existed, the medical condition was identified at intake, and the patient remained in a unit not staffed to manage acute sepsis.
“It took six years for somebody to recognize that her mother should still be here today,” Rittgers said after the verdict, adding that the family hopes the result "brings positive changes to our health care system."
For Charlie Rittgers, a trial lawyer with a record in both criminal defense and serious-injury cases, the verdict reinforced the weight of jury composition. "The fact that they understood the egregiousness of this care and signified what was taken, the verdict does mean more," he said.
What the $10 Million Verdict Means for Ohio Hospitals
TriHealth, the hospital system that operates Good Samaritan, issued a statement saying it was "deeply disappointed" with the verdict and is considering an appeal. Spokesman Thomas Lange said the organization believes "the jury's verdict is not consistent with the high quality of care provided at Good Samaritan Hospital."
For the Price family, the result is about more than the dollar figure. Wiesner has called for hospital policy changes, specifically a requirement that psychiatric-unit patients be transferred to medical care the moment a medical emergency is identified.
The verdict adds to a growing body of Ohio wrongful death and medical malpractice verdicts involving documentation failures and inter-unit transfer protocols. It also lands in a year when Cincinnati-area medical malpractice verdicts have drawn renewed attention from the plaintiff bar across Hamilton County.
If you or someone you love has been seriously injured by a hospital error, verdicts like this one show what juries are willing to award when the evidence is well-documented and the trial team is prepared. Find a plaintiff lawyer in Ohio on Major Verdict who has the trial record to back it up.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What types of damages can an Ohio family recover in a wrongful death medical malpractice case?
Ohio wrongful death claims allow recovery for the survivors' loss of support, services, society, and companionship, as well as the deceased's mental anguish. Compensatory damages for non-economic losses in medical malpractice cases are subject to statutory caps in Ohio, though those caps do not apply to claims involving catastrophic injury or wrongful death in every circumstance. The Price verdict was reported as a single $10 million figure without a public breakdown between economic and non-economic damages.
Q: Can TriHealth appeal the $10 million verdict?
Yes. TriHealth has publicly stated it is considering an appeal of the May 1, 2026 verdict. In Ohio, a defendant typically has 30 days from the entry of judgment to file a notice of appeal. Hamilton County appeals go to the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. An appeal does not automatically reverse a jury verdict, and most appeals are decided on procedural or evidentiary grounds rather than re-weighing the facts.
Q: How long do families have to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Ohio?
Ohio's medical malpractice statute of limitations is generally one year from the date the cause of action accrues. A four-year statute of repose bars most claims filed more than four years after the alleged negligent act. Wrongful death claims have their own two-year statute of limitations that runs from the date of death. Families who believe a hospital error caused a loved one's death should consult an Ohio plaintiff attorney as soon as possible because these deadlines are short and strictly enforced.
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