Michael died at home in his bed and the medical examiner determined that his cause of death was an accidental overdose.  Seattle Children’s Hospital admitted that it made an error and apologized.  The hospital also said that it has changed its procedures.

Michael’s mother, Tammy Jarbo-Blankenship, had a valid point when she said that Michael shouldn’t have had to die for the hospital to put safeguards in place to make sure this type of situation doesn’t happen.

The tragic case of Michael Blankenship makes one think about all the debate over tort reform. Basically, national tort reform would tell the Blankenship family “tough luck.”    People have made the argument about the government imposing a “cap” on medical malpractice damages.  Should the government decide how much Michael’s life was worth without knowing the details about this young boy or his family?  It should be left up to a jury to make this decision.