Couple takes ‘wrongful conception’ argument to trial as they fight hospital that botched vasectomy
In 2018, Steven Szlachtowski got a vasectomy. Four years later, his wife got pregnant
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
A Minnesota man got a vasectomy in 2018, yet four years later, his wife became pregnant. Now, the couple is suing for a slew of damages for the alleged “wrongful conception”, including the cost of raising the child.
Steven and Megan Szlachtowski filed the “wrongful conception” lawsuit in Hennepin County in 2023.
They claim in the lawsuit that Minnesota Urology in Edina committed medical malpractice, which led to the unplanned pregnancy of their son. The nurse had told Steven that his post-vasectomy semen sample was negative, but it was actually positive, according to the lawsuit viewed by The Minnesota Star Tribune.
Steven, who was 38 at the time, and Megan, who was 33, had three children under the age of five and were not planning on having more children, so they scheduled the vasectomy with Dr. Mark Fallen.
Several months after the procedure, Steven submitted a semen sample for post-procedure testing and according to Nurse Jennifer Whelchel, the results were negative.
Whelchel then told the couple that it was “OK to discontinue contraceptives,” according to the lawsuit.
Four years later, on March 23, 2023, Steven’s wife Megan found out she was pregnant. When Steven went back to Minnesota Urology the following day to have his semen tested, it came back positive.
The lawsuit claims that the nurse read the results incorrectly the first time, but it’s not clear how this happened. Whelchel died in 2022 at the age of 49.
But the Szlachtowskis argue that Minnesota Urology should take the fall for the nurse’s mistake and should be responsible for damages in connection, including physical pain, emotional distress, lost economic opportunities and the cost of raising the child.
A defense attorney for Minnesota Urology told Fox 9 that he’s handled cases like this one before, but that they have never gone to trial. Instead, the cases are usually dropped or settled.
Minnesota is one of just a handful of states that allow medical malpractice suits in cases of “wrongful conception,” Fox 9 reported.
A 1977 state Supreme Court decision, which will play a role in the Szlachtowskis lawsuit, wrote that courts should balance the “aid, comfort, and society” — the joy of having a child — against the cost of having to raise a child you tried to prevent.
Minnesota Urology does not deny that the nurse gave the couple incorrect test results and admits that it was negligent for her to tell them that it was OK to stop using contraception.
However, the company is seeking to limit its exposure in terms of damages.
Judge Bridget Sullivan has already ruled out some of the $6 million in punitive damages sought by the couple in the lawsuit because the mistake by Minnesota Urology was not malicious.