Change of Venue Denied for Nevada Hepatitis Trials

LAS VEGAS—District Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez denied a change of venue request from attorneys representing Dr. Dipak Desai, who is facing 22 medical malpractice lawsuits from patients who claim they were exposed to hepatitis C from the unsterilized equipment used at his Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada.

Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed since the February 2008 announcement that 50,000 patients might have been exposed to hepatitis and HIV because of unsafe injection practices at center. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the number eventually grew to 60,000, and health officials have linked nine hepatitis C cases to that clinic and the Desert Shadow office; another 105 cases are possibly related.