Spanish (19) who was switched in an incubator as a baby, demands three million in damages

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8 September 2021

A Spanish woman (19) has demanded compensation of three million euros, because she was switched as a baby in a hospital in the city of Logroño. The painful mistake left the woman in a dysfunctional family where her parents could not care for her. The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, was raised by her alleged grandmother.

The other woman, who was born five hours earlier and therefore also grew up in the wrong family, has since been informed. According to the newspaper 'El Pais' and television channel RTVE, she has not yet lodged a complaint. The health authorities recognize "the human error", but they only want to pay 215,000 euros in compensation.

According to regional health minister Sara Alba, both babies were born prematurely and ended up in the incubator. They were then mistakenly switched there, the woman's lawyer, José Saez-Morga, told the Europa Press news agency on Tuesday.

DNA-tests

The mistake was only discovered in 2017, in the context of a maintenance case. DNA tests revealed that neither the alleged father nor the mother were the girl's biological parents.

The teen is now waiting for the results of her suspected father's DNA test to provide absolute certainty about her biological parents. She would not have a mother in that case, the woman died three years ago.

According to Minister Alba, the current security measures in the delivery rooms make a mix-up like in 2002 “practically impossible”.

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