Dec. 20 (UPI) — Late-night host Trevor Noah has filed a lawsuit against a New York City orthopedic doctor and hospital claiming he suffered “grievous” and permanent injuries as the result of “negligence” during an unspecified medical procedure.
Noah, 37, filed the lawsuit against Dr. Riley J. Williams III and the Hospital for Special Surgery in November after he received treatment from August 2020 to December 2020, including surgery performed Nov. 23 of last year.
The lawsuit, filed in New York Supreme Court on Nov. 29, alleges Noah was a patient of Williams for “various medical conditions” but that the doctor and the hospital “failed in their care” which “constituted professional negligence.”
The Daily Show host alleges in the lawsuit that the hospital failed to use approved methods in performing surgery on him while misdiagnosing his ailments and not prescribing proper medications, which caused him “serious personal injury,” the lawsuit reads.
As a result of the surgery, Noah “was rendered sick, sore lame and disabled,” the lawsuit reads. The lawsuit alleges that, in addition to severe injuries, he also suffered “severe nervous shock, mental anguish, severe emotional distress, and great physical pain” leaving him confined to a bed.
“Trevor C. Noah … was prevented from engaging in his usual occupation for a long period of time,” the lawsuit reads. “Since some of his injuries are of a permanent nature, he will continue to suffer similar damages in the future.”
Noah also accused the hospital of failing to obtain proper and informed consent about the medical treatment he received. The lawsuit indicated that had Noah received information identifying the “risks, hazards and alternatives to treatment” that he received, consent would not have been given.
It was not immediately clear what procedures Noah received and what conditions he suffered from requiring medical care.
Noah is seeking an unspecified amount in damages, with the lawsuit noting that he “has been damaged in an amount which exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts.”
According to his bio on the HHS website, Williams specializes in knee, shoulder and elbow surgery at the hospital’s Sports Medicine Institute.
Williams, a professor at Weill Cornell Medical College, earned his medical degree from Stanford University and serves as team physician for USA Basketball as well as head orthopedic surgeon for the Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty basketball teams and the New York Red Bulls soccer team.
The renowned doctor has previously worked with the New York Mets and New York Giants sports clubs, according to the hospital.
The HHS denied Noah’s claims in a statement to the New York Daily News but said federal law prevented the hospital from further discussing the treatment he received.
“We have shared with Mr. Noah’s attorney a detailed rebuttal to the claims, which are meritless,” the hospital said.
