Colorado § 13-64-401 - Qualifications as expert witness in medical malpractice actions or proceedings.

§ 13-64-401. Qualifications as expert witness in medical malpractice actions or proceedings.

No person shall be qualified to testify as an expert witness concerning issues of negligence in any medical malpractice action or proceeding against a physician unless he not only is a licensed physician but can demonstrate by competent evidence that, as a result of training, education, knowledge, and experience in the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease or injury which is the subject matter of the action or proceeding against the physician defendant, he was substantially familiar with applicable standards of care and practice as they relate to the act or omission which is the subject of the claim on the date of the incident. The court shall not permit an expert in one medical subspecialty to testify against a physician in another medical subspecialty unless, in addition to such a showing of substantial familiarity, there is a showing that the standards of care and practice in the two fields are similar. The limitations in this section shall not apply to expert witnesses testifying as to the degree or permanency of medical or physical impairment.

Source: L. 88: Entire article added, p. 620, § 1, effective July 1.

ANNOTATION

Doctrine of res ipsa loquitur cannot be used to avoid the requirements of this section, at least when there is no evidence or inference that the defendant had any control over the instrumentality causing the injury. Bilawsky v. Faseehudin, 916 P.2d 586 (Colo. App. 1995).

A physician with a different specialty than that of the defendant may, consistent with this section, opine that the relevant standard of care is a general standard of care common to the medical profession, applicable to any physician. Panczner v. Fraser, 374 F. Supp. 3d 1063 (D. Colo. 2019).

Applied in Gasteazoro v. Catholic Health Init. Colo., 2014 COA 134, 408 P.3d 874.