SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- Ten California hospitals have been fined for patient care errors that include removing the wrong kidney.
The state Department of Public Health on Thursday said it levied fines of $50,000 to $100,000 each on medical centers in Los Angeles, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay area, and in Stanislaus and San Bernardino counties.
Regulators say the errors involved safety violations that might have caused death or serious injury to patients.
In one case, St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton was fined $100,000 for removing the wrong kidney from a patient.
In San Diego, A surgeon cutting a man's wrong testicle resulted in the state Department of Public Health issuing a $75,000 fine to Sharp Healthcare Thursday, 10 News reports.
The hospitals can appeal the penalties.
