A lawyer whose client was awarded $7.2 million by a Los Angeles jury last week said the case serves as a cautionary tale for what can happen when a health care insurer's screening and referral procedures take precedence over patient care.

Robert Gianelli of Los Angeles' Gianelli & Morris said his client, Terry LaRue, spent nearly seven weeks being shuttled between doctors and care company representatives while a fractured hand remained untreated.

By the time LaRue was finally scheduled for surgery with a hand surgeon who had hospital privileges at an in-network hospital, it was too late to prevent permanent, painful damage.