Most kids who get braces have them for two or three years. Devin Bost sported his for eleven, which, in retrospect, was a horrible idea. By the time the braces were taken off, several of his teeth had rotted down to the jaw. Over the past four years, the Oregon resident, now twenty-two, has spent a reported thirty thousand dollars on dental care to try and make up for the mishap, and now he wants his former dentist to fork over almost two hundred thousand dollars as an apology.
Of course, Brad Chvatal, D.M.D., doesn’t see things quite the same way. He says he couldn’t have possibly treated Bost for eleven years because he didn’t even have his license to deal with braces for the first five years the kid had them. In addition, no one has gotten into specifics, but both parties agree the client did not attend most of his dental appointments. In fact, were it not for Chvatal, there’s a possibility he could still have his braces on.
According to CBS, Chvatal’s office called Bost when he was eighteen, imploring him to make an appointment immediately to get the braces taken off. In the eyes of the plaintiff’s attorney, that’s evidence of Bost falling through the cracks. The defense will likely argue, however, that a patient is responsible for his own medical care to the point where he or she needs to actually come to the office.
There's no word on where Bost's parents were during these eleven years, but we'll keep you updated as more facts come out.
