October 1, 2009 Earlier today, the Supreme Court of Kentucky rendered a unanimous decision in Tina Martin, Administratrix of the Estate of Billie Carol Shreve, Deceased; and Donald Ray Shreve, Individually v. Ohio County Hospital Corporation (No. 2008-SC-000211), holding, for the first time, that KRS 411.145 allows a spouse to claim loss of consortium after the death of his or her spouse.History of Spousal Consortium in KentuckyPrior to 1970, Kentucky common law recognized only a husband's right to recover for loss of consortium with his wife in the time period leading up to her death. However, Kentucky's highest court extended this right to wives in Kotsiris v. Ling, 451 S.W.2d 411, 412 (Ky. 1970), stating that "considerations militating in favor of recognition of the wife's cause of action outweigh the considerations on which the doctrine of stare decisis rests," and holding that "a wife has a cause of action for loss of consortium of her husband resulting from an injury to the husband due to the negligent act of another."